My Canada Has More Than Four Provinces

[trouble]

You know, as a Canadian, I just want to say:

There is a rest of Canada. No, really. There is not just an Alberta, an Ontario, a Quebec, and a B.C. There is totally a Saskatchewan, a Manitoba, a Newfoundland, a Prince Edward Island, a New Brunswick, and a Nova Scotia, not to mention the Territories: North West Territory, the Yukon, and Nunavut.

Canada has some serious regional differences and issues, and stuff like the following is not helpful:

Universities squabble over research funding

Smaller schools across Canada are up in arms over a proposal from five of
Canada's largest universities to concentrate research and graduate studies
in the biggest schools.

The leaders of McGill University and the universities of British Columbia,
Alberta, Toronto and Montreal have proposed a national strategy for higher
education that would see the top research dollars go to fewer schools, in an
effort to better use the resources available.

The larger schools would also have the lion's share of graduate students
under the proposal, which was first floated last month in an issue of
Maclean's magazine. One of the deciding factors for approving research grant
applications is the number of highly qualified personnel who will be trained
as part of the project, including PhD or graduate students.

The proposal has stirred controversy among the heads of smaller schools,
many of whom feel graduate programs are an important part of any academic
institution.

"Can we still have the same quality of education if you have people who are
teaching from the textbooks and not doing the research," said University of
Lethbridge associate vice-president Bob Boudreau. "I think comprehensive
universities in Alberta and throughout the country would argue that you
can't - that you need those two."

Atlantic Canada universities are also concerned their region would be left
behind if graduate studies and research dollars left.

Atlantic region might suffer: UPEI president

"I don't think there is anyway that we can have a viable knowledge economy
in the Atlantic region without a system that continues on the path that
we've been on," said UPEI president Wade MacLaughlin.

While smaller universities worry that their ability to attract students
might suffer, Calgary-based Mount Royal College president David Marshall
said graduate studies aren't necessary to provide for students.

"Every research item supports that the undergraduate-focused institution
provides an outstanding education for whatever the student wants to do,"
said Marshall.

University funding has been a hot-button issue this year after the federal
Conservative government proposed massive spending on research infrastructure
to upgrade facilities but also cut some funding to research programs.

Universities have also found themselves cutting programs and raising tuition
in response to rising costs and declining income.

Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., for example, announced this spring it
would cut some degree programs with low enrolment and cut 47 faculty. The
University of Guelph is also cutting several majors and degree programs, as
well as imposing a hiring freeze, postponing building projects and making
cuts to travel and special events.

Other universities are slashing scholarships budgets, planning to raise
tuition or clawing back discretionary spending on things such as equipment.

There's a lot of push right now in this area to present ourselves as a "knowledge-based economy", and these sorts of proposals do nothing to help our economy.

Comments

[From: skywardprodigal]

...So the prairies don't count...? I guess they're the flyover provinces?

O.O

[From: trouble]

I keep being assured there's nothing there but evil backwards people.

And, you know, my relatives.

[From: scemo]

. . . there isn't a single French uni mentioned in there. I dislike Canada.

And yay for being backwards in the prairies! I live there (or "here") too.

[From: (Anonymous)]

The University of Montreal is actually Universite de Montreal, a French school, and of the same type as the other universities mentioned.

There are lots of other reasons to dislike this proposal. I don't dislike a certain amount of specialisation, but this is absurd. There are all sorts of excellent universities in Canada, and even mostly average universities have some excellent departments and excellent universities have dreadful departments.

And -- Montreal aside, because it's in a weird position wrt to the province compared to Toronto, Edmonton and Vancouver -- these cities are not the ones that need super extra help.

More money for R&D? Absolutely. Allocating it entirely to a half dozen schools? No.

-TW