(Quebec) The 33% increase in tuition fees paid by students from the rest of Canada who come to attend McGill and Concordia universities “seems little justified and risks compromising access to quality education and depriving society of potential talents”, supports a committee responsible for advising the Minister of Higher Education, Pascal Déry.
The Advisory Committee on Financial Accessibility to Studies issued an “unfavorable opinion” on January 19 regarding the new pricing adopted by the Legault government. Pascale Déry has not made this opinion public to date.
“The Committee calls for a reassessment of this pricing to preserve equal opportunities and promote an inclusive and diverse educational environment. Although the need to finance education is indisputable, it is imperative to find solutions that do not negatively affect the accessibility, diversity and attractiveness of Quebec educational institutions,” writes the president of the committee, Éric Tessier, director of student affairs at Cégep de Salaberry-de-Valleyfield.
The Globe and Mail also reported on Wednesday that applications for registration at McGill and Concordia universities submitted by students from other Canadian provinces fell by 22% and 27% respectively. The two English-speaking universities attribute this drop to the new pricing announced by Quebec in December.
Pascal Déry has decided that tuition fees will increase from $9,000 to $12,000 per year for “Canadian students not residents of Quebec”, starting this fall. This measure affects the English-speaking universities McGill and Concordia – Bishop’s benefits from a form of exemption. Students from the rest of Canada who study at a French-speaking university will continue to pay $9,000.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Pascale Déry
“The Committee questions the establishment of this amount” of $12,000, we can read in its opinion. “He would have liked to have more details regarding the rationale on which the establishment of this new rate is based. »
According to him, it would have been preferable to continue to set tuition fees for students from the rest of Canada closer to the average of the average fees observed in the other provinces. This average amounts to $7,800, he notes in his report. He deplores that “the principle of setting rights based on the average of rights in Canada (is) not respected”.
“Increasing tuition fees risks making post-secondary education in Quebec less accessible for non-resident Canadians,” he adds.
The increase announced by Quebec “will not only impact financial accessibility to studies, but also risks calling into question the principle of the law aimed at limiting the indexation of several government rates to 3%, in particular the indexation of tuition fees. schooling, until 2026-2027, observes the committee.
He hopes that his opinion “will contribute to a re-evaluation of the current decision”.
However, Pascale Déry will not revise her position. His office argues that the new pricing was officially adopted on January 15 and that the Committee submitted its opinion on January 19, four days late. “He did not respect the prescribed deadline,” he pleads.
The minister had given him 30 days, from December 14, to produce his opinion, “in accordance with the law” on the Ministry of Higher Education. This law requires him to seek the opinion of the committee when modifying tuition fees. The minister must grant the committee a period of time that “cannot be less than 30 days” to give its opinion, according to the law.
The advisory committee on financial accessibility to studies is made up of 16 members appointed by the government after consultation with different groups. Seven members are students, five occupy administrative positions in universities and CEGEPs, three represent socio-economic groups and one is a teacher. A representative of the ministry is part of the committee.
Currently, according to the ministry’s website, the committee has only seven members, including only one student. There would therefore be nine vacant positions.