The rising cost of living is hitting many post-secondary students hard. For his second text on the subject, The duty collected the testimonies of two students who became tens of thousands of dollars in debt.
“My return to studies is one of my greatest prides, but it is a total financial failure. Knowing all this, I don’t know if I would do it again,” says Bianka Letarte-Durand.
By videoconference from her home in the Val-Bélair district of Quebec, the 38-year-old woman recounts the journey that led her to fall into private debt of nearly $80,000, come close to bankruptcy and shake her mental health .
It was with enthusiasm that this single mother of two children began a bachelor’s degree in 2019, usually lasting four years, in secondary teaching, a profession hit by a serious labor shortage. A paralegal by trade, Bianka had been self-employed in residential housekeeping for nearly three years because it gave her the flexibility to raise her children, now ages 10 and 13. Then, she became passionate about teaching when she questioned her career ambitions.
A full-time student at Laval University, she received between $18,000 and $25,000 in scholarships annually from student financial aid during her first three years of study. This is among the highest amounts that a university student can receive, since she is a single mother with no outside support, has a recognized functional disability and has not declared any income from job, devoting himself entirely to his studies and his family.
Despite everything, this aid was not enough to pay for her school expenses, her current bills, food and clothing for her children. So she started taking out loans on her credit card and line of credit from her financial institution. She also withdrew the amount she had accumulated so far in her registered retirement savings plan.
“In the fall of 2022, with the rise in interest rates, I completely lost control,” recalls Bianka, who assures that she previously had a good credit history. She ultimately had to make a consumer proposal to her creditors to avoid bankruptcy. This solution will affect its borrowing capacity for several years.
Unpaid internships
Teaching internships, which are unpaid, could not help him overcome his setbacks. She therefore began to substitute in schools, while reducing the number of courses per session that she took. Declaring a gross income of nearly $25,000 in 2022, she saw her financial aid for studies melt away like snow in the sun. The Ministry of Higher Education deducted half of his declared employment income, or approximately $12,500. Once taxes have been removed, we can calculate that she lost in the stock market most of what she earned while working.
Today, Bianka works full-time as a substitute in schools and as a substitute in a daycare, while pursuing a fifth year of her baccalaureate.
“There’s no way I’m going to give up after losing everything,” she says, even if her financial setbacks have slowed her progress. It must also be said that she really enjoys her work as a teacher. “I have the bug,” she assures us.
The thirty-year-old must soon complete a fourth internship, but she has made a delicate decision. “If I see that the internships are still not paid, I will wait a year. I can’t afford to pay tuition fees and have no income during that time, because university rules mean I can’t do substitute teaching at the same time. »
Bianka believes that financial aid for studies, although more generous to people who have children, is not adapted to them. While there is a severe shortage of teachers in schools and bonuses are given to retirees to return to the classroom, she also wonders why students in this field are not encouraged more by the state. There is the scholarship of $2,500 per session from Perspective Québec, which aims to encourage studies in certain strategic areas, but it can only be granted at the end of each session.
Bianka’s case is not anecdotal. A survey on student financing published this week by the Student Union, which brings together university student associations in Quebec, was conducted in fall 2022 among 12,000 students from 13 establishments. It appears in particular that 41.1% of the total debts held by respondents come from private financial institutions rather than the provincial program. And the average bank loan is $22,892.
Too rich for help, too poor to pay the bills
Debt also affects college students. Mégane Bourdon, president of the Student Association of the Cégep de Joliette, says she sees a large number of her colleagues in financial distress, not having time to sleep between their classes and their jobs to pay their bills and debts. In short, she knows a lot of people like her.
When she returned to school, after a few years during which she worked as a business manager after finishing high school, Mégane checked if she could qualify for the Loans and Bursaries Program. “I had a salary that was too high to have access to it,” reports the human sciences student.
How can you continue to pay your mortgage, your taxes, your car, essential for getting around Lanaudière, your grocery store? She had to resolve to continue working full time, while taking the minimum courses necessary to be considered full time at college. The same story repeated itself the following year. Until the twenty-something suffered a burnout.
“I was off work, but I was not entitled to employment insurance because I am studying. So I started taking out private loans to meet my needs,” says Mégane, who believes she has reached a catastrophic level of debt of tens of thousands of dollars.
Ironically, since she worked little in 2023, she could now be eligible for around $10,000 in student financial aid. But this amount will not be enough to meet his needs.
“With the rising cost of living, I would have to be able to access this $10,000 grant while working 40 hours a week,” said the woman who believes that access to government loans and grants is too restricted. .
At the head of her student association, Mégane has made a lot of effort to support those living in precarious circumstances. “Last session, we gave emergency grants for the first time. We had a budget of $3,000 and we spent it in a month and a half, so we increased it to $5,000,” says the union enthusiast.
Every day, the idea of dropping out of school crosses Mégane’s mind. “During midterms and end of semesters, that’s when we question our studies. It is extremely demanding, but the hope for a better future keeps the students’ motivation alive. »