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University students feeling the crunch on student debt

Student debt remains a major issue facing post-secondary students across Canada.

UNBC student, Melanie Anderson says in her case, the numbers are piling up.

“Already in 2 years I have accumulated 30 thousand dollars in debt and when I finish it will probably be around 50 thousand.”

Anderson adds student hunger is directly related to student debt.

“We’re eating pot noodles or hitting the food-bank on campus to try and make ends meet or at least try and get to the end on where your next loan is going to be paid in it’s a cycle that will continue as long as we are underfunded.”

Newfoundland and Labrador made history this month as the first province to eliminate student loans in favour of a non-repayable grant.

Anderson adds while that seems like a good start, Canada is still behind it’s European counterparts.

“Countries like Scotland where you get free education, Denmark any of the Nordic countries have the most productive societies, they have top earning wages, free health care and they have the lowest crime rates.”

Under the new system a four year undergrad student at Memorial University in St. John’s will have just under 15 thousand dollars in debt this year, compared to 26 thousand in 2003-04.

The Newfoundland and Labrador government started eliminating student loans last August, a move expected to cost them 50.6 million dollars over the next five years.

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Brendan Pawliw
Brendan Pawliw
Since moving to Prince George in 2015, Brendan has covered local sports including the WHL’s Prince George Cougars, Prince George Spruce Kings, UNBC Timberwolves, Cariboo Cougars AAA, and Northern Capitals U18 female hockey teams. Career highlights include play-by-play during the Spruce Kings' BCHL championship runs in 2018 and 2019, including the Doyle Cup win. He also covered the 2019 National Junior A Championship, the 2017 Telus Cup, the 2022 World Women’s Curling Championship, and the 2022 BC Summer Games. Brendan is the news voice on 94.3 The Goat and Country 97 FM, reporting on crime, real estate, labour, and environmental issues. Outside of work, he officiates box lacrosse and fastball, sits on the Prince George Sports Hall of Fame board, and co-hosts the Hockey North podcast.

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