My name is Tilak Patel. I am an international student from India, and I arrived in Canada in September 2022 to study at Cambrian College. I came to Canada in search of quality education, equal opportunity and equal rights to everyone. But I was wrong, this equality was only meant for Canadian citizens and permanent residents. International students have to struggle a lot in order to pay their tuition. The tuition fees for domestic students are somewhere around $2,000 per semester whereas for international students this amount is increased to 8,000-9,000 per semester or even more in some courses. We had to work on minimum wages and had to pay for our accommodation, food and groceries as well.
However, I decided to come to Canada for quality education and better lifestyle and I thought that Canadian government is very insightful and will definitely do something about international tuition. But I guess I was wrong, and I still need to pay for my second-year tuition which is $16,297.90.
Due to this, international students are having stressful life instead of a quality life. Many students, due to this stress get into depression, feel loneliness and some heartbreaking incidents (such as suicide) also take place.
I am writing this not only for me but for every international student who are facing same issues. I am demanding for change that will bring happiness and equality amongst all international students.
Looking forward for the response from Government.