Newfoundland and Labrador has dropped student loans, replacing them with non-repayable grants to its students. The move, effective August first, is estimated to save undergraduate students $11,805 in debt per year.
Student funding was previously a mixture of loans and grants; last year, the Progressive Conservative government began eliminating student loans. Now, student funding consists entirely of need-based grants provided to eligible students with no obligation to repay.
The grant system is aimed at encouraging Newfoundland and Labrador students to study at home. Those wishing to study out-of-province are still subject to a mixed loan and grant system.
Travis Perry, the provincial chair of the Canadian Federation of Students, lauded the move.
“Students will be more likely to go out… and contribute meaningfully to the economy,” said Perry in an interview with CBC News.
The new grants-only system is projected to cost the province $50.6 million over five years.
— Peter Angelinos
With files from The Huffington Post
