CNSA Calls for $300 Million Federal Investment in Nursing Students
The Canadian Nursing Students’ Association (CNSA) has formally submitted its recommendation to the Government of Canada’s 2026 Pre-Budget Consultations, calling for a new federal investment to reduce financial barriers during one of the most demanding stages of nursing education: the final clinical practicum.
CNSA is recommending that the Government of Canada invest $300 million over five years to support needs-based Final Clinical Practicum Subsidy programs administered by provinces and territories. The proposed investment would support students completing recognized entry-to-practice programs in Registered Nursing (RN), Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN), Registered Practical Nursing (RPN), and Registered Psychiatric Nursing (RPN/RPNpsy)
Why are we asking for this?
For many nursing students, final practicum means completing hundreds of required clinical hours while having significantly less time available for paid employment. At the same time, students continue to face tuition and living expenses alongside placement-related costs such as transportation, parking, meals, childcare, temporary accommodation, relocation, and required clinical supplies.
These pressures were also documented through the National Nursing Student Survey conducted by the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) in partnership with CNSA. Among 3,571 nursing students surveyed across Canada, 82% were concerned about their finances, 60% said existing financial supports were inadequate, and 28% had considered leaving or transferring from their nursing program because of financial difficulties. At the same time, 89% intended to work full-time after graduation.
For CNSA, this makes student affordability a health-workforce issue too.
By the time a student reaches their final practicum, years of public, institutional, and personal investment have already gone into preparing them for practice. Supporting students through that final stage can help protect that investment and strengthen the pathway from nursing education into Canada’s workforce.
What are we proposing?
Under CNSA’s recommendation, the federal government would provide the investment and establish national objectives and conditions, while provinces and territories would administer applications and distribute support according to demonstrated financial need.
The subsidy would be financial assistance, not wages. Students would remain learners and could not be counted as regulated nursing staff or used to replace employed nurses. New federal funding would also be required to supplement—not replace—existing student supports.
The proposal also calls for national accountability, including reporting on who receives assistance, how funding is distributed, geographic reach, areas of financial need, and completion of the qualifying final practicum.
Protecting the workforce Canada is already educating
This proposal is not presented as a solution to every challenge facing Canada’s nursing workforce. It addresses a specific and actionable point in the pipeline: helping nursing students who are already approaching entry to practice complete the final mandatory clinical requirement needed to get there.
Canada must continue investing in recruitment, retention, education and workforce growth. But our workforce strategy must also ensure that students who have already chosen nursing and progressed through their education can successfully reach practice.
CNSA is ready to work with federal, provincial and territorial governments—and with nursing students across Canada—to turn this recommendation into action.