Accessibility to Post-Secondary Education in Canada.

Overview & Synopsis

An overview of the accessibility of postsecondary education in Canada is presented. The issues are dealt with in a brief, therefore necessarily simplified manner, and universities receive more attention than colleges, largely because there is considerably more data about them. Canadian postsecondary education is the constitutional responsibility of the provinces. The national government has no ministry or office of education at all. The development of postsecondary education in Canada increased dramatically after World War II and especially in the 1950s and 1960s. From 1981 to 1984, enrollment rose rapidly and has continued since then at very high levels. Several conceptions of accessibility are discussed, with three views outlined. One is concerned with the total number of places available for qualified applicants; the second concerns the distribution of available places among institutions and programs, and the third has to do with who in the population actually attends postsecondary education. The future for accessibility questions is examined, and it is suggested that: (1) demand will likely continue at very high levels; (2) there is likely to be increasing interest in alternatives to conventional education programs; and (3) significant progress in equity issues in the distribution of available places to different people is possible. Issues of accessibility are very likely to remain squarely on the agenda for postsecondary education. Contains 18 references. (SM)