Students welcome renewed tuition freeze with backfill funding

News Staff - Thu Nov 30, 2017

EDMONTON, AB (November 30, 2017) – Students at the University of Alberta are pleased that the Government of Alberta has announced the renewal of the tuition freeze for the 2018-19 year, and are particularly pleased that the government has guaranteed to provide backfill funding.

“This is an important step in ensuring that post-secondary education remains affordable for all students,” said Reed Larsen, VP External of the University of Alberta Students’ Union. “We’re very pleased with the extension of the tuition freeze for another year, and the additional funding means that students’ quality of education will be protected.”

While the continued tuition freeze will ensure education costs remains predictable and affordable for domestic students during the ongoing review of post-secondary funding models, the freeze does not apply to international students. Since tuition was first frozen at the 2014-15 levels, international student tuition has increased by seven per cent, significantly outpacing inflation. Alberta’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by only three per cent in the same time period.

“International students still feel that they have been forgotten,” said Marina Banister, president of the University of Alberta Students’ Union. “International student have been left out of the equation. Since the freeze, their tuition has increased to help balance the University’s books. Students are advocating that the tuition regulation be moved into legislation, and is expanded to include international student tuition.”

The Students’ Union will continue to advocate for a sustainable tuition model that keeps tuition affordable and accessible while maintaining the high level of quality students expect.

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