Universities & Colleges

  • develops and manages funding agreements between the province and the public post-secondary institutions
  • analyzes reports and publications to inform the Minister on policy issues
  • conducts Nova Scotia based higher education research through the Minister's Post-Secondary Education Research Advisory Panel
  • represents the province at a regional and national level regarding post-secondary education issues
Key initiatives of the Universities & Colleges division are:

Funding Assistance for Universities
Second three-year Memorandum of Understanding with universities signed in March 2008
  • $30M annual increase in operating funding for 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11
  • freezes tuition for all students
  • up to $25 M for infrastructure renewal via Nova Scotia Crown Share University Infrastructure Trust
University Tuition Reduction
2006 Premier's commitment to reduce tuition fees to national average by 2010-11
  • 2008-09 average tuition for Nova Scotian is $5,687; national average $4,724 Nova Scotia University Student Bursary Trust
Nova Scotian students studying in Nova Scotian universities will receive bursaries of:
  • $761 in 2008-09
  • $1,022 in 2009-10
  • $1,283 in 2010-11
  • $261 for other Canadian students at Nova Scotian universities in 2010-11
NSCC Development
  • $123M commitment in 2003 to reach 10,400 seats in 2008-09; over target by 105 (10,505)
  • working with the NSCC to develop a growth plan for 2009-10 and beyond to meet the labour market demands of the province