Notes from Council: Concerns from HSSA student survey

At the University of Alberta Students’ Union (UASU) Students’ Council meeting on February 10, Farah Elgaweesh, co-president of the Health Sciences Students’ Association (HSSA), presented on students’ concerns from the College of Health Sciences.

Additionally, Euan Hustler was ratified as the engineering councillor for the remainder of the year, and Melissa Padfield, deputy provost (students and enrolment), presented on tuition proposals.

Concerns from the HSSA survey

Elgaweesh presented on concerns found from a student survey done by the HSSA. Programs represented included pharmacy, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathology, and radiation therapy.

One of the main themes identified by the survey was financial strain linked to clinicals. Specifically, the fact that clinicals take up so much time, and are without pay. Students mentioned that unpaid clinicals have prevented them from maintaining a steady source of income. Additionally, hidden costs like transportation, immunizations, equipment, housing, and meals added to the strain.

Another major concern that came up was mental health. Students mentioned that the structural pressures and time constraints, especially balancing clinicals with classes, have had an impact on their mental health. In addition, students are only allotted one sick day per eight-week block of clinicals.

The third major concern was discrimination and difficulty reporting issues. Approximately 25 per cent of students in the survey said they had experienced discrimination. This was coupled with the fear of retaliation due to the power dynamics within clinicals. Many students stated they were unclear on formal reporting mechanisms.

One of the last major concerns that came up was the difficulty of matching placements. One of the major issues mentioned was a lack of transparency in the ranking system used for clinicals. Additionally, students are unable to switch placements with one another, even if they both agree to it. Students also perceived a mismatch between submitted preferences and actual placement.

Elgaweesh and other executives from the HSSA closed by suggesting solutions around standardization and better communication with the college, as well as more collaboration in supporting advocacy efforts.

Tuition proposals

After the first presentation, Padfield presented on updates to the tuition proposal for the upcoming year.

Padfield stated that the U of A conducted consultations with the UASU, the Graduate Students’ Association (GSA), and student town halls.

The proposed tuition increase is two per cent for domestic undergraduate and graduate students for fall 2026, which is the maximum increase the provincial cap allows.

Additionally, a 5.5 per cent increase has been proposed for most new international undergraduate students in fall 2027.

Executive updates

Board of Governors (BoG) representative Karina Banerji spoke about a student engagement measurement report that she has been working on since the beginning of her term. The report focuses on the perspectives of students on the U of A.

Vice-president (student-life) Logan West spoke about meeting with various departments and offices across the U of A. They will discuss the implementation of the recommendations from the sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) task force in early March.

Vice-president (operations and finance) Nathan Thiessen provided an update on maintenance on the Students’ Union Building (SUB). The U of A has communicated that significant work will take place in the following week.

Vice-president (external) Abdul Abassi spoke about consultation with various students’ associations, resulting in a $1.2 million investment in Edmonton Transit Services (ETS) from the city of Edmonton. This will go towards an automatic passenger counter system.

Abassi also mentioned his time in Ottawa over the past week, where he attended a youth unemployment roundtable discussion hosted by the Senate of Canada.

Vice-president (academic) Katie Tamsett mentioned that she will be attending the Provost Advisory Chairs Committee to speak about academic concerns.

Tamsett also spoke about a Women’s Health Day being scheduled for March 28.

Lastly, President Pedro Almeida spoke about his platform update report based on his campaign for president. The goal of the report was to maintain transparency and provide information for prospective election candidates, Almeida said.