View Full Version : Why is university so expensive?
I just watched an A channel news report on the value of university degrees and they said that in the past 10 years, tuition has tripled. Why is that? Why only recently has the cost shot up? My parents started an RESP for me over 15 years ago. Less than 10 years ago, the money I got out of it would have payed for my tuition through my whole degree, probably partway into graduate studies, but I've used it all up over 2 and 1/2 years (working summers as well) Plus my rent just increased. I live in a hole and it still costs me almost 350 bucks a month, plus energy costs up to 90 bucks a month and is supposed to increase!!! WTF??? And there's no break on car insurance even though I'm a more mature driver than most people twice my age. Students get treated like pure shit, and my degree is probably gonna be worth nothing anyways :rolleyes:
Life is gay :banghead:
I wish I would have grown up 30 years ago when cars were sweet and easy to work on, stuff was cheap and I could have gotten into medicine or something easily.
Stratus_Power
10-23-2002, 06:52 PM
i agree tuiton is wayy too much, you end up paying for like 20k for a degree that might still leave you unemploy at the end.... it average to about 10 bucks a class.... so everyweek you can kiss like 100 bucks away.
My parents also got one of those saving fund thing for me for like 5-6 years.. and it end up barely enough to pay for 1 year of tuition + housing..
boi-alien
10-23-2002, 07:14 PM
the reason why our tuition has risen so much recently is because of the fact that the government removed an enourmous amount of the funding that they used to provide for students. thus the brunt of the tuition fees now fall on student's shoulders. there are pros and cons to everything, on one hand alberta's econmy is booming and hasn't boomed this much since the gas-boom. but we need to suffer with more expensive tuition costs because of the cutbacks.
Davetronz
10-23-2002, 08:17 PM
University of Calgary is teh suck ..... :D
Stratus_Power
10-23-2002, 08:25 PM
just read the newspaper for today.. something like 10 years ago it cost 8000 to get a degree.. now it cost average of 21000... and only 2 universities in Canada is actually lowing their tuition and only 3 didnt increase..
D'z Nutz
10-23-2002, 08:49 PM
My prof for one of my classes went to school way back from beyond when a full year's tuition cost $600. Of course, he's a dinosaur now :D
Weapon_R
10-23-2002, 09:50 PM
Ranger what degree you going for?
finboy
10-23-2002, 10:35 PM
damn, i only have like 14 grand for university, and i don't know what to take. taht is still 7 grand i need. i'm focked!!!!!
damn.
Redlyne_mr2
10-23-2002, 10:39 PM
you guys should be thankful if anything ..try going to the states where a normal university costs about 15-20gs US a year
Stratus_Power
10-23-2002, 10:40 PM
dont worry finboy, you use the 14k to take the first 2 or maybe 3 years.. then you take the coop program ( internship)... and make some money to finsih up the 4th year
Originally posted by Stratus_Power
dont worry finboy, you use the 14k to take the first 2 or maybe 3 years.. then you take the coop program ( internship)... and make some money to finsih up the 4th year
Dude, the co-op program COSTS money to take, and usually the jobs only pay minimum wage (unless you're in engineering or comp sci)
Ryan, That's just another reason why I would never live in the US. The US has an extremely poor education system, in a country like france I believe it's still about 800 or 900 bucks to get a whole degree.
Finboy, with 14 K and still working during summers you can probably still pull out even... if you're living at home
Weapon R, I'm taking psych, but I'm gonna switch into a neuroscience degree. Not too much opportunity at an undergraduate level. There's professional tranfers I could get into, but I really don't care to have the rest of my life determined for me just yet. Honestly, I think after this degree I'll go to pilot school, persue a career in hotrodding or just be an autobody mechanic.
max_boost
10-24-2002, 12:05 AM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
you guys should be thankful if anything ..try going to the states where a normal university costs about 15-20gs US a year
That is the cost if you are a international student right? I don't think it costs that much for people who are U.S citizens right?
Anyway, post secondary education do not come cheap nowadays, do it once and do it right, save your money and do well and try not to repeat any classes unless you have to
Hakkola
10-24-2002, 12:07 AM
You guys have to remember, University is just another Business. Sure, you learn, but they're there to make money.
gpomp
10-24-2002, 12:47 AM
Originally posted by TurboDSM
University of Calgary is teh suck ..... :D
They ranked 22nd according to yesterday's Globe and Mail. :thumbsup:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/PEstory/TGAM/20021023/TAB1/Headlines/headdex/headdexNational_temp/4/4/46/
Stratus_Power
10-24-2002, 01:18 AM
Yay for university of alberta ranking 12!! but remember, those results are based on 21000 student survey..
but damn Queens is 1st! and i applied for it.. feel so stupid now..
CLiVE
10-24-2002, 09:10 AM
Originally posted by Redlyne_mr2
you guys should be thankful if anything ..try going to the states where a normal university costs about 15-20gs US a year
That's what I was going to point out....it could be a lot worse...
I was going to go to law school in the states after I finished my degree.......way too much $$$$ though, so I'm still here...:)
Even for US residents, going to a non-State funded university can cost upwards of 20G's a year. There's been a pretty big influx of American students to Canadian universities the past few years, and why not, quality education, close to home (assuming you go to like McGill and live 5 hours away in NY State), and half the cost because it's in Canadian pesos! Look at school as a long term investment.....
ninspeed
10-24-2002, 10:03 AM
Yeah my tuition is bad enough, ~$6000 per year. But on top of that, I need to use THEIR laptop (at almost 1000$ a year) and A LOT more (I wont say how much but trust me, it's a scarry amount) on my photo equipment. I'm not even doing U of C or U of A, I'm only going to SAIT! It's insane, thank goodness for my parents letting me live at home!
Melinda
finboy
10-24-2002, 11:04 AM
i live in a neighborhood beside sait, but i think i'll stick to the u of c.
what marks do you need to get into the u of c?
my dad started the den when he went there. :D
Originally posted by Ranger_X31
Ryan, That's just another reason why I would never live in the US. The US has an extremely poor education system, in a country like france I believe it's still about 800 or 900 bucks to get a whole degree.
Weapon R, I'm taking psych, but I'm gonna switch into a neuroscience degree. Not too much opportunity at an undergraduate level.
In France you actually don't have to pay for university. Gov't pays for it all, but the education system over there is much much different from us. You'd be happy to pay 30G's US to go to school here than endure the European education system (very good) but very very strict system.
As for a psychology degree, yes it is useless at the undergraduate level. The only jobs you can bet with a psych BA are social work related jobs. That's why you gotta go to gradschool and get atleast the MA. That's why I'm in Chicago right now....getting my MA in Organizational Psychology...and hopefully it'll pay good too when i'm done.
Originally posted by MrX
As for a psychology degree, yes it is useless at the undergraduate level. The only jobs you can bet with a psych BA are social work related jobs. That's why you gotta go to gradschool and get atleast the MA. That's why I'm in Chicago right now....getting my MA in Organizational Psychology...and hopefully it'll pay good too when i'm done.
hahaha, BA psych = :thumbsdow
I'm just taking Bsc Neuroscience cause it sounds so much more badass than Bsc Psych :rofl: Its almost the same thing too, and the U of L is #1 in Canada for the department of neuroscience :nut: Still, at an undergrad level, I don't really see what I can do with it besides sturt around saying "I'm smart, I have a neuroscience degree, wghaaaaaa" :rofl:
max_boost
10-24-2002, 01:35 PM
Originally posted by MrX
In France you actually don't have to pay for university. Gov't pays for it all, but the education system over there is much much different from us. You'd be happy to pay 30G's US to go to school here than endure the European education system (very good) but very very strict system.
As for a psychology degree, yes it is useless at the undergraduate level. The only jobs you can bet with a psych BA are social work related jobs. That's why you gotta go to gradschool and get atleast the MA. That's why I'm in Chicago right now....getting my MA in Organizational Psychology...and hopefully it'll pay good too when i'm done.
Will you be one of those clinical psychologists dealing with mental patients? Like Jeff Bridges in K-PAX?! hehe
RSeXy
10-24-2002, 01:44 PM
Originally posted by MrX
In France you actually don't have to pay for university. Gov't pays for it all, but the education system over there is much much different from us. You'd be happy to pay 30G's US to go to school here than endure the European education system (very good) but very very strict system.
I am hoping to study in France next year to finish up my french degree so that i will graduate from a french university. I've been told that in Tours (where i hope to be going) the cost of living is cheaper than Calgary. I will be going as an exchange student so I will be paying University of Calgary fees. I've really had to buckle down to try to perfect my french so that I will be judged capable of surviving in the university. :nut:
Originally posted by RSeXy
I am hoping to study in France next year to finish up my french degree so that i will graduate from a french university. I've been told that in Tours (where i hope to be going) the cost of living is cheaper than Calgary. I will be going as an exchange student so I will be paying University of Calgary fees. I've really had to buckle down to try to perfect my french so that I will be judged capable of surviving in the university. :nut:
Go work in quebec for the summer :thumbsup:
infamous
10-24-2002, 03:26 PM
hahaha you couldn't pay me to live in quebec!
Quebec is cool.
I've seen pictures and heard that Montreal is really beautiful, I want to go there sometime.
Just go hang out with those french clubs.
My sister did that, got to do some french gameshows or radio shows...something like that.
RSeXy
10-24-2002, 03:54 PM
i wanted to go to Montreal, but everyone tells me that it is dangerous. especially the subway system. my parents prefer me to go to france so that they can come and visit me and to give me a chance to study abroad.
i don't belong to any french clubs. there are not any french clubs set up yet in the university although my friend is in the works of setting one up...too bad we'll both be graduated my the time it gets off the ground. :(
so i just have the french center in craigie hall to help me, which is not bad...you get free coffee and croissants! :thumbsup: <---especially nice if you are broke and are starving!
Originally posted by max_boost
Will you be one of those clinical psychologists dealing with mental patients? Like Jeff Bridges in K-PAX?! hehe
No I'll be one of those psychologists who go into organizations and help them restructure and redesign things for efficiency and productivity. Oh yeah...i'll be making much more than a clinical psyc:thumbsup:
Go to a french emersion school and tutor some kids for some easy math classes or something..whatever you are good at.
They get help, you get help.
max_boost
10-24-2002, 05:21 PM
Originally posted by MrX
No I'll be one of those psychologists who go into organizations and help them restructure and redesign things for efficiency and productivity. Oh yeah...i'll be making much more than a clinical psyc:thumbsup:
Thats awesome dude......!!:thumbsup:
How long is your program?
RSeXy
10-24-2002, 05:40 PM
Originally posted by szw
Go to a french emersion school and tutor some kids for some easy math classes or something..whatever you are good at.
They get help, you get help.
that's a really good idea!
i would except i am totally strapped for time. a full course load sucks. i'm not used to it at all. :thumbsdow :nut: :banghead:
my options courses shouldn't be harder than my core classes...who knew that history courses demanded so much work?
Stratus_Power
10-24-2002, 06:56 PM
i want to take french sooooo ever so bad but none of them just seems to fit my schudule :thumbsdow
Weapon_R
10-24-2002, 07:10 PM
I wouldn't really say that a psych degree is useless. It takes a lot of work to get a degree of any discipline, and there ARE jobs for you with that degree. You just have to know where to find them.
CRXboi: As for the expense associated with a university degree, it is not all attributed to the governments cutbacks. Much of it is the continued greediness of the University. Did you know, that the university has consistent profits of over $2 million dollars each year? This profit is after ALL expenses have been paid. The university is a business and should be treated as one. The provincial government pays over 2/3 of the cost for our tuition, so I think we're actually very very lucky to have these tuition rates. An equal university in the US would cost much more, in US dollars of course :thumbsup:
Originally posted by Weapon_R
I wouldn't really say that a psych degree is useless. It takes a lot of work to get a degree of any discipline, and there ARE jobs for you with that degree. You just have to know where to find them.
That's true. There are lots of jobs available with my degree, but I won't be making any more money than I would be if I was an autobody mechanic, plus a lot of the jobs you can get are just plain boring, real recipe for a mid-life crisis :(
I'm just taking this for the sake of being educated in something that's interesting (and to actually HAVE a degree at the university level) I'd be much more content though having a job where I get to work with my hands operating or fixing high performance machinery, and I also really love painting and detailing. I don't really care if I'm not gonna be making over 70K.
i would except i am totally strapped for time. a full course load sucks. i'm not used to it at all.
I hear that!
my options courses shouldn't be harder than my core classes...who knew that history courses demanded so much work?
The easiest courses, I find, are 2nd year sciences which don't have a lab (geo and psych have some good offerings here) Options for social sciences and humanities? Sociology is soooo easy, geo courses designated as social sciences (human geo, what a joke!) and psych ones designated as social sciences are all easy. Intro Stats is easy, and courses designated science which have the title (some science) and society are all damn easy options.
Much of it is the continued greediness of the University
Examples of this?
Raping students in used book sales!!! GRRRRRR that shit pisses me off.
Making it such a fucking pain in the ass and a process of opting out of health and dental coverage EVERY year
Raising copies to 15 cents each with coins??? WTF is that??
And you know what? Most profs are wayyyy underpaid. Come on, teaching, doing research, going to school for 15 years, and doing proposals and presenting? What a stressful life! Your job literally becomes your life! And all for what? A MAXIMUM of 100K salary? Shitty deal in my eyes.
Weapon_R
10-24-2002, 08:15 PM
Originally posted by Ranger_X31
That's true. There are lots of jobs available with my degree, but I won't be making any more money than I would be if I was an autobody mechanic, plus a lot of the jobs you can get are just plain boring, real recipe for a mid-life crisis :(
I agree with you, you could be a taxi driver and make just as much money as you would with a job that requires a university degree. The only difference is, those who have a degree and the job that goes with it don't end up losing their life to labour jobs that require 16 hour workdays.
Hahaha, being a taxi driver would be the most stressful thing in the world, especially in Vancouver or Calgary. I think I'd go insane. There's a job that'd automatically take 20 years off your life!
Hakkola
10-25-2002, 12:49 AM
university. Gov't pays for it all, but the education system over there is much much different from us. You'd be happy to pay 30G's US to go to school here than endure the European education system (very good) but very very strict system.
That's the way to go, my sister got some art or photography degree from U of C. Then decided to go to nursing school. Seing as how both my parents are Finnish and in Finland university is free she got her citizenship and went. So now she gets free Uni and a 1000 EURO's a month from the gov't for living expenses.
Hakkola
10-25-2002, 01:00 AM
A MAXIMUM of 100K salary? Shitty deal in my eyes.
Yeah, it's funny because there are people who don't even have high school degrees who make way more than that. There's always trade off's though...
and the worst thing is, time passes, his children grow up, and he's not around for it. Sure he makes a good living, but is it worth it? Not for me
Exactly, gotta find something good that makes ya happy, that quote is like my dad. Until last year, for long before i was born he'd go to work for 6 months, back 1 month, then away 6 months again. Amazing pay, but never home for christmas or anything, can't be that fun.
If you look at all those people like hockey players, sure, they make huge cash, but think about how much traveling they do, road games during christmas and stuff, makes you wonder how many of their wives cheat on them and only married them for their money...
Originally posted by Hakkola
Exactly, gotta find something good that makes ya happy, that quote is like my dad. Until last year, for long before i was born he'd go to work for 6 months, back 1 month, then away 6 months again. Amazing pay, but never home for christmas or anything, can't be that fun.
I feel your pain. My dad was never around. He's the chair of surgery at UBC and Vancouver general hospital, is a prof for medecine at UBC, and was (and still is) heavily involved in medical reseach for islet cell transplants. He's a total workaholic and is always under tons of stress and has never had time or energy to get into anything I was intersted in. Sure he makes pretty good money now and is really well respected worldwide, but he never got to know me and it's hurt both of us lots. I'm sure lots of ppl on this board can relate to having parents they don't know too well, its a pretty depressing thing :(
Stratus_Power
10-25-2002, 02:03 AM
...
James
10-25-2002, 03:22 AM
Originally posted by Ranger_X31
. I'm sure lots of ppl on this board can relate to having parents they don't know too well, its a pretty depressing thing :(
Yeah, having a Workoholic Dad can be a pretty shitty thing as a child, escpecially when your parents are divorced, so it REALLY limits the time you can spend with them. But hey You gotta pay the bills right? :rolleyes:
This is One of the Most Educational threads i think ive seen on Beyond, So many Good points.....and Yes University is WAY to Expensive....Once i Figure out what i want to do with my Life, career Wise, and actually get some kind of Education, Im gonna be so broke i'll have to live in my Moms Basement, and Drive some old 80's car:rolleyes: .....Wait Thats kinda like now! shit!:rofl:
Originally posted by max_boost
Thats awesome dude......!!:thumbsup:
How long is your program?
The program is two years. Not that bad when all i do is the stuff i like to study:thumbsup:
How do you opt out of the student health and dental plan? I was told you HAVE to have coverage by another company in order to opt out, but I ain't got shiet.
RSeXy
10-25-2002, 11:31 AM
Originally posted by szw
How do you opt out of the student health and dental plan? I was told you HAVE to have coverage by another company in order to opt out, but I ain't got shiet.
i believe that you have to have coverage by another company. i opted out of the plan but i had to bring in proof that my dad's company was covering it. i think its worth it though...never know when you might need it. :)
its only 50 or so bucks isn't it? :dunno:
Originally posted by szw
How do you opt out of the student health and dental plan? I was told you HAVE to have coverage by another company in order to opt out, but I ain't got shiet.
You have to show proof of coverage at the start of every fall semester, otherwise the university insures you. Thier plan is shit anyways, I believe I pay about 150 bucks here for it, but I don't know if that's for each semester or for the whole year. :thumbsdow
My first 2 years I yelled at the ppl down in student services and left enraged both times. The first year they wouldn't cover me because they wouldn't take a signed note from my dad that I was covered. The second year, they said my photocopy wasn't 100% clear, so I screamed at them and eventually only got to opt out of health but not dental. This year I just said fuck it :rolleyes:
Well I have to get health and dental (I don't have any coverage) which comes out to either 100 or 150 bucks each semester...it adds up to quite a bit, considering I haven't used it yet.
But I"m gonna try to milk it soon...gonna go to the doctor and try to get some phisiotherapy (always had back problems..I wonder if I can pick the massage place to go to? ;) )
Gonna see what kinda prescription drugs I can get (JK! umm..yeaaaaah)
Oh and you get covered ambulance rides and stuff....so i gotta ride an ambulance soon too.
kaput
10-25-2002, 07:36 PM
.
My back has hurt for the last fricken 5 years...its just a lot of hassle for me to make a doctor appt to get a note for a massage therapy. I should do it soon...midterms are coming!
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