Key Takeaways:
- Memorial University doubled its tuition fee to $20,000.
- Some foreign students from Memorial University expressed their concerns over stopping their education, while others are reconsidering enrolling to different universities.
After 22 years without any increase in MUN tuition fees for international students, it will spike to $20,000, double of what used to be MUN’s education cost.
In previous years before the hike, MUN’s tuition fee was one-third cheaper than the average cost of higher education nationwide, making it even more attractive to international students. The Canadian tuition fee average sits around $32,000.
Jiya Chandan, an international student from India, said that she was initially attracted to MUN because of its affordability, but with the impending tuition fee increase, she may have to think about “looking elsewhere, to bigger cities with more diversity.”
Meanwhile, MUN’s Student’s Union’s Director for Finance and Services Famida Ahmed said that the hike will gravely affect the university’s student demographics and diversity.
She emphasized that international students from low-middle income and middle income families will find it more difficult to pursue their education at MUN.
“I don’t know how many low- or middle-income students will be able to afford that price, or be able to even come to MUN. That’s my biggest concern,” Ahmed expressed.
In 2018, Ahmed was among the first batch of international students to experience an increase in MUN courses, with a more than $266 increase per course.
Despite the increase, MUN President Vianne Timmons assured that the university still aims for the tuition below national average and will continue to support student needs.
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