N.S. student loan and grant maximums mostly stagnant since 2013, data shows

Amid higher tuition rates and the rising cost of living, the maximum student loan and grant amounts provided by the Nova Scotia government have increased just once since 2013, according to data analyzed by CBC News. 

The Department of Advanced Education records show that students can receive a maximum provincial loan of $4,080 for a 34-week program, and a maximum grant of $2,720. Those have been the maximums since 2017, when they went up by 11 per cent. 

For Nick d'Entremont with the Dalhousie Student Union, it's a concern that these amounts have not grown.

"Students right now are being forced to decide … what they want to spend their money on, whether it's rent, tuition, groceries," said d'Entremont, who is also a fifth-year student with Nova Scotia loans.

"They're struggling to just be able to live." 

The political science student said he has $62,000 in student loans, which have covered courses and some living expenses. 

"It's definitely a lot of stress knowing that I'll have to probably pay that for the next ten … years, probably more."

From 2013 to the current academic year, the average domestic undergraduate tuition in the province has increased by 57 per cent to $9,762, according to preliminary data from Statistics Canada.

Meanwhile, between August 2013 and August 2024, prices in Nova Scotia increased an average of 30 per cent, according to the Consumer Price Index.

Nova Scotia's average tuition rate is also the highest in the country this year.

The Nova Scotia government did provide one-time grants between 2020 and 2023. The province said a needs-based grant of $1,350 went out to nearly 12,000 students last year.

Those grants were helpful, d'Entremont said. 

"But obviously, if you're giving one-time grants that probably means that there's an issue with the way that they're providing financial assistance to students."

The proportion of provincial assistance provided as grants has also been stagnant, having stayed at 40 per cent since 2013.

Prajwal Shetty with Students Nova Scotia would like to see the entirety of student assistance come in the form of grants. 

"When students graduate, they should not be in a financial restraint," Shetty said. 

Post-secondary students in Nova Scotia graduate with among the highest debt in Canada.

"Making sure that students are not facing this burden is something that's extremely important because students are the future of this country," Shetty said. 

Federal assistance for students has increased in recent years. For the 2020/21 school year, the federal government temporarily doubled its student grant maximum to $6,000 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic — this was maintained for another two years after. 

In a statement, the provincial Department of Advanced Education said it's "focused on reducing student debt loads and making it more affordable for them to stay and build a life in Nova Scotia after they graduate." 

It pointed to a number of actions taken, including its loan forgiveness program and a two per cent undergraduate tuition cap for this year's funding agreement with universities — down from three per cent under the previous memorandum of understanding.