Ontario students say free tuition program not broad enough
One-third of students qualified for free tuition this year but Western students say many are still shut out
Student leaders from Western University sat down with Ontario's deputy premier Deb Matthews Friday to discuss concerns about the new student loan program.
The province says more than one-third of all full-time college and university students in Ontario are receiving free tuition this school year thanks to the new Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).
At least 12,500 college and university students in London are going to school tuition-free.
The round table discussion highlighted issues around who qualifies for student assistance and whether available funds are sufficient to cover the cost of rising fees.
Grad students' rep asks <a href="https://twitter.com/Deb_Matthews">@Deb_Matthews</a> about possibility of loans for part time students (OSAP is only full-time students) <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LdnOnt?src=hash">#LdnOnt</a> 1/2 <a href="https://t.co/mq1VWX7YVE">pic.twitter.com/mq1VWX7YVE</a>
—@KateDubinskiOne student asked Matthews how the province plans to help students whose parents earn too much money to qualify for OSAP but who do not financially support them.
Matthews said she was open to suggestions about how to solve that, noting that she is aware the program is largely based on parental income.
Another participant at the table asked how graduate students could qualify for more student loans. Matthews said she is working on increasing funding for Masters and PhD candidates.
"We know there is more work to do but we also know these changes (to OSAP) wouldn't have happened without student advocacy," Matthews said.
The round table also highlighted free prescription drugs for people under 25 starting in January, and free online textbooks.
Two hundred free textbooks are available at Western, though one student said the program has not been well used in London.