A tuition freeze for post-secondary students in 2013-2014 is getting a passing grade among Olds College students.
“It's a good thing for next year. It will be interesting to see how it plays out,” said Evan Namur, president of the Olds College Students' Association and a first-year land agent program student.
Namur said the tuition freeze, combined with funding cuts to post-secondary institutions across the province, will mean school administrators will be making some tough choices in the coming months. But he said he thinks Olds College will be better able to handle the issue than many other schools because of its many specialized programs.
Second-year equine science student Melanie McJannet said that since funding cuts have taken place to post-secondary schools, she's glad that tuition is being frozen.
“It would be nice to see it go down of course, but it's good to see it (frozen),” she said.
McJannet, who completed her business and event management program at the end of April, but is returning to the college in the fall to take a coaching program in equine science, said the funding cuts that were part of the provincial budget affect students in other areas, some of which aren't currently apparent.
“Definitely positive. It's a good thing,” said Nathan Wagner, a first-year landscape management student, adding that anything that lessens student loans and leads to less financial stress is a step in the right direction.
The provincial government announced two weeks ago it would be freezing tuition rates at the same level as 2012-2013 and covering the annual 2.15-per-cent tuition increase this year that is tied to the annual rate of inflation.
Tom Thompson, the college's president, said the college is currently drafting its 2013-2014 budget and planned cuts or changes to programs at the school were announced in lat April.
He said he hopes the school's board of governors could pass the budget on May 23.
Thompson said the college is currently reviewing what the decrease in a provincial grant allocation for post-secondary schools will mean for the college. All programs, services, staffing levels and contracts are under review, with a view to finding efficiencies and protecting programs, he said.
