Ontarians And Access To Post Secondary Education

Toronto, ON - The results of an Ipsos-Reid poll released today show that two-thirds (64%) of Ontarians want increased provincial government funding for universities and colleges, even though this may result in a cancellation of planned tax cuts or reduced government spending in other areas. Increased provincial funding garners the support of voters across all the major political parties who know who they would vote for if an election were held in the province tomorrow. This includes a majority of decided PC voters (53%). Further, 70percent of parents in Ontario are concerned (43% "very concerned") that their children may not be able to attend a public university or college if they are qualified and choose to do so. On an open-ended basis, concerned parents indicated that the main reason was that "they can't afford it" (79%).

The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Ontario Public Service Employees Union, and Canadian Federation of Students (Ontario) commissioned the poll, which was conducted between April 16th and April 25th, 2001. The poll is based on a randomly selected sample of 1,000 adult Ontarians. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 177 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult Ontario population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Ontario population according to the 1996 Census data.

Two-Thirds (64%) of Ontarians, Including A Majority of Decided PC Voters (53%), Want Increased Provincial Funding For Universities and Colleges Even if it May Mean Canceling Tax Cuts or Reduced Spending in Other Areas

When given a list of options to accommodate the large increase in the number of qualified student applications to publicly-funded universities and colleges expected over the next five years, two-thirds (64%) of Ontarians chose "increase provincial government funding for universities and colleges, even though this may result in a cancellation of planned tax cuts or reduced government spending in other areas". This is followed by "encourage the establishment of private universities and colleges throughout the province" (16%), which is supported by 24 percent of decided PC voters, and "raise student entrance requirements to universities and colleges to restrict the number of students admitted" (12%).

• Increased provincial funding garners the support of Ontarians across all the major political parties, including decided NDP (74%), Liberal (69%) and PC (53%) voters.
• Women (68%) are more likely than men (59%) to opt for increased provincial funding even though this may result in a cancellation of planned tax cuts or reduced spending in other areas.

Seventy Percent (70%) of Parents Are Concerned (43% "Very Concerned") Their Kids May Not Be Able to Attend University or College Even if They Are Qualified

Seven in ten (70%) parents are concerned that their children may not be able to attend university or college despite their qualifications. This includes 43 percent of parents who say that they are "very concerned". Less than three in ten (28%) of Ontario's parents say that they are not concerned that their children may not be able to attend a public university or college if they are qualified and choose to do so. A majority of decided voters from each of the major parties (NDP - 83%; Liberal - 76%; PC - 55%) are concerned that their kids may not be able to attend university or college even if they are qualified and choose to do so.

• Concern over accessibility of universities and colleges among Ontario's parents decreases with both education and income. Parents with a university education (62%) are less likely than those with some post-secondary (70%) or high school or less education (82%) to be concerned that their children may not be able to attend a public university or college. Those earning $60,000 (60%) are less likely to be concerned than those earning between $30,000 to $60,000 (77%) and less than $30,000 (90%).
• Women (78%) are more likely than men (62%) to be concerned.

Main Reason: They Can't Afford It (79%), Including PC Decided Voters (78%)

On an open-ended basis, concerned parents said that the main thing that may prevent their children from attending a public university or college is that they "can't afford it/not enough money" (79%). This is followed by the "double cohort (elimination of grade 13, increase in number of student applications - institutions can't handle)" (15%) and "grades not good/high enough or not doing well in school" (15%).

• Concern among parents that they may not be able to afford to put their children through a public university or college is consistently high across all the major parties (NDP -81%; Liberal 80%), including 78% of decided PC voters.
• Concern about the effect of the double cohort among parents appears to increase with education and income. Parents with a university education (24%) are more likely than those with some post-secondary (13%) or high school or less education (9%) to be concerned about the double cohort. Those earning $60k+ (22%) are more likely than those earning between $30k to $60k (13%) and less than $30k (6%) to be concerned.

For more information on this news release, please contact:

John Wright
Senior Vice President
Public Affairs
Ipsos-Reid
(416) 324-2900