Emily Carr students stage walkout to protest tuition increase for international students

Students at Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver, B.C., walked out of class Thursday in protest against anticipated tuition hikes for international students.

The university is planning to raise tuition by 30 per cent for new incoming international students and the plan is not sitting well with students who say they are already feeling the financial squeeze of living in an expensive city and paying far more than their domestic peers.

"Treating international students, post-secondary students, as cash cows essentially is not the way," said international student Kashish Hukku Jani, speaking Wednesday on CBC's The Early Edition.

Jani studies communication design and pays about $9,000 per semester — a sum she says is already four times higher than domestic students.

The university is also planning to hike tuition for returning international students by 10 per cent and domestic fees by two per cent.

In a statement, it says the decision is necessary because the school operates under the province's University Act, and is therefore required to table a balanced budget as part of its responsibility to the government as a public post-secondary institution.

"The tuition increase is required for the university to continue providing a quality education for students today and into the future," reads the statement. 

This is not much solace to Jani, who is from India and is upset that the education she is getting might now be financially out of reach for other Indian students with art school dreams.

"They and their families just cannot afford the tuition hike," she said.

The walkout was originally planned for Wednesday but was derailed for a day due to inclement weather that caused public transit delays and cancellations across the Lower Mainland.

About 100 students had already walked out of their classrooms by 11 a.m., and the event was scheduled to continue until 1 p.m.

It is not the first action taken this school year, she said, noting there was also a 200-student sit-in at a board of governors meeting and a letter-writing campaign directed at local members of the legislative assembly.

The goal, said Jani, is for the school to push back against the province rather than "rely on the backs" of students to stay financially afloat.

"This should be about providing affordable education to your students," she said. "The university needs to stand in solidarity for its students and get more funding."

Emily Carr administration was aware of the planned walkout, and the university's statement says it respects the rights of students to voice their concerns by taking action and recognizes the challenges higher tuition payments will create for some — but there were no plans to halt the hike.