Taking a feminist stand on tuition increases

The Quebec government is telling students that they need to pay more for their education. Think of it like this: consider your education an investment - be in debt now, pay it off later.

But academics at the Simone de Beauvoir Institute disagree. The women's studies department at Concordia issued a feminist stance on Wednesday on the upcoming tuition increases, which begin this fall and will involve an increase of $1,625 for undergraduate students over five years.

 
"The money we make is worth only 71 cents compared to the dollar of someone who works and is male - so that’s quite significant of an impact for women now and women also in the future," explained women’s studies undergraduate Gabrielle Boucher.

So it will take a woman more time to pay off her student debt than a man would. Boucher and Simone de Beauvoir professor Vivian Namaste also warned that single moms will face a greater burden when supporting their children through university. Also, they fear that the classroom will be less diverse, as women of different racial backgrounds, especially First Nations women, may discontinue their education or opt not to begin at all.

 

There now are more women in post-secondary studies than men, but it doesn’t matter if you drop out of high school or get a bachelor's degree. Recent studies from Statistics Canada shows that women earn less then men regardless of the level of education. Women can earn triple the salary with a university degree, but they will still earn less than a man with a degree, who will earn $90,000 a year on average.

 

Professor Vivian Namaste says they’d like an open debate with the ministry of education about tuition increases - but they wouldn’t name a time or place. A representative of the education ministry could not be reached for comment.