<p>The thread on pell grants made me curious about how other countries handle helping citizens afford secondary education. Canada has an interesting system as follows:</p>
<ul>
<li>ALL Canadian families have the option of contributing to a college savings fund for each child. Contributions are “matched” by the Canadian government as follows:
for families earning above $70,000, the government contributes $20 to the account for each $100 the family saves and contributes.
for families earning btween $35,000 and $70,000, the Canadian government contributes 40 dollars for every $100 the family puts into the college savings account.
for families earning under$35,000, the government contributes 45 dollars for every $100 saved.</li>
<li><p>families earning under $35,000 get a $500 savings bond that is put into a special educational savings account for each child on birth.</p></li>
<li><p>Families earning under $35,000 also qualify for up to a $3,000 grant. Unlike our - families earning under $35,000 get a $500 savings bond that is put into a special educational savings account for each child on birth.</p></li>
<li><p>Families earning under $35,000 also qualify for up to a $3,000 grant. Unlike our Pell Grant, however, it is a one time grant for first year education and only offered to dependent students, not independent students (independent students in the US are eligible for pell grants, all qualifying low income students get pell grants up to approx. $4000 a year)</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I personally like the Canadian matched savings plan - it encourages parents to take responsibility to save for their children’s college education from birth - while the amount the government contributes is pretty small, the message it gives is that it is ultimately the family’s responsibility to plan and save for their children’s education.</p>
<p>I was also surprised to see that the Canadian government does not offer a program of 4 year grants like our Pell Grant program. </p>
<p>Details:<a href=“http://www.fin.gc.ca/budget04/pamph/paleae.htm[/url]”>http://www.fin.gc.ca/budget04/pamph/paleae.htm</a></p>