Dalhousie plans 9% dentistry tuition increase for 2015

Dalhousie University plans to increase tuition by three per cent for all students, with medical and dentistry students paying even more.

The school’s proposed budget for 2015 would see medical students pay an extra two per cent on top of the regular increase (five per cent total).

Dental students would pay an additional six per cent (nine per cent total).

• Read the Dalhousie University letter outlining proposed increases

Terralynn Trask, an undergraduate student at the Halifax university, said the increase would make it harder to pay the bills.

“That will make the gap between those who can afford it and those who can't even larger. Three per cent is really large, when you think of it for even an undergraduate,” Trask said.

“That's eight semesters of three per cent increase — that will significantly decrease the amount of people who can afford to attend institutions such as Dalhousie.”

The university said it's never an easy decision to raise tuition, but that they have no other options. The province increased funding by one per cent, but Dalhousie said that was offset by costs increase of five per cent.