Media Contacts

Sean Leslie

Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training
sean.leslie@gov.bc.ca
250 893-4403

Backgrounders

Post-secondary student emergency assistance funding in B.C.
  • Since March 2020, government has provided $9 million to assist students throughout B.C. who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic:
    • $1.5 million in 2020 and $1 million in 2021 for the Indigenous Emergency Assistance Fund, including $150,000 to assist post-secondary students at Indigenous institutes across B.C.
    • $3.5 million in 2020 and $3 million in 2021 for the Student Emergency Assistance Fund 
  • This funding builds on existing emergency funding that many post-secondary institutions already provide to students facing financial hardships.
  • Indigenous post-secondary institutes throughout B.C. have also received $150,000 to assist students facing financial hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • $3.6 million has been provided to the Indigenous Emergency Assistance Fund since 2017 and has been accessed by more than 4,000 Indigenous students.
  • Emergency funding for Indigenous students supports the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples articles 21.1 and 21.2 and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada: Calls to Action number 23.i.
  • $6.5 million in extra pandemic support has been provided for the Student Emergency Assistance Fund at public post-secondary institutions. In 2020, that funding supported approximately 5,400 B.C. domestic students.
  • In the years leading up to 2020-21, the annual Student Society Emergency Assistance Fund was provided $70,000, supporting 480 students each year on average across participating public post-secondary institutions.