‘It’s Not Just You’ STUSU Calls for Urgent Action on Student Issues Across New Brunswick.
ST. THOMAS UNIVERISTY STUDENTS’ UNION
Media contact: Camila Baquerizo Bayona, Vice- President Education
Phone: 506 897 4103
Email: su_vped@stu.ca
Release Date:
November 2nd, 2025
Fredericton, NB — The St. Thomas University Students’ Union (STUSU) is urging the Government of New Brunswick to address an emerging crisis pushing students out of the province. Ahead of Advocacy Week, STUSU is launching its campaign “It’s Not Just You” to remind students that their struggles stem from years of neglect, not personal failure.
STUSU warns that without urgent government action, New Brunswick will continue to educate its best and brightest for the benefit of other provinces. In A Student Blueprint for New Brunswick: Stay Here, Succeed, STUSU offers data-driven recommendations to make education affordable, housing stable, work meaningful, and mental health supports accessible.
“Behind every statistic is a student struggling to stay afloat,” said STUSU. “Rising costs, unaffordable housing, and overwhelming stress are not abstract issues; they’re shaping students’ daily lives and futures.”
STUSU’s 2025 Student Experience & Affordability Survey found that:
· 34% of students are graduating $40,000+ in debt.
· 39% of students are unemployed and report experiencing challenges in finding employment.
· Only 34% of students say they are very likely to stay in the province after graduation.
· Only 2% of students believe that education is very affordable.
· 42% of students have considered leaving post-secondary education due to mental health challenges.
These numbers paint a clear picture: students are being failed by the very government they helped elect. In just three days, St. Thomas University students cast approximately 324 ballots, reflecting strong student engagement in the provincial election.
“Students are participating in democracy — but the government isn’t listening.”
In New Brunswick, the cost of post-secondary education has skyrocketed:
· The average domestic tuition has increased from $7,995 in the 2021/22 academic year to an estimated $9,938 for the 2025/26 academic year.
· The average international tuition fee has increased from $16,476 in the 2021/22 academic year to an estimated average of $19,278 in the 2025/26 academic year.
“Affordability has become the breaking point for students,” said STUSU.
As our campaign reminds students, “It’s Not Just You.” The challenges they face are not personal failures but barriers that demand urgent action. That’s why STUSU has drafted policy solutions focused on four key areas: affordability, housing, experiential learning, and mental health.
The Union’s advocacy document, Stay Here, Succeed Here, presents evidence-based recommendations aligned with provincial priorities. It proposes fairer tuition payment structures, expanded rent support for students, greater investment in work-integrated learning, and stronger campus mental health resources—measures designed to make education accessible and retention possible.
Post-secondary education is not a privilege—it is the backbone of a strong society and economy. It must be treated as a provincial and federal priority, because the future of New Brunswick depends on whether its students can afford to stay.
“These are not extravagant asks,” the Union emphasized. “They are practical, low-cost policy changes that align with the province’s priorities of affordability, housing, and workforce development.
”STUSU’s Advocacy Week begins now, and we are demanding immediate, concrete action. “It’s Not Just You” is our message of solidarity to students and our challenge to those in power: invest in us, because we are New Brunswick’s future.
We have already reached out to decision-makers, and we expect to meet with those who shape our province’s path. If those calls go unanswered, it will show that students’ voices are not being ignored by accident — but by choice. The future of this province depends on whether we are invited to the table — or forced to leave it.