Tuition costs can be reduced

Re: Ability to pay student debt a heavy burden for many — Sept. 7

Your story discussing the impact of Ontario student debt to graduates is right on target, especially for those people who are attempting to improve their quality of life. However, a key point the story does not address is why the cost of education is high. It refers to the fact that tuition increases far exceed the rate of inflation. For perspective, I compared my total tuition/ fees costs from my bachelor's degree in 1980 to my graduating salary versus what my business graduates are paying and receiving today. In my case, my tuition divided by starting salary was 0.25:1. In other words, my total tuition/fees were one-quarter of my graduating salary. For my current students at Conestoga College, if they can get a job (another problem to solve), the ratio is approximately 1:1. This is in spite of huge automation advances. Education productivity is a classic oxymoron.

If we had a court-appointed firm examine how government-funded post-secondary institutions actually spend their money, we would learn how we can reduce the cost of post-secondary education. The examination should be focused on what spending actually adds value to a graduate’s career versus spending that is nonvalue added. With industry/employer participation this is not very difficult to accomplish.

I suspect that tuition savings, achieved through elimination of nonvalue added costs, would be substantial, resulting in much lower post-graduation debt. Countries such as Germany have taken the approach of eliminating nonvalue added costs and focusing on graduate outcomes. The result is that tuition is basically a nonfactor. This frees up resources for things such as food and rent, important for students because a student that has proper nutrition and is safe can focus on learning.

Stephen J. Hummel

Kitchener