Watch above: Joining a national movement, students at the University of Saskatchewan grabbed placards and rallied against tuition. Joel Senick finds out whether a no tuition policy at post-secondary institutions is an option.
SASKATOON – Two university groups are advocating for the overhaul of Canada’s post-secondary education system, including at the University of Saskatchewan. Joining a national movement, post-secondary students grabbed placards and rallied against tuition in Saskatoon.
The Socialist Student Association and the Revolutionary Student Movement held a rally at the university Tuesday in an effort to promote reforms they say will make university more accessible to all.
One of their ideas is the elimination of tuition costs.
“So many other countries have established this, countries like Norway and Sweden,” said Mairi Anderson, one of the event organizers.
“It is possible, it is being done.”
Anderson said the goal was to begin a national conversation on the issue of accessibility by joining students from across Canada who are also calling for reform.
“In order to have no tuition we also need a lot more public funding, we need higher taxes and more focus on public education rather than privatization of university,” she said.
READ MORE: Tuition on the rise at the University of Saskatchewan
Interim University of Saskatchewan Provost Ernie Barber said he believes the elimination of tuition isn’t practical or smart policy.
“There are a significant number of students who actually can afford the cost to come to university and there are others who can’t,” said Barber.
“We want to make sure that we deliver value for the money spent and we want to work on making sure that those students, who truly cannot afford a university education, that we make it possible for them to do that.”
Barber added, in general, the university’s tuition is comparable and in some cases cheaper than its counterparts like the University of Calgary or Montreal’s McGill University.
He also noted that the institution had doubled its residency, added child care spaces and allocated money towards student awards, in an effort to make the school more accessible.
“All of these things add up, so tuition is one of the factors and there are a number of other things that make university accessible or not,” said Barber.
Eliminating tuition wasn’t the only priority noted during the group’s rally on Tuesday. Leaders spoke on the rising cost of rent in the city as well as barriers that aboriginals face in attending university, among other issues.
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