CBC has a story up this morning concerning the OSAP grant story. That is to say the success/impact of the previous Wynne program and the impact on some students of its rollback.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-schools-tuition-data-1.5003005
The gist seems to be that roughly 40% of students received a grant equal to or greater than 'free' tuition (the average of tuition for college or university respectively.
Further that the program appeared to have successfully reached mostly lower-income households.
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Some quick back of the envelope math suggests that OSAP program at up to 1.4B per year was equal in cost to around 45% of domestic tuition revenues.
I took the gross numbers from this 2015 era document, plus current program estimates for OSAP.
http://www.tcu.gov.on.ca/pepg/audiences/universities/uff/ufm_consultation.pdf
Looking at that.........
For argument's sake, assuming we kept the number of study spots constant.
We could simply reduce tuition by 45% across the board in lieu of student aid.
Taken from the numbers used in the CBC report.
That would reduce FT Community College to $1522 per year
It would reduce average University undergraduate to $3,388
It would reduce medical school (as a an example of graduate programs) to $13,783 per year.
All of that is before accounting for student aid from the institutions themselves or from the Federal government.
U of T, as an example, expends 224M on student aid each year, beyond what OSAP provides.
Their info, as noted here:
http://www.governingcouncil.lamp4.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/a0228-3i-2017-2018pb.pdf, suggests that
the average student paid 47% of the posted domestic tuition rate, after factoring in all student aid.
Look U of T, their average tuition is higher than the norm (around $6,800 for undergrad).
Applying a gross tuition reduction equal to the current tuition differential (posted rate vs paid) would lower tuition by 53%
$3,196 and bring medical school to below $12,000 per year.
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Which brings me to my point, somewhat belatedly.
While I disagree with what Ford has done, as it seems sloppy and ill thought out...........and harmful to fairness and access.......
I wonder if there isn't an iota of fairness in imagining that the current student aid approach is the long way around.
Note the numbers above and consider what the Feds, the province, and the Universities and Colleges would save if they simply canned student aid altogether..........
....But applied 100% of the savings (including admin costs) to lower tuition.
I wonder if we couldn't hit 60% tuition relief on a gross basis..........or looking at the numbers above......
What if we left undergrad for university around that 53% reduction and plowed the savings back into lower community college tuition alone......?
Maybe a 75% reduction of those to something like to $692 per year?
I'm just wondering if it wouldn't be far more cost efficient to make tuition affordable rather than partially or fully rebating it or covering it w/loans?
I also wonder what it costs to administer the charging of tuition itself?
Hmmm
