Alberta Minister of Advanced Education Myles McDougall introduced Bill 38 bringing significant changes to the Post-Secondary Learning Act.
The bill introduced on Nov. 3 2026 focused on three key areas: tuition, institutional neutrality and student codes of conduct.
The proposed piece of legislation has drawn ire from student leaders, including Students’ Union President Gabriela Dziegielewska.
Tuition maximums set through ministerial order
The proposed legislation would introduce the ability for the Minister of Advance Education to set maximum tuition amounts for programs through ministerial order.
Institutions will still determine their own tuition rates, however limits will be set by the ministry.
“You're essentially making it so that the minister can play puppet master with every single program in the province,” said SU President Gabriela Dziegielewska in an interview to the Gauntlet regarding the proposed changes with ministerial orders.
Changes to tuition by the provincial government follows earlier reporting by the Gauntlet.
In August a presentation addressed to student leaders across the province explained the new framework and included post-secondary programs getting sorted into the five clusters based on labour market demand and program cost.
However, the recent proposed legislation introduced does not outline the specifics of such a change to the tuition framework at this time.
“The design of the model itself is so variable and chaotic, and it doesn't provide a lot of assurance to students currently, to high school students who are [...] thinking of studying in Alberta,” said Dziegielewska on the potential for this new model.
Students currently enrolled for the 2027-28 academic year would see tuition capped at two per cent.
Institutional Neutrality
The proposed legislation would also include “minimum requirements” when it comes to institutional neutrality.
It has been clarified that institutional neutrality included “formal positions adopted or issued by an institution on political, social or ideological matters unrelated to its academic mission” but did not apply to students, faculty or staff.
U of C has already stated previously that the University “will refrain from releasing statements unless they are directly related to the university’s operations, including core academic and research functions, or relate to a policy or strategy previously approved through governance.”
The minister would also have the ability to direct universities to consult with their campus communities and review submitted policies if it did not meet the “minimum requirements.”
Student Code of Conduct
The proposed legislation would also set “minimum requirements” to student codes of conduct, including academic misconduct, non-academic misconduct, sexual and gender-based violence.
This comes after a review of student codes of conduct in 2025 by the ministry of post-secondaries across the province.
Similar to the directives set out for institutional neutrality, the minister could also direct universities to conduct if, in the case it felt it did not meet the minimum requirements.
Post-secondaries would still handle individual misconduct cases that are filed at the university.
Students Respond to Bill 38
SU President Dziegielewska had stark words for prospective students thinking of attending the University of Calgary
“I would say go elsewhere, this ministry does not care about the debt it's sentencing you to,” Said Dziegielewska. “Prepare yourself and go elsewhere.”
When asked whether Dziegielewska still has confidence in the advanced education minister she responded:
“If the minister is dedicated to the cluster model and is going full throttle, then no, I don't have the trust that he understands the sector that he's trying to lead and serve,” said Dziegielewska. “I think that the minister still has time to really consider his choice and to really think about the impact that this choice is going to create for students, for institutions, for Alberta writ-large, because post-secondaries are the drivers of prosperity in this province.”
The SU President has since made a call to action to students at the U of C to “flood” the minister’s email and phone lines to abandon Bill 38 on social media on Nov. 6.
“If the minister wants his tenure to be looked upon positively by the people that will be impacted by what he's doing, he will abandon the cluster model,” said Dziegielewska in her interview with the Gauntlet.
The post caught the attention of the minister’s chief of staff, Emily Briand, commenting under the post: “Advanced Education is happy to correct any misunderstandings about tuition maximums.”
The minister of advanced education said his work on reviewing the Jack Mintz panel is ongoing, and is working to build a “made-in-Alberta model.”
“I want to be clear: Bill 38 is focused on institutional neutrality, tuition maximums, and student codes of conduct. It does not implement a new funding model. My mandate letter directs me to review the Expert Panel’s recommendations on post-secondary funding, and that work is ongoing,” said Minister of Advanced Education Myles McDougall responding to comments made by SU President Dziegielewska in a statement to the Gauntlet.
“No decisions on program clusters have been finalized, and we will continue working toward a made-in-Alberta funding model. The province’s economic opportunities, evolving workforce demand, and student affordability remain top of mind for our government. I welcome input from students and institutions as we assess the Expert Panel’s recommendations.”
