A Kings County woman says the province won’t let her apply for a student loan for a program at the Nova Scotia Community College because it’s online, even though it’s the same course for which she could get a loan if she was an on-campus student.
Emily Halbersma first signed up for the Early Childhood Education program in 2014-15. She said she could do it in three years, compared to two if she went to the college, but not without students loans. But when she asked about getting a loan, the Department of Labour and Advanced Education said she didn’t qualify because she was taking her courses online.
She said it doesn’t make sense that an online course through a recognized institution, that would give her the same diploma as if she was on campus, doesn’t
qualify.
She and her husband Justin cobbled together enough money that first year for her to take half a dozen of the courses needed, but at up to $500 a course plus books, they couldn’t do that in the subsequent two years.
She took as many courses as she could afford, but in three years has only been able to afford and finish 13 of the 29 required courses and work terms. She said online is the better option because she needs to work to help maintain their home and cover expenses.
“Not everyone can afford to take time off work to go to school,” Justin said.
They asked about the loan again this year but got the same answer. Justin was laid off from his job and Emily wasn’t able to take any courses for the first term. Now 32 years old, she says she doesn’t want to wait until she’s 35 or 36 to be able to start work in a career she started studying for at 29.
With a student loan, she would be finishing as soon as possible, she said.
“I want to get this done,” she said. “It’s very frustrating. . . . I want to start the career I want to have and eventually open my own daycare to help families that need it.
Kings North MLA John Lohr said it doesn’t make sense that Halbersma can’t get a student loan.
“This is the 21st century and the Nova Scotia Community College is offering an online course for (a career) we need people in. . . . I cannot understand why they would not offer a student loan for that.”
He brought the matter up in the legislature, but said Education Minister Labi Kousoulis told him later that the reason is there is never a fixed finish date for online courses while most NSCC on-site courses are done in two years.
“I understand what he’s saying, but I don’t think it would be too onerous in the student loan program to make a condition that the person has to indicate when they’re going to be done by,” Lohr said. “I think that’s solvable.”
He said in any event someone could get a loan for a traditional post-secondary program and then drop out in the first year without finishing, or take a year off.
“All kinds of things can happen, that’s life,” he said. “I don’t think that’s a valid argument.”
The Department of Labour and Advanced Education was not immediately available for commnent.
