TA wages have been flat since 2008, yet tuition keeps rising. Where is our money going?

I don't think it's false propaganda and I am not the only one to identify that the rapid increase in both the size and expense of University bureaucracies is a major problem facing education this decade. Your argument appears to be that the service they render is worth it, and that I'm simply to ignorant to understand the complex and wonderful mysteries of the administration. Perhaps that's so. From my ignorant perspective, I feel that their value does not justify their cost.

Regarding my argument that bloated administration means less money for teaching, in the past 8 years, since our funding was frozen, our wages make up proportionally less of the university's operating budget. Administration makes up significantly more of the budget than it did. More money for administrators means less money for teachers. Less money for teachers means less money for TAs.

In OUSA's study linked below, they indicate that it's not clear why administrations have expanded so much in in Ontario in the past decade. Your argument is that they have brought added value to the university in some way. The study indicates that we aren't sure why, except that perhaps administrations are more important than they used to be, or perhaps their pay is negotiated differently (being determined by the board of governors). Who knows?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/steveodland/2012/03/24/college-costs-are-soaring/ http://ideas.time.com/2013/06/06/viewpoint-gordon-gee-should-have-gone-long-ago/ http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-11-14/bureaucrats-paid-250-000-feed-outcry-over-college-costs

Specifically in Canada: http://www.ousa.ca/dev/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Rising-Costs-FINAL.pdf http://www.macleans.ca/education/uniandcollege/hey-where-did-my-tuition-money-go/ http://www.macleans.ca/economy/business/where-all-that-money-is-going/ http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/131576-a-lesson-in-big-earnings-at-dalhousie

This is just a fraction of reports. A lot of people aren't convinced that the bureaucracy is worth so much more than it was 10 years ago, particularly in relation to its relative costs within the university budget.

/r/UofT Thread