The voices of education

Education in 2012

Canada has thrown open the doors to its postsecondary schools, achieving accessibility that is the envy of the world. But mass higher education has brought with it fears of diminishing returns from a system built for a bygone era. Multiple credentials and mounting debt have not always meant stronger employment – or better learning. For all their strengths, Canada’s universities are struggling to give students and governments their money’s worth. Are Canadians getting the best education they can? Video From lecture halls with too little real learning to consumer-minded students all too quick to drop out, The Globe’s James Bradshaw outlines an education system ready for reform.

Where do you stand?

Canada is a world leader at producing university and college graduates. On average, graduates enjoy better pay and steadier work than their less-educated peers. But as enrolment has exploded, the focus is now on how well postsecondary study prepares students to launch into life after school. Is higher education delivering what's needed to succeed, or is it time for change? Click on The Globe’s interactive chart to plot your position. Vote: How Relevant is Canadian higher education? Poll Just how relevant is higher education in Canada? Chart your perspective, and compare your opinion to others'. Join the conversation

More students, more years, more debt

Pursuing postsecondary education is stretching students’ means like never before. Even with improved financial aid, students are forking over more tuition fees and shouldering more of the cost of their education, boomeranging to pursue higher credentials, and accumulating more debt. And at the end of that road, their employment prospects are less clear than in the past. Click through the graphics below to see the financial factors squeezing students. Tuition section goes here Graphic

Meet the innovators

There is much debate about how to change Canada’s postsecondary education system so that today’s graduating class is better equipped for a dramatically changing economy. While the debate is ongoing, individual innovators are making the changes they say are much needed. From making a degree relevant, to changing the way students are taught, to making the best a university has to offer free to anyone, anywhere: These are the people making a difference.









Video

The university payoff

Evidence of the returns on university education has been piling up, with an average bachelor-degree holder earning 40 per cent more than the typical high-school graduate. But what you choose to study matters. More students and parents are gravitating to subjects they believe lead to better jobs, but are they making informed choices? Use this interactive tool to compare hard numbers between undergraduate fields, and match your major against a high-school diploma. Male Female Median income, age 26 to 35 Lowest income2 Highest income3 Employed Unemployed Not in labour force Avg. work hours/week Select a field of study Male Female Median income, age 26 to 35 Lowest income2 Highest income3 Employed Unemployed Not in labour force Avg. work hours/week

The advisory panel

Reimagining a higher-education system as large and varied as Canada’s is no small task. Twenty-five of Canada’s leading thinkers on postsecondary learning – from presidents to professors and the people shaping policy – shared their ideas, innovations and concerns as Canadian education strives to stay competitive at a moment of massive global change. We asked the minds who helped shape The Globe and Mail’s coverage one question: What's the one thing you would change about higher education? The Advisors Previous Next

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