One of the core principles of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA) is that all willing and qualified students should be able to attend post-secondary regardless of their ability to pay. However, students in Ontario face the highest tuition fees in the country and the cost and perceived costs of post-secondary education are consistently identified as barriers to post-secondary education. These barriers are contributing factors to the persistently high attainment gaps for various vulnerable groups in pursuing an undergraduate degree.
Determining how they will finance their education is a growing challenge facing unprecedented numbers of undergraduate students in Ontario. OUSA asked students about their interactions with various forms of financial assistance, including: government assistance; private bank loans or lines of credit; family financial resources; and institutional aid. Students were also asked to express their attitudes towards debt and the fairness of the current funding system.