February 11, 2002 For Immediate Release

The University of Northern British Columbia will consult with its students to help determine new tuition levels, now that the British Columbia government has restored the authority of universities to set tuition fees.

"We appreciate that students have concerns about the rising costs of their education and we share those concerns," says UNBC President Charles Jago. "Students also understand that an ongoing freeze in funding for UNBC will mean severe cutbacks in services and programs. For UNBC, it will be a balance between providing and expanding programs and services while keeping a university education affordable and accessible. That balance can only be achieved by making the decision ourselves, in an open and transparent fashion."

UNBC is in a unique position among BC universities. The University opened for full operations in 1994 with 1400 students. Today, it has nearly 3600 students. For most of its history, UNBC has faced the pressure of expanding its programming while having to cope with frozen tuition fees. "It is essential that UNBC continue to build the quality of the University with the range of programs that people in northern BC deserve and expect," says President Jago.

Currently, the tuition fee for a full-time UNBC student is $2260 per year.

"For the remainder of this fiscal year, we will be finalizing our budget and all student fees," says President Jago. "We expect to announce the new UNBC tuition fee by the first week of April."