Nova Scotia students are happy the province is freezing tuition, but still have some concerns.
The government announced the new funding agreements last week.
The Students Nova Scotia group says the freeze is especially important in this province, where domestic undergraduate tuition is 33 per cent above the national average, according to a news release.
They also appreciate the agreements include more work-integrated learning and more measures to get schools to build housing.
“We are pleased to see student affordability and employability included as priorities for the upcoming years,” says Prajwal Shetty, Chair of Students Nova Scotia. “It is important that student supports are prioritized, as students contribute the single largest revenue source for post-secondary institutions across the province.”
But they say the limited 2 per cent increase to university funding will limit what schools can offer.
The Association of Nova Scotia University Teachers says the agreements mark a troubling shift, according to a news release.
Funding is now tied to performance outcomes, and they say that gives the government too much control.
A faculty member from Saint Mary’s says arts courses will be cut by more than half because of this, from 140 to about 63 in the 2025-26 academic year.
The group says the agreements are a product of Bill 12, which passed in April in the legislature, which gives the province the ability to tie their priorities to how schools spend taxpayer money.
They say universities are not made to meet short-term economic goals.
“Universities exist to expand knowledge, challenge ideas, and educate citizens — not to produce
short-term economic outputs,” says Teresa Workman, ANSUT’s Communications Manager. “Tying funding to narrow, market-driven targets will devalue the broader role universities play in society and could put entire disciplines at risk.”
