HALIFAX--A report released today by the Maritimes Provinces Higher Education Commission (MPHEC) shows that the amount owed by graduates five years after they complete a degree continues to increase.

"For years students in Nova Scotia have been forced to take on extreme amounts of debt to finance their education," said Elise Graham, Chairperson for the Canadian Federation of Students-Nova Scotia. "This report confirms the effects of these debtloads on graduates."The report studies students who graduate from Maritime universities in 2003. The average amount owed by the class of 2003 five years after graduation increased by 11 percent over that owed by the class of 1999 at the five year mark.

The report also found that in comparison to the class of 1999 the proportion of graduates borrowing at least $30,000 has increased by six percent up-to 36 percent. Of those who borrowed more than $30,000, 21 percent still owed at least that amount five years after graduation. In addition, the average debt-payment-to-income ratio for those surveyed making payments on their loan was 11 percent; eight percent is recognized as the threshold above which it is difficult to make payments.

"For twenty years students in Nova Scotia paid the highest tuition fees in the country," said Graham. "The only sure-fire way to reduce student debt is to invest in grants and reduce tuition fees."

According to the report tuition fees in the Maritime Provinces have increased by 20-35 percent over the past decade. Average tuition fees in Nova Scotia are $5,696, the second highest in Canada and well above the national average. Tuition fees in Newfoundland and Labrador are less than half of those in Nova Scotia.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada's largest students' organization, uniting more than 500,000 university and college students from all ten provinces.