Graphs showing student perception of their debt. Samantha Bullis/The Dialog

Students have said enough is enough,” said Alastair Woods, chairperson for the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario (CFS-O), in June about high tuition fees.

The federation of 350,000 students in Ontario is prepared to continue to pressure the government to make their concerns a priority.

This December will mark 48 years since the Canadian government signed the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, a United Nations document committing to progressively eliminate tuition fees.

Unfortunately, this covenant was non-binding. Canada still has tuition fees and the dubious distinction of being the only nation belonging the G-8 and the Organization for Economic and Co-operative Development, without a national department or oversight of post-secondary education; These abstract policy elements impact Canadian society.

A recent poll done by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) outlines how tuition fees in Canada have caused increased levels of student debt. This correlation is the most clearly seen in Ontario.

“Just as before the election, students in Ontario right now are paying the highest tuition fees in the country and graduating with record levels of student debt,” said Woods.

These debt levels have real-life impacts on students’ lives. To look at only one aspect, repaying debt eats into a student’s potential purchasing power. As shown by the CIBC poll data, 11 per cent of student borrowers estimate it will take them more than 10 years to pay back their debt.

Previous Liberal governments allowed tuition fees to rise by as much as 80 per cent according the the CFS-O.

However, now that there is an newly elected majority government, Woods is hoping the government will “change its tune” and use funding from the grant and provincial tax credits to reduce tuition fees for all students.