For the fourth year in a row, Ontario's colleges of applied arts and technology have received high marks from graduates, students and employers, a massive accountability survey shows.

"These results, and the results from the past three years, show that the colleges and our grads are a vital and proven provincial resource," says

Howard Rundle, chair of the Committee of Presidents and of the Association of Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology of Ontario (ACAATO). "Students, grads and employers clearly recognize the value of the high-quality education provided by Ontario's colleges."

The surveys, known collectively as the Key Performance Indicator (KPI) project, show that:

88.7% of recent college grads got jobs within six months of graduation;

91.7% of employers were satisfied with the quality of the educational preparation of college grads;

81.4% of graduates were satisfied with the usefulness of their college education in achieving their goals after graduation; and

74.4% of students were satisfied with the overall quality of services, programming and resources available to them (7% were dissatisfied).

"Going to college pays off, and these figures show it. Not only do our graduates get jobs, employers say our grads have got the skills they need," Rundle says.

Rundle warns, however, that the colleges are facing serious funding shortfalls that could affect this success in the future.

"The numbers reflect an enormous amount of hard work and dedication by college staff and students to cope with significantly less funding than a decade ago," he says. "To continue to be successful, the provincial government must realize that many colleges are at the brink of being unable to properly meet the needs of the province and our students."

The colleges require $60 million a year across the system to address the province's skills shortage, and another $65 million a year to hire faculty and buy equipment to meet the demand of the double cohort (caused by the elimination of the fifth year of high school) and increased population growth.



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