....and this thread should also beggar the question whether university education is required at all. The days of formulaic assumption that there will be guaranteed employment because one has a university degree have long passed and will only get even worse in the future.

I know it is hard for desi parents to think on these lines, but please also consider skilled trades which the Indo-urban-professional class seems to loath.

This is where the projected growth will be in near future and even beyond. Graduates of these colleges can then continue to university part-time while supporting themselves with better paid jobs in skilled trades and in the process also get real time experience while completing their education.

In my opinion, University in future will be good mainly for STEM programs. For other fields, it is okay to invest in if you have extra cash to spare.

However, since this thread is primarily about financial aspect of education, there have been some interesting articles in Canadian media about the real cost of education in Canada, which is close to being zero when tax breaks, scholarships, bursaries, loans, investment options etc are made available for citizens.

Sounds bizarre, but that is what is being touted about. Btw, even in scholarships, there is a lot of "networking" involved as in job search in Canada. This is especially true if you are an average student.


http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/the-myth-of-crushing-student-debt/article18131098/

Counter view: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/soaring-tuition-costs-force-students-to-work-more-hours-analysis-1.2610095


Btw, why shouldn't this topic be a India vs Canada vs US vs others thread? Point is to get best possible education for your child. In Canada getting into a med school is like playing Lotto 649.

My cousins did their medicine in India in donation colleges(Manipal) and in other countries like Russia as they could not make it into non-reservation category in India and could not get a seat in med schools in Canada despite getting good grades in Canadian undergrad programs. They now have successful practice in US and are respected professionals.

U of T, McGill, Waterloo etc compare to Ivy league schools in US but at the same time are highly accessible to non-elite population in terms of tuition and available space. Unlike ivy leagues, in premier Canadian universities they make you earn your degree. This is the USP of Canadian higher education.

In US and in Canada, desi students will have to face insane competition from Asian students in STEM programs.

Also has one thought about doing Engineering courses in NIT's and IIT's through NRI quota. This is a highly sucessful programme where in you can get into NIT computer science with low marks (as Canada gives full marks even for mediocre answers) for jsut US $ 5,000 tution costs per year and other expenses such as lodging and food being negiligible.

Murali Krishna

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I am a Gents and not a Ladies.

Whether University education is required or not is a debate in itself. A "do nothing" option is always an acceptable option if the circumstances favor the option.

Having said that, this discussion assumes one wants to consider post-secondary education and therefore what is the planning behind to achieve that goal.

Personally, I believe in a college/university education and therefore, unless my son decides to become a bongo player, I'll continue the planning of funding his education. Besides, the community we live in fosters a healthy competitive environment. The school district is made of 53% Asians which in turn provides for a great competition and has in turn provided for a great quality of teachers and wonderful facilities across the city and the school system. The demographics of the city we live in believe in education in a technical field and is evidenced by the interaction we have with the school system.

Anyway, that is my preference.

So, going back to the original question. If you believe your child must have a post secondary education, how are you preparing for it?

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Dimple2001