The Impact of Tuition Fees on University Access: Evidence from a Large-scale Price Deregulation in Professional Programs

Issue information

Previous studies investigating the role of rising tuition fees in university enrolment by socio-economic background have focused on the fee changes registered among undergraduate programs over the 1990s. Over this period, no changes in enrolment patterns were observed, possibly because the tuition fee increases were small in absolute terms and gradual. This study examines the impact of a very large and sudden deregulation of tuition fees in Ontario professional programs in the late 1990s. The findings suggest that the enrolment gap between students from higher and lower socio-economic backgrounds rose substantially in Ontario, where the deregulation of professional programs was more prominent. In provinces like Quebec and British Columbia, where tuition fees remained stable, no change in the enrolment gap was registered.

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Keywords

access to education, analytical products, bachelor's degrees, biology, computer science, doctoral degrees, educational attainment, educational programs, engineering, enrolment, financial assistance, master's degrees, parental educational attainment, sciences, socioeconomic profiles, student loans, tuition fees, university degrees.

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