When I started writing this column, I talked to many international students about their experiences and challenges in Canada. Almost all of them pointed out differential fees as their main problem. But, when I asked if they would let me interview them, most of them refused. They said they did not want their names to be in the Gazette because they were afraid that if they complained, they would be deported, or would never have a chance to apply for immigration.
Unlike Canada, in many countries around the world, criticizing the governments rules and regulations is considered a terrible offence. Many international students believe that if they express their opinions, they will get into serious trouble.
However, one African student volunteered to discuss his concerns. A second-year student at Dalhousie, who we will call Jeffrey to protect his identity, says about the fees: “The name is already trying to say something to me. Differential fees are there to distinguish those who are Canadian and those who are not.”
Differential fees are not the only difference between international and Canadian students. When I told Jeffrey about the difficulties that Iranians have to go through in order to obtain Canadian visas, he mentioned that there are similar difficulties for people of his country.
Although we pay as much as many other international students, we are not treated the same as, for instance, American or western European students. Nationality plays an important role in lives of international students.
Most European or American students do not have to worry about obtaining visas each time they want to visit their families, or determine how often their families can visit them. However, most Middle Eastern, African and East Asian countries are on Immigration Canada’s list of “territories whose citizens require visa in order to enter Canada.”
Jeffrey says, “If they ask for this much money every year, why won’t they treat us a bit more like everyone else?”
Then again, he says, paying international fees is not completely unfair. After all, we made a choice to come to Canada, and we agreed upon these tuition fees when we accepted our invitation to university. But I think that none of us anticipated how the extra costs would affect our performance in school.
Jeffrey mentioned that his country’s currency has a lesser value than Canadian currency. He is responsible to pay for his apartment, food, clothes and books. Yet many students like Jeffrey cannot apply for loans in either Canada or our home countries.
Therefore, most international students find themselves desperate to take on as much paid employment as possible in order to help pay for school and living expenses. At the same time, Jeffrey notes, “we have to be full-time students”: international students cannot get time off of school to work. If they do, they will lose their student visa.
“How much are we able to work, in order to pay?” Jeffrey asks. “We cannot be as productive as we are supposed to be in our courses.”
I could easily relate to Jeffrey’s experiences. Jeffrey said he wouldn’t mind the international fees if he could get any kind of financial aid or loan. “Most students at the end of the day end up being workaholics. Many of them do not come back; and some become unskilled workers.” He believes that paying while differential fees may be fair, it is unfair that students cannot apply for loans, and have to be under so much pressure to achieve their dream of getting a degree.
While differential fees may be a complicated subject without a fixed solution, these fees have negative effects on the lives of many international students.
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