It took just 10 UFV students, who entered the 30 Drops Out of the Bucket contest, to rack up a million dollars in student debt.
The top 10 winners, who get $1,000 each, are carrying an average student debt load of more than $100,000, according to the contest organizers from the Faculty and Staff Association (FSA) at UFV.
“The campaign was a huge success,” said Sean Parkinson, president of the FSA. “People heard about it through word of mouth, through the newspaper, through Facebook, through the UFV Alumni Association, through FPSE, through posters, through the FSA newsletter, and, in the classroom. It’s a real measure of success that we got students and instructors talking about student debt in the classroom.”
But despite the success of the contest, Parkinson said he’s not at all happy to see the amount of student debt it revealed.
The aim of the contest was to highlight the problem of escalating student debt, and education underfunding, ahead of the May 9 provincial election.
It’s an ongoing concern that some of those with large debt loads could see them rise even higher.
Some of winners are still completing studies at University of the Fraser Valley, like Christina Billingham of Chilliwack, who is completing a Bachelor of Fine Art.
Winning a contest this way is a bit “terrifying,” Billingham said.
“Obviously winning anything is nice,” she told The Progress. “The money was certainly helpful and I definitely appreciated it. The reality of this win however, is slightly terrifying. Being given a prize for being one of the most in debt students at UFV doesn’t seem like a real win.”
When Billingham graduates in June she hopes to enter the work force and find her dream job.
“Or at least find one that pays all right and is somewhat related to my field, but the reality is that I will likely be paying over half of my monthly income directly to student loan debt,” she said. “With four young daughters at home, this money will certainly be missed. Let me just say that I wouldn’t change the path I took to get where I am today, but the numbers are a bit crippling.
Her plan is to continue on to grad school next year.
The 30 Drops organizers want to make a point about the burden that heavily indebted students will carry.
“It’s sad to flip through the entries and see the debt racking up year after year for those students,” Parkinson said. “How can we possibly think it’s a good idea for students to start out in their working lives under this heavy debt burden? They’ll be lucky to pay it off before they retire.
One contest application, which unfortunately arrived after deadline, was from a couple with five kids and another on the way, with combined debt of $175,000.
“Their monthly student loan payments must be staggering.”
The students and alumni who entered the FSA’s 30 Drops contest to see $1,000 taken off their student debt are from all walks of life. Some are future teachers, doctors, criminologists, psychologists, sociologists, social workers, geographers, artists, information technologists, bioethicists, accountants, communicators, philosophers, political scientists, historians, kinesiologists, and biologists.
“They are our future leaders,” Parkinson said.
The challenge is that B.C. students graduate with an average of $35,000 in student debt, according to the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators, who funded the 30 Drops contest.
Contest by the numbers:
Total debt from 223 valid contest entries: $7,071,804
Highest debt: $169,545
Average debt from 223 valid contest entries, some of whom are still students: $31,712
Debt from 30 winners: $2.5 million
Average debt among 30 winners: $83,000
Top 10 debt holders total: $1,071,617 (averaging $107,000)
The 30 Drops out of the Bucket winners (alphabetical order by first name).
Alison Robertson
Alissa Gorner
Audrey Faber
Nikki Dionne
Brittany Reid
Christina Billingham
Cindy McIntosh
Dana Brook
Dawn Emile
Douglas J. Day
Gerald Koe
Graham St. Eloi
Jaipreet Mattu
James Severn
Janel Jack
Jason Soolaman
Jeffrey Rasmussen
Kristi McGill
Kristianne Hendricks
Kristine Kooyman
Laura Milette
Marin Beck
Melanie Danbert
Mikhail Roy
Pamela Schwab
Richelle Campbell
Robyn Mooney
Sam Odell
Samantha Fischer
Steven Goodall