Campaigns

On October 13, 2023, the Minister of Higher Education and the Minister of the French Language announced a significant increase in tuition fees for Canadian students outside Quebec. The Quebec government decided to double tuition fees for this population from $8,900 per year to $17,000 per year.

It is important to note that the ministers did not put forward any data to back up their statements, nor did they provide any projections concerning the impact these measures would have on university funding.

 

The QSU immediately took a stand against this unacceptable tuition fee increase, following consultations with its member student associations.

One of the first findings to emerge from discussions with student associations was that Bishop's, McGill and Concordia universities would be much more affected by these measures than the rest of the network.

The QSU has also decided to support its member student association, Bishop's University Student Representative Council (BUSRC), in its efforts to reverse the government's decision. Bishop's students are among those most affected by the announced measures.

A petition, sponsored by Quebec Liberal Party MP for Saint-Laurent, Marwah Rizqi, was launched in response to BUSRC's open letter, co-signed by the Quebec Student Union and over 30 other student associations and partners.

This petition denouncing the unreasonable rise in tuition fees received 33,342 signatures, putting it at the top of the list of petitions receiving the most attention this year.

The presidents of QSU and BUSRC spoke at a press conference, calling on the government to cancel the tuition fee increase imposed on Canadian students from outside Quebec.

On October 30, 2023, the student associations of Bishop, Concordia and McGill organized the Blue Fall protest to demand an increase in tuition fees that would directly affect them.

In December 2023, the Quebec government announced an increase in tuition fees for students from other Canadian provinces.

This announcement showed that the October 13 announcement was improvised and that Bishop's University had been forgotten! This could have had devastating repercussions for the university's student community.

 

The QSU is delighted that the government has exempted Bishop's from this measure, and will continue to monitor the application of its new measures.

Noovo Info : L'association étudiante de Bishop's contre la hausse des frais de scolarité pour les étudiants d’autres provinces canadiennes

La Presse : La ministre Déry doit refaire ses devoirs

Manifestation contre les frais pour les étudiants des universités anglophones