A patchwork quilt of provincial policies is creating serious disparities in educational opportunity across Canada, says the second annual report on the state of post-secondary education released in January by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

According to the survey's authors, Erika Shaker and Denise Doherty-Delorme, federal and provincial cutbacks to universities and colleges are leading to greater inequities between provinces and institutions.

"Depending on the provincial government's level of commitment, higher education in many provinces is moving backward from being a basic right of citizenship toward being a privilege available mainly to those in upper income groups," conclude the authors.

Each year the report by the Centre, an Ottawa-based independent think-tank, ranks provinces according to an index that measures their overall commitment to equity, accessibility, quality and public accountability in higher education.

"Our concern is that there are a number of issues that are not adequately discussed when looking at the state of higher education across the country," explained Shaker.

British Columbia, Quebec and Manitoba received the highest grades in this year's ranking, reflecting, the authors say, the efforts of governments in these provinces to keep post-secondary education affordable.

Manitoba showed the biggest improvement over the previous year, rising from sixth to third place on the strength of a rollback in tuition fees and an increase in provincial spending.

By contrast, Ontario was once again ranked dead last. Steep tuition fee increases and the "abdication of provincial responsibility for higher education to private interests" were cited as the main reasons for Ontario's poor showing.

Next to Nova Scotia, Ontario has the second highest average tuition fees in Canada and has the highest ratio of students to faculty members.

"It's very striking that students in Ontario are bearing a huge percentage of the cost of their education," Shaker said. "The rise in tuition is obviously a very important factor in determining the rankings."

Alberta and New Brunswick saw their rankings fall from fifth to eighth and from third to sixth respectively. Alberta's tuition fees were the third highest in the country, up more than 200 per cent since 1990.

A copy of Provincial Rankings: Where Do the Provinces Stand on Education? is available at www.policyalternatives.ca.