Inuvik (May 02/05) - Inuvik's high living costs put local post-secondary students at a serious disadvantage, according to students at Aurora College.

Inuvik-area students don't qualify for subsidized housing, even though the cost living is so much higher than the rest of the territory, they say.

It's hard to get by on the $700 a month received from Student Financial Aid after paying for tuition and books, said Donna Zoe, a criminal justice student.

"I have to live off that. Can you believe that?" she said.

"It's too expensive here. We should get a Northern allowance."

Accommodations offered by the college at prices lower than market value are solely for non-resident students. The cost of a single room is about $220 a month and $505 for a family unit.

A few years ago college officials were asked to make a proposal to the Department of Education, Culture and Employment about cost of living concerns. No changes resulted.

Zoe explained that at a February ECE meeting, she once again raised the issue of having financial aid adjusted to cost of living with officials.

"They just ignored my question. They didn't answer me," she said.

Not everyone is ignoring her concerns, however. "We are about to review the system," said Charles Dent, minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

The minister said that a current priority is to build a new residence in Inuvik and officials may have to re-examine only allowing out-of-town students to qualify for subsidized rent.

Dent said there could be an adjustment to bursary criteria allowing more students to qualify from two-year college programs instead of mainly out-of-territory university students.