A Generation in Debt

Postsecondary student and teacher organisations agree that student debt has gotten out of hand

Our generation is the most debt-ridden generation in history, according to a report by the Canadian Federation of Students. The organisation cites a decline in government funding for post-secondary education as the root cause for the growing issue of wealth inequality between generations.

The Canadian Federation of Students is the largest student organisation in the country. The group advocates for better access to post-secondary education and argues that, over the years, the barriers to a quality education in Canada and abroad have become increasingly difficult for many young people to overcome.

“The trend that we’ve observed since specifically around the 90’s is that we’ve seen funding cuts to the post-secondary education sector around Canada,” says CFS Deputy Chairperson Anne Marie Roy. “This chronic lack of funding at our colleges and universities has led to a situation now where students and our families are having to take on the cost of post-secondary education.”

Average tuition fees in Canada have jumped by over 137 per cent in the last twenty-five years, according to the CFS.

The problem is compounded by the fact that, while students are paying more for tuition, young people are also earning significantly less than they have in the past. According to Roy, around 50 per cent of job losses caused by the 2008 global recession were youth employment opportunities, and the number of students currently working in unpaid internships only adds to the problem of youth wealth inequality.

“We know that we’re facing an increasingly precarious labor market. We know that there’s an estimated 300,000 students working in unpaid internships today,” says Roy. “It’s a situation where students are not being paid for their work and we think that’s incredibly problematic.”

According to the CFS, the average post-secondary student now graduates with over $28,000 worth of debt. This number is directly related to decreased funding for post-secondary institutions, as the cost is passed down to the student.

“We’ve been observing these trends for the last few decades and we know, with the increase of tuition fees students have had, to take on greater amounts of debt,” says Roy.

The most drastic change being advocated for by the CFS is the complete elimination of tuition fees in Canada. It’s not as far fetched of an idea as it sounds. Several countries in Europe including Germany, Austria, and Sweden have implemented free post-secondary education to great success.

“The elimination of tuition fees in Canada is the most effective way to make sure that anybody who wants to get a college or university education can do so,” says Roy.

It’s the hope of the CFS that Trudeau’s Liberal government will be more open to lowering the barriers to post-secondary education, arguing that the previous regime did more harm than good by cutting funding to post-secondary institutions.

“After ten years of a government that’s been slashing funding to post secondary education, we now have a government that has at least shown a willingness to reinvest in this sector and acknowledge that the rising cost of tuition has made education increasingly out of reach for Canadians.”

The CFS’ sentiments are mirrored by those of The Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of British Columbia. In a recent interview, George Davison, president of the FPSE, said that “the cost of education is being transferred increasingly to students and their families, and it’s gotten to the point where it’s a barrier to many students.”

Davison points out that, as tuitions costs and student debt have increased over the years, institution revenue has increased from $450 million in 2001 to an expected $1.9 billion next year.

“Students are paying more for post-secondary than the government is and we see that playing out in student debt,” says Davison.