In the province of Québec, an access to education model was put in place in the 1960s, with the creation of the first CEGEPs and the Université du Québec Network as well as with the adoption of the Act respecting financial assistance for education expenses. Based on the concept of redistribution, the SFA program continues to have positive effects on access to higher education for several groups of the student population (e.g., first generation, lower socio-economic background) by breaking down financial barriers and inequalities of opportunity (Bouchard St-Amant, 2020; Colas & al., 2021).

Financial access to education has also been helped by the fact that tuition fees have been frozen at various times since the 1960s as a result of the resolve of a structured student movement with a strong public presence (Beaupré-Lavallée & Bégin-Caouette, 2019). Since the “Maple Spring” of 2012, the consensus on indexing tuition fees to inflation has been shared by all stakeholders in higher education.

Yet inflation has been rising sharply in recent years: the Consumer Price Index rose by almost 11% in 2022, a 40-year high since the 1982 recession (Statistics Canada, 2023).

Within the student population itself, the impact of inflation is uneven, affecting some students more than others, including those in one or more of the following situations (Bottorff & al., 2020; Savoie-Roskos & al., 2023):

  • From lower socio-economic backgrounds;
  • With a disability;
  • First-generation higher education students;
  • From another country;
  • Living on campus;
  • Part of sexual and gender diversity;
  • Identification with an ethnocultural minority;
  • Having dependents.

In other words, the risk of financial insecurity is higher among students who are already vulnerable to social and economic inequalities (ibid.).

Financial access to education is therefore compromised by food insecurity and a lack of affordable housing (UTILE, 2022b). The consequences of this rise in the cost of living are not yet fully known, but growing consumer credit debt (Fiset & Pugliese, 2021) is likely to increase among the student population.

Furthermore, the Québec student financial assistance program has a solid foundation on which it can build in these uncertain economic times, so that no student is left behind.

As training grounds for critical judgment, could higher education institutions become the ideal place for financial education adapted to the realities of today’s students?

References

Beaupré-Lavallée, A. and Bégin-Caouette, O. (2019). Collective student action and student associations in Quebec. Dans W. Archer et H. S. Schuetze (dir.), Preparing students for life and work : policies and reforms affecting higher education’s principal mission (p. 255‑271). Brill. https://papyrus.bib.umontreal.ca/xmlui/handle/1866/24712 

Bottorff, J. L., Hamilton, C., Huisken, A. & Taylor, D. (2020). Correlates of Food Insecurity Among Undergraduate Students. Canadian Journal of Higher Education / Revue canadienne d’enseignement supérieur, 50(2), 15‑23. https://doi.org/10.47678/cjhe.v50i2.188699 

Bouchard St-Amant, P. A. (2020). A literature review on financial student aid. Rapport préparé pour Statutory and Grants & Contributions Evaluation, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). 

Colas, M., Findeisen, S. & Sachs, D. (2021). Optimal Need-Based Financial Aid. Journal of Political Economy, 129(2), 492‑533. https://econpapers.repec.org/article/ucpjpolec/doi_3a10.1086_2f711952.htm 

Fiset, E. & Pugliese, M. (2021). L’endettement étudiant au Québec. Des réflexions à l’égard de la littérature existante. Chaire-réseau de recherche sur la jeunesse du Québec. https://chairejeunesse.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/CRJ_ENDETTEMENT_VFF.pdf 

Savoie-Roskos, M. R., Hood, L. B., Hagedorn-Hatfield, R. L., Landry, M. J., Patton-López, M. M., Richards, R., Vogelzang, J. L., Qamar, Z., OoNorasak, K. & Mann, G. (2023). Creating a culture that supports food security and health equity at higher education institutions. Public Health Nutrition, 26(3), 503‑509. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1368980022002294 

Statistique Canada. (2023). Indice des prix à la consommation : revue annuelle, 2022. Le Quotidien. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/230117/dq230117b-fra.htm 

UTILE. (2022, 22 septembre). Rentrée universitaire | L’enquête PHARE révèle une situation alarmante pour le logement étudiant au Canada. Nouvelles de l’UTILE. https://www.utile.org/nouvelles/phare-2021-canada