Stats Canada did their yearly University tuition fees, 2013/2014 report last week, and as usual I read it intently, their tuition fee study is always interesting.
The opening paragraph sums it all up very nicely for anyone wondering about the costs of sending their kids to University in the next little while:
Canadian full-time students in undergraduate programs paid 3.3% more on average in tuition fees for the 2013/2014 academic year this fall than they did a year earlier. This follows a 4.2% increase in 2012/2013.
Keep in mind that the last Inflation report from Stats Canada stated, that year over year inflation was at 1.3%. Simple math seems to say that tuition fees are growing approximately 200% of inflation, and that year over year is going to add up very quickly (as pointed out by Kyle Prevost on Preet’s Mostly Money, Mostly Canadian podcast (I am catching up on those in my spare time too)).
Glad to see that Stats Canada is also looking at the many extra fees that schools charge:
Services included in additional compulsory fees vary from institution to institution, and can change over time. Typically, they include fees for athletics, student health services, student associations, as well as other fees that apply to full-time Canadian students.
Students can opt out of a few of these fees (if your parents have a health and dental plan, you should opt out right away, since that fee is typically in the $300 range (combined)). I promise that some time this week I will publish a redacted set of the fees I now pay for both of my daughters at Trent University and Acadia University (need to make it publishable).
Tuition Fee Study
As with all the great info from Stats Canada there are 4 separate tables breaking down the tuition fee study, and the most interesting one for me is the following:
Average undergraduate tuition fees for Canadian full-time students, by field of study
|
2012/2013r |
2013/2014p |
2012/2013 to 2013/2014 |
|
|
current dollars |
% change |
||
| Agriculture, natural resources and conservation |
5,119 |
5,297 |
2.9 |
| Architecture and related technologies |
5,340 |
5,586 |
4.6 |
| Humanities |
4,941 |
5,079 |
2.8 |
| Business, management and public administration |
6,097 |
6,326 |
3.8 |
| Education |
4,273 |
4,378 |
2.5 |
| Engineering |
6,560 |
6,864 |
4.6 |
| Law, legal professions and studies |
9,549 |
10,030 |
5.0 |
| Medicine |
12,012 |
12,438 |
3.5 |
| Visual and performing arts, and communications technologies |
5,002 |
5,151 |
0.0 |
| Physical and life sciences and technology |
5,335 |
5,484 |
2.8 |
| Mathematics, computer and information science |
6,051 |
6,319 |
4.4 |
| Social and behavioral science |
4,966 |
5,107 |
2.8 |
| Other health, parks, recreation and fitness |
5,232 |
5,399 |
3.2 |
| Dentistry |
16,678 |
17,324 |
3.9 |
| Nursing |
4,985 |
5,103 |
2.4 |
| Pharmacy |
10,463 |
10,942 |
4.6 |
| Veterinary medicine |
6,383 |
6,628 |
3.8 |
r revised
p preliminary
I have 3 kids and as early as now, even if they are not yet studying, I know I should start saving a whole lot for their studies. I don’t want them to get into college loans as much as possible.