Midway through the final year of a course she loves, Melanie Hague now says she may quit York University’s theatre program and switch to another school for her last semester because she fears the ongoing strike may have cheapened her degree.
“They can talk all they want about how the strike won’t affect academic integrity, but it’s very difficult for me to imagine how, after two months’ absence, I could make up the work required at the accelerated rate they will demand if they don’t extend the school year,” said Hague, 21. “In theatre, so much of what we learn comes from spending time with people rather than books.”
Hague is one of nearly 50,000 undergraduates whose classes were scrapped Nov. 6 when 3,400 teaching assistants, contract faculty and graduate assistants walked off the job. Talks are scheduled to resume Saturday.
The university has unveiled a timetable to make up for lost classes that includes cancelling reading week, condensing both terms and shortening both exam periods.
York University spokesperson Alex Bilyk said every department and faculty is working on a remediation program to ensure the university delivers on its courses in such a way that students get a meaningful degree and proper evaluation.
