Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Degrees of Uncertainty. Navigating the Changing Terrain of University Finance. 2013. Pages: 42

The report deals with two aspects of tuition fees in Canada. Firstly, the report illustrates the development of tuition fees in the Canadian higher education sector in the past and forecasts possible trends. Secondly, it presents a regional comparison of Canadian provinces concerning tuition fees and affordability for median income families. Pointing out the decline in federal funding of 50 % between 1992 and 2012 when measured as proportion of GDP, the authors of the study emphasise the negative effects of increasing reliance on individualised finance of the higher education sector. According to the authors, the steadily rising tuition fees risk to have a negative impact on Canada’s overall economic prosperity by creating debt loads for current and prospective students. To this add other dimensions such as economic uncertainty and less good prospects in finding employment. The authors also emphasise the effects of rising tuition fees on interregional mobility of students and their effects on costs of living.

The report is available here.