Got student debt? Take a look at your Aeroplan miles

Students can now apply accumulated Aeroplan miles against the balance of their student loan, but that doesn't impress the Canadian Federation of Students.

Starting today, Aeroplan Members can redeem their miles in $250 denominations and transfer the funds through www.HigherEdPoints.com to their Ontario Student Assistance Program student loan account.

In addition to loyalty points they accumulate themselves, graduates will be able to crowd-source Aeroplan Miles from family, friends and their employers in order to offset student loans.

"Funding one's higher education often goes beyond the years a student spends in the classroom, which is why we're so excited to have OSAP join us in the new Student Loan category within the Program," said Suzanne Tyson, founder of Higher Ed Points Inc., in a press release.

"The ability to use loyalty points to offset student loans is going to make a huge difference to students and graduates. Paying down those loans faster is great for them and the Canadian economy as a whole."

"Ontario is committed to ensuring students have access to a high-quality education based on their ability to learn, not to pay," said Reza Moridi, Ontario Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities.

"That's why our government continues to support one of the most generous student financial aid programs in Canada. This new partnership will offer students and graduates another, innovative way to invest in themselves and their future."

"Aeroplan believes in the importance of helping Canadians fund their higher education," said Francine Sternthal, director, Rewards Marketing Solutions, Aeroplan.

"We're excited to see that since the launch of HigherEdPoints.com, use of this new and innovative reward can be applied to help our members pay down student loans."

But Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario chairperson Rajean Hoilett said in a press release that students have an average of $27,000 in debt to repay.

"This latest announcement is yet another example of a government that treats Ontario's student debt crisis like an episode of Extreme Couponing - but there is nothing entertaining about the difficult choices today's students and graduates must face to make ends meet,” she said.

The program touts itself as an "innovative" way to finance post-secondary education and reduce student debt, but in an economic climate where even middle-class families face an alarming financial crunch, the largest benefits of Higher Ed Points will be reaped by high-income families who can afford steady consumer spending that earns enough Aeroplan miles to make a noticeable dent in one's student debt, a press release from the students' organization said.

"Ballooning student debt levels have a significant impact on the financial stability of new graduates entering the labour market, often delaying important life decisions such as opening a business, buying a home or starting a family," said Hoiltett.

"If this government was truly dedicated to ensuring higher education is affordable to all Ontarians, they wouldn't turn an entire generation's economic insecurity into a loyalty program that asks them to spend money they don't have."

The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario has consistently called for the government to reinvest into public post-secondary education to reduce tuition fees for all students and introduce more needs-based non-repayable grants to student financial assistance programs.

The Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario is the province's oldest and largest student organization, representing over 350,000 college, undergraduate and graduate students in all regions of the province.