ST. JOHN'S--Newfoundland and Labrador continues to buck national trends by maintaining very affordable post-secondary education according to data released today by Statistics Canada."The report illustrates the Newfoundland and Labrador government's commitment to an affordable system of post-secondary education," said Daniel Smith, Newfoundland and Labrador Chairperson of the Canadian Federation of Students. "Not only is freezing tuition fees a popular public policy, but it is also sound economic and social policy."

Tuition fees in Newfoundland and Labrador are currently the second lowest in the country, following Qu�bec. Tuition fees have been frozen and reduced in the province since 1999. For the vast majority of programs, tuition fees are $2,550 per year for university students and $1,452 per year for students at the College of the North Atlantic. These amounts are significantly less than the national average, which stands at $4,917.00 per year, as reported today.

In addition to continuing the tuition fee freeze and increasing funding to the College of the North Atlantic and Memorial University, the provincial government has also implemented forward- thinking student financial assistance policy including the recent elimination of interest rate charges on the provincial portion of student loans and the expansion of the up-front grant program."These policies are clearly paying off: student debt is decreasing, enrolment has gone up, more students are staying in the province to study, and Newfoundland and Labrador has been attracting a growing number of students from other provinces and countries," said Smith.

Every public post-secondary student in Newfoundland and Labrador is a member of the Canadian Federation of Students.