Tuition not quite free - Patrick Newman - February 15, 2018
Maybe tuition shouldn’t be completely free. The increasing costs of secondary education are a barrier for some, but enrolment in post-secondary institutes has greatly increased in the last 50 years.(Page, Kehoe, 2016) Students have access to grants, scholarships, and bursaries more than ever before, even those from low-income backgrounds. The problem many students face is graduating perhaps that is what society should be focusing on. Paying off loans, managing a family, housing, and health issues prevent many students from achieving their dreams.
Graduating saddled with debt is saddled with debt that is dragging them down. Even if they can get a decent job in a chosen field, it may take years to pay off their debt, holding them back from purchasing homes or advancing their careers further. However none of that matters if students can’t even finish their degree.
Some argue that free tuition is wasted on students with lower abilities. That those who can’t finish fail because they lack motivation and choose to party or chase useless degrees. Matthew Lau, a finance and economics student at the University of Toronto, argues that free tuition won’t provide society with more doctors or engineers but with more party animals.
“Marginal enrolment from eliminating tuition fees will likely come from unmotivated, lower-ability students, and in less practical programs like theatre history or equity studies,” said Lau in a Financial Post article. “These are students for whom university education is an unprofitable investment unless taxpayers are footing most or all of the tuition bill.” (Lau, 2016)
What Lau doesn’t take into account is that it’s not those with low abilities that aren’t completing school. Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Benedict Cumberbatch, all gifted in their careers failed at college university. It’s students with costs and problems outside the realm of school that may fail to graduate.
In BC, the cost of living is so high that an individual working full time can barely afford to get by and in many cases can’t. For parents wanting to attend classes, the cost of childcare prohibitive. For others it may be depression, anxiety, or feelings of isolation that without help, they may not be able to complete their courses even if they have the funds.
The answer to tuition the question of providing tuition at no cost should may be that instead of making school free, the answer may be that the cost of school should include more supports. More funding for counselling, more funding for childcare, and for housing. (Lawrence, 2017) This should also include the elimination of student loan interest or at least a reduction. (Page, Kehoe, 2016)
The BC Government forgives the provincial portion of a student loan for each year of an employee works for the public service. Perhaps governments should extend loan forgiveness policies in exchange for loyalty and hard work when students become fully employed. Some think that the provinces will end up paying for schooling in the end or at least taking on many of the costs as in Newfoundland. (Yelland, 2015)
Education should be seen as a boon to society and an investment, not as a debt to society or as a drag on tax payer dollars. But making all tuition free may not be the answer as those fees could be used to help pay for more. To help ensure their is an incentive to work hard but also to ensure everyone has an equal chance to graduate. Everyone benefits from a good education in the long run as society will have better trades, doctors, engineers; even actors.
Apa Citations
Lawrence, D. (2017, April 08). Free university tuition with a side of salary, please. Retrieved February 19, 2018, from https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/education/canadian-university-report/free-university-tuition-with-a-side-of-salary-please/article32408409/
Lau, M. (2016, March 01). Why free tuition helps all the wrong students. Retrieved February 10, 2018, from http://business.financialpost.com/opinion/why-free-tuition-helps-all-the-wrong-students
Page, L., & Kehoe, S. S. (2016, May 26). Is a tuition-free policy enough to ensure college success? Retrieved February 10, 2018, from http://theconversation.com/is-a-tuition-free-policy-enough-to-ensure-college-success-57947
Yelland, T. (2015, April 28) Why Canada Should Have Free University Tuition, and How it Could. (2018). Vice. Retrieved 15 February 2018, from https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/dpkkpx/why-canada-should-have-free-university-tuition-and-how-it-could-172
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