Post-secondary review still unreleased as B.C. Election approaches

By LIAM CLARKE  

Premier David Eby’s snap election comes as public post-secondary education faces growing uncertainty.

A review of B.C.’s 25 post-secondary institutions has been finalized and handed over to the Ministry of

Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, but the provincial government has kept its findings

confidential as the Oct. 24 provincial election approaches.

 

 

The province has not committed to a release date. The report’s original March 31 deadline was extended

into June to accommodate further submissions and finalize its recommendations.

 

After B.C.’s first post-secondary review was shelved before its findings were made public in 2024, the

latest review is expected to inform the province’s approach to the financial sustainability of

post-secondary institutions.

 

Langara College remains among the B.C. institutions facing severe budgetary strain following federal

caps on international student enrolment. The college’s suspension of student intake for its Studio 58

production, English for academic purposes, and journalism programs for the fall 2026 semester stems

from the financial pressures that prompted the sustainability review.

 

The Conservative Party of British Columbia has criticized the provincial NDP government over what it

describes as a post-secondary financial crisis and raised concerns about the continued withholding of

the review and its recommendations.

 

“The NDP Post-Secondary Minister must be accountable for their failures and provide answers,”

said Korky Neufeld, post-secondary education critic for the Conservative Party of B.C., in a June 15

statement.

 

Neither the NDP nor the Conservative Party of British Columbia has made a post-secondary education

announcement during the election campaign.

Jessie Sunner, minister of post-secondary education and future skills, has identified “investing in

education” as one of her top priorities. Sunner, the incumbent MLA for Surrey-Newton, is running for

re-election.

 

As of Sept. 30, the province has not adjusted the two per cent cap on domestic tuition increases.