Student Association fee has been increased alongside other college ancillary fees.
Ever wondered what you’re paying for in your tuition?
In addition to the fees for your courses, students going to George Brown College (GBC) are required to pay ancillary fees.
This includes fees which go to your Student Association (SA)
Ancillary fees serve a pivotal role in funding a broad array of services that are used to support and strengthen students’ overall college experience. These cover essential services such as counseling, tutoring and health benefits, among others.
“The tuition fee that you see on the website or advertise[d] is basically a combination of tuition, which is strictly the classroom part, or what the government allows to charge. And then the ancillary fees are fees that are used to help operate or provide services to the students,” said Giancarlo Grossi, fees coordinator.
He notes that fees are the same for international and domestic students, except for some items such as insurance fees for international students and material fees.
These fees over the course of two semesters is approximately $1,250. This includes the cost of insurance.
In addition to the fees set by GBC, the SA fee is also increasing this year.
For the 2024/2025 year, the fee will rise to $134.36, up from $124.35. The previous cost for SA fees has not been increased in a few years.
This fee supports the variety of services provided by the SA including the Student Nutrition Access Program (SNAP), SafeWalk, and other services including the Dialog.
Moreover, the fee supports the maintenance of the SA spaces at different campuses where students can study, have fun and receive their required services.
Other fees students pay to the SA include:
– Campus Service Fee: $8.24
– Student Levy: $25
– Canadian Federation of Students fee: $10.08
SA board members approved the new fee on March. 18, before presenting them to the college.
The SA fee is considered a compulsory fee; however, students have the opportunity to opt-out of some optional fees.
One of these optional ancillary fees is student levy for supporting bursaries, scholarships, and capital expansion projects. Students can opt out of this via Stu-View.
Grossi adds that all ancillary fees are tied to inflation and the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
CPI is the most well-known indicator of inflation, which measures the percentage change in the price of a basket of goods and services consumed by households. Based on reports from the government, CPI rose to 3.9 per cent.
For more information about Student fees, you can visit www.studentassociation.ca/about/student-fees/.
