How can you afford to be a student?

I was talking with my sister on the phone the other day wondering why she hasn't returned home from university.

She noted that she still had exams and was going to be in university until May tenth.

"What?" I asked.

She said, yuppers at her university the exams go into May.

I remember fondly my days at the University of Ottawa where the exams were over by the end of April and I could move home by May first at the very latest. Apparently that is no longer the case at university.

I thought about it a little more lately and noted that my sister is losing important employment time. She is basically losing ten days from her summer employment and the associated loss in wages. These wages usually go towards paying tuition, books and just plain living through the school year.

It seems her university doesn't understand that their students need to work four months during the summer in order to be able to afford to continue their studies.

Its a shame really because not everyone is rich enough to sit on the beach in Maui during the summer months while not attending university. Gee...maybe most students might like to actually have some money in their pockets instead of drumming up their student debt like drunken sailors. hmmmm...novel idea ya think?