The numbers don’t lie. More and more students are pursuing post-secondary studies. About half a million attend colleges and universities each year, and we can only be happy about that. Technical DEC, pre-university, bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate, postdoctorate, certificate, DESS, short postgraduate program… the list is long and confuses the uninitiated. But it shows one thing: progress since the Quiet Revolution is dazzling, immense and exceptional.
Quebec stands out in many ways when it comes to higher education. Whether it is the great accessibility of CEGEP or the lower university tuition fees than elsewhere in Canada and North America, access to financial aid for studies, the development of our college and university institutions throughout the territory, and the multiple targeted program initiatives that meet specific needs, all of this is impressive. But challenges exist.
Let’s start with the CEGEPs. I’ve visited almost all of them in recent years. It’s a network that’s only a little over 50 years old, where each college is deeply intertwined with the fabric of its community, with a pathway designed to provide progressive and well-calibrated access to higher education with innovative programs that are the pride of the entire network, and not just the regions where they are deployed. From its inception, the network’s goal was accessibility to postsecondary education. Five decades later, we can say that mission accomplished! But the network remains fragile; we must take care of it.
One of the challenges is to attract and retain students in the region, both those from Quebec and those from the international Francophonie, by encouraging the offering of coveted or exclusive programs. I am thinking, for example, of the École supérieure en art et technologie des médias (ATM) at the Cégep de Jonquière, the Techniques d’aménagement cynégétique et halieutique (TACH) program at the Cégep de Baie-Comeau, which French students love, or the photography program offered at the Cégep de Matane.
And throughout the territory, courses meet workforce needs, whether in specialized education, early childhood, engineering, respiratory therapy, nursing and so on.
With mobility projects for students from urban areas, we could ensure greater attendance at CEGEPs in the region and thus guarantee their sustainability.
We also need to invest in student housing throughout Quebec and in infrastructure, particularly in urban areas where some CEGEPs are overcrowded or dilapidated.
CEGEPs have also created many CCTTs (college technology transfer centers), treasures that are too little known. The research that is done there is impressive and firmly anchored in the community, in connection with businesses and social organizations.
A quick word on the question of so-called “general” training at CEGEP, which was born with their creation and which has often been called into question.
I deeply believe in the importance and sustainability of this set of French, philosophy, second language and physical education courses. This common core of courses was at the heart of a major reflection during the creation of CEGEPs. It was defined as the necessary foundation for all young adults, whether they are enrolled in the pre-university DEC or the technical DEC, to help them consolidate, among other things, their knowledge of the French language and Francophone culture, in addition to learning to understand the major eras in the history of thought. We need, more than ever, to reflect on the social, environmental, psychological and philosophical issues that mark our time.
Depriving new generations of this foundation of knowledge and reflection would be a serious mistake. Which does not prevent discussion on the content and organization of these courses, and college teachers regularly consider it. A comprehensive report recently made public explains all these issues well and is worth reading.1.
CEGEPs are also places of learning about life and have become key players in the economic, social, cultural and intellectual development of all the regions where they are present.
As for universities, they share with the college network the concern for accessibility, which allows thousands, if not millions, of students to access higher education without getting into heavy debt like our neighbors to the South.
In the 1960s, the Parent Commission set itself the goal of establishing a public education system accessible to all levels of study throughout Quebec. This commission set the stage for the creation of the Université du Québec, a flagship that continues to grow and renew itself. This network complemented that of existing universities in major urban centres. The university graduation rate has increased considerably over the past 50 years, which makes it possible to offer society graduates in all fields, from philosophy to astrophysics, from engineering to cutting-edge medicine, from artificial intelligence to neuroscience.
The two public higher education networks are our collective pride and must be valued and supported. Because a society with a high level of education can much better meet the immense challenges of the planet. The presence of so many higher education institutions contributes to Quebec’s momentum, its prosperity and its recognition well beyond our borders.
1. Read the report Cross-examination of the conditions for educational success in the first literature and philosophy courses at CEGEP
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