Opinion 1
Several
countries have free post-secondary education for their residents this includes
Norway, Finland, Hungary and more. Unfortunately, Canada is not yet one of
them. Canada was ranked 12th for the highest student debt in the
world in 2018 where students owed over $28 billion in student loans.
Free
tuition is good because students have the ability to explore what they want to
do with their future without putting themselves in debt and then having to
spend the first few or many years of their working lives paying it off. They
would get more of a chance to explore different majors and fields of interest
without the price tag. Students should not be discriminated against just
because they cannot afford to get the proper education that can improve their
life and help them to get the employment and future they want. Because of the
costs of education many students choose not to attend post-secondary school at
all.
Some
post-secondary institutions have become so expensive that even middle-class
families can’t afford to send their children to them. Take a minute and imagine
how difficult it must be for students who must pay their own way or families
who do not have the ability to pay for their children’s education. Not all
students have the privilege of having what we call a Registered Education
Saving Plan (RESP).
The
average student in British Columbia will finish university with a student loan
of $11,200 that is just the BC student loan debt, when the federal amount is
added it averages out to approximately $28,000. With most students making
between $7,500 to $42,000 per year it could take several years to pay off the
student loans they have racked up.
Students
who must take out a loan in order to pay for their school will ultimately end
up paying more than students who have the ability to pay out of pocket due to
interest rates on student loans. 52% of British Columbian students will
graduate without student debt. That means that 48% of those students are
working out of school to either get themselves out of debt or put themselves
even further into debt.
The
National observer believes that by redistributing wealth from many upper-class
households, more Canadians would be able to pay for higher learning. By
redistributing funds to students, more students would have the ability to
explore and discover which academic route they want to take without putting
themselves into debt.
Many
students don’t have the ability to attend post-secondary institutions because
they have to work in order to pay tuition fees. With this being said, BC should
have free tuition as it would improve the quality of for the future
generations.
I definitely agree that students should have access to further education if they choose to take it. Many jobs now adays require a post secondary education or prerequisites that just aren't available or even possible for some individuals to acquire past high school graduation. Free (or perhaps even drastically cheaper) tuition, would help people acquire the skills needed to meet these employers demands.
ReplyDeleteIt is crazy that Canadas students are so in debt while other countries have free education! I believe to free education would be so beneficial for students who are hoping to attend post-secondary school. Even if they have the best grades in high school doesn't mean they can pay for post secondary! This would help help British Columbia finding the best candidates for their jobs who are educated.
ReplyDeleteIt feels kind of like we are being cheated doesn't it? The fact that other countries have already implemented free tuition is in a way frustrating, because it means that in the global job market, we come out of the figurative gate and fall flat on our faces, tripping over the mountain of student debt we have incurred.
ReplyDelete