So . . . McGill and it's MBA program is in the news again, once again for it's "high" fees. The fact of the matter is that McGill's MBA fees are just about the general market price for an MBA - the only difference is that fees at that price level are relatively new to Quebec, where tuition hikes are as rare as Charlie Sheen at an AA meeting (losers and sissies, according to the Gospel of Charlie). The question here isn't whether the Quebec government has the right to claw back 28 grand of the $29,500 that McGill charges (as they threaten to do). The question here is why the Quebec government is so willfully ignoring reality in doing so.
As reported in multiple media outlets (such as the Montreal Gazette), McGill is flying the face of tradition by charging a very high (but market-realistic) price for their MBA. After all, other Quebec schools with MBA programs do not charge that much, and neither did McGill until recently. The government is upset at what amounts to a 900% increase in tuition (oddly, there are no student complaints in the article).
The government's basis for their complaint is access. The general sense in higher education in Quebec is that students should not be kept out because they have insufficient funds to pay for said education. This in and of itself is not flawed, and of course is a sentiment held by many around the globe. The problem, as it is with most things, is one of extremes. Does this mean that a Quebec resident can have access to any university program they desire? Undergraduate, graduate, MBA, MD, PhD, and so on? In theory, sure. But there are market forces that make this an impossibility.
MBA programs in North America usually cost over $30,000. This gives those schools the funds necessary to have state-of the-art equipment and buildings, top faculty, and great resources. Absence of these funds means being deficient in these areas, even once donors and government transfers are figured in. I know this from first-hand experience; when I was on the academic job market I was in discussions with a business school in Quebec. Their salary offer was 30-40% lower than schools elsewhere in Canada and the U.S. (at least their offer to me was - maybe I was not held in particularly high esteem), and this was a key reason why I did not opt to go there. They had a young, vibrant marketing faculty, but almost every member was originally from Quebec and specifically wanted to work there (thereby making the low salary more palatable).
So if the Quebec government prevents b-schools from charging market rates (or claws back 95% of the money), they are putting those schools at a competitive disadvantage, and the calibre of student they will draw will decline. Of course, many Quebec-based students will find it appealing, but you could argue this would be for the wrong reasons (I choose your school because it's cheapest, not because it's the best). If the goal of the Quebec government is to provide a non-competitive education (not now, right now Quebec's business schools are still doing okay, but that will likely change) to Quebeckers, then mission accomplished. But if the goal is to compete in a bigger arena, then this move will remove that possibility.
It's like if they made it so the Montreal Canadiens had to have a substantially lower payroll than the rest of the league. Tickets would be cheaper, but the team would never make it to the Stanley Cup. Maybe some Leafs fans can describe what that's like - you have lots of experience not making it to or through the playoffs.
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