Saturday 22 November 2008

Gross Domestic Poo

The government of Canada should NOT be raising tuition fees, or even thinking about it.
Instead, they should GIVE money to its citizens to study. That's what I've found out the governments in Denmark and Cyprus do.
Oh, sure, we can say things like, "Phew! At least I'm not in the US where tuition is crazy high!"
But then we compare O the Beloved with Cyprus, NOT usually a welfare-loving country, who dishes out $3,500 to every one of its students every year. Canadians have to pay $20,000 more or less for a bachelor's. Of course, sometimes that creates a problem of perpetual students.

Okay, I'm only speaking for domestic Ontario students, of which I am one. And I'm not considering schemes like OSAP - sometimes it gives out grants, but mainly it is a loan program, which I believe just puts students into debt after they stop studying.

Sure, my university has signed an agreement with the University of Iceland letting me study here for a year 'without paying international fees'. So I pay $5,000 to remain a full-time student at UO, while foreign students have to pay just $700?

Why didn't I know this before? Of course, this would be different if Iceland was part of the EU. Then, if you are not a EU or EEA citizen, then you have to pay about the same rate (or more) as in Canada. But if you ARE a citizen, then you pay nada or almost zip.

Is it because I'm getting a higher -quality education? Or is it just because I'm a citizen of this country? All states are equal, but some are more equal than others...

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