VANCOUVER, BC - After a year of unprecedented challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ten student organizations across Canada, including the Alliance of BC Students, have released Shared Perspectives: A Joint Publication on Supporting Students During and After COVID-19. This publication looks at how governments, institutions, and higher-education stakeholders can better support students and recent graduates as Canada responds to and recovers from COVID-19. Post-secondary students across Canada share their perspectives on issues facing the sector, including student mental health, quality of online learning, student financial aid, and support for marginalized students.

“Students are amongst the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in a number of areas, including job losses, financial strain, mental health decline, and navigating the challenges of remote learning” said Grace Dupasquier, the Chairperson of the ABCS. “We know these challenges will continue to impact current and future students well into the future, and decisive action must be taken to address them.”

Shared Perspectives highlights the unique challenges post-secondary students have faced while navigating COVID-19 on both a national and provincial level. The ABCS’s submission focuses on the ongoing mental health impacts of the pandemic, which only exacerbated the ongoing mental health challenges students were already facing.

Students urge the federal and provincial governments to provide targeted supports to students and recent graduates so they can contribute to the long-term economic recovery of the country. Students and recent graduates will play an important role in Canada’s economy and society post-pandemic, so federal and provincial governments must invest in them now.