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As another school year begins, many high school students in their final year will have to start thinking about what pathways they want to take after graduation.  In a few months, many of these students will apply to a few (or many) post-secondary programs, and then wait hopefully for their acceptance. In an ideal world, each student will receive an acceptance from their dream school, finish their desired program on time, graduate, and move on into the next chapter of their life. But, of course, this smooth transition is not always the case. Students change their minds, switch programs, and even switch their educational careers entirely!

Hello!

My name is Eddy Avila and I’m super excited to be joining OUSA and the Home Office Team as the newest Research and Policy Analyst.

Hey everyone!

I hope everyone is settled and ready for the Fall semester ahead. If you missed it, we published our latest issue of Educated Solutions. This year we chose to focus on tuition since the current tuition framework is set to expire in 2019. Sector experts and student voices from across Ontario present their ideas and concerns about tuition and post-secondary funding in Ontario.

“Time to say goodbye.”

      - Andrea Bocelli

                  - Jason DeRulo/Nikki Minaj/Willy William

                                                              - Colin Aitchison

I was initially drawn to OUSA as an undergraduate student due to the organization’s active engagement with its membership. From the Blue Chair campaign to the Gender Pay Gap campaign, OUSA actively worked with students on their member campuses to highlight and discuss key concerns affecting undergraduates across the province. Now, after 7 General Assemblies, a year on OUSA’s Steering Committee, and a wonderful year and a half as a staff member here, I have had the time to reflect on the impact this organization has in Ontario’s post-secondary sector.

The second week of September has rolled around once again. Students have returned to campus. First years and Welcome Week reps are still glowing from the excitement of the week. Upper years still look refreshed from their summers off of school with the seemingly permanent bags under their eyes left behind. The libraries, while busy, are filled with happy chatter rather than panicked individuals cramming for exams or finishing up final essays.

Hey everyone,

We’re looking forward to seeing everyone back on their campuses! This past month we’ve been busy preparing for the upcoming term, while also hosting a couple events.

When we talk about the affordability of tuition, it is often easy to homogenize the student population and create conclusions that fail to assess how students from different backgrounds experience university costs. We make these generalizations, despite the fact that data exists to show how students with marginalized identities face a larger financial burden when attending university. This data is the reason why both the Ontario and federal governments create programs and grants that direct additional funds towards students with disabilities and Indigenous students.

Starting university can often be daunting time for students, with each of us coming in with different experiences and bringing with us diverse strengths, weaknesses, and expectations. Despite our differences, however, we all share a common goal of advancing ourselves intellectually. For international students, this goal is often hindered when institutions fail to provide this cohort of students with the adequate supports and resources they need to succeed.

We have all seen it. That person who posts Instagram and Snapchat stories showing themselves studying or at work extremely late at night. When we see this, we immediately think about how admirable their hard work is and glamourize this busy lifestyle. This in particular is a huge part of university culture. However, this needs to stop.

Last week, OUSA hosted our first Policy Symposium: A gathering of stakeholders, our colleagues in government, and representatives from the 8 university campuses that OUSA represents. The aim of the symposium was to broaden the conversation surrounding OUSA policy and gain insight on what experts beyond the sector were saying about student issues. In doing so, we were able to bring the concerns and priorities of Ontario’s students, and learn what questions we will have to answer as we continue to develop policy on emerging topics. Traditionally, we pride ourself at always having a seat at the table in Ontario policy discussions, but for this event, we invited all of our partners to our table - to engage in our policy process, and give their perspective on the issues facing students in Ontario.