When I was in my last year of high school, all I wanted to do was go off to university. I wanted the independence, the freedom, the adventure of being off on my own. I wanted to meet new people, greet new challenges and become an adult.
But I come from a family of medium means. We are first-generation immigrants, and although my parents overworked themselves, they didn’t have a lot of savings. I also had three older siblings who were already in university.
All that translated to a limited financial position, where without help, I wouldn’t be able to afford post-secondary studies.
I remember sitting on my bed, laptop on my lap, and fingers shaking, submitting my application for school.
I just kept thinking, “If I get accepted, how am I going to pay for tuition? For my books? For my housing and my food?”
I was scared that all my dreams could be taken from me, because I wouldn’t be able to come up with the money to grasp them.
Thankfully, I was eligible for financial assistance through OSAP. And if you’re reading this and you’re a resident of Ontario looking to go to post-secondary school, odds are, you are too.
What is OSAP?
OSAP (Ontario Student Assistance Program) is a financial aid program funded in a partnership between the federal government and the government of Ontario.
It’s similar to other programs offered in different provinces like Manitoba Student Aid, or StudentAid BC.
It’s meant to help Ontario students cover some of the costs associated with attending college or university.
It’s not meant to cover everything. But it goes a long way toward alleviating part of the financial burden associated with tuition, books, and other expenses.
It can also be paired with other grant, scholarship, or financial assistance programs offered through various sources.
For me, OSAP funding became a gateway to higher learning.
Who can apply for OSAP?
OSAP is open to Ontario residents who are Canadian citizens, permanent residents or protected persons, and who are attending an OSAP-approved program and school.
You can use OSAP funding to attend a college or university anywhere in the world, as long as the institution you want to attend is approved for student loan purposes in Ontario – although you are not eligible for OSAP if you’re an international student.
In my case, OSAP also helped me pay for my tuition while I did a semester abroad.
How do you apply for OSAP?
Once you create an account on the OSAP website, you can begin your application process.
You need to take at least 60% of a full course load to be considered a full-time student (or 40% if you’re a student with a disability). But how many courses that translates to depends on your school.
For example, at the University of Toronto, a 100% full course load is equal to five credits. So, for full-time status, you need to enroll in at least three credits (or 60% of five) during the school year (which is split into two terms, fall and winter). Anything less is considered part time.
At UofT, full year courses are equal to one credit, and half year courses are equal to half a credit. So this means, if all your classes just last one semester, you need to enroll in at least six classes (worth 0.5 credits x 6 = 3) during the year to keep your full-time status. You can split these classes between the terms. For example, you could enroll in two classes one semester and four the next, or three and three, as long as by the end of the year you complete the three credits necessary to maintain your full-time status.
If you do end up taking less than three classes the first term at UofT, OSAP will send you a notice, warning you that you are below the guidelines for full-time studies, and that it will not release your second installment unless you enroll in sufficient classes during the second term.
Most schools have guidelines that will teach you how many courses you need to take, and counsellors at your school can also walk you through the process.
If you’re not planning to attend post secondary on a full-time basis, you can apply for OSAP as a part-time student. The process is the same, but the funding will decrease accordingly.
You can also apply for OSAP for specific micro-credential programs. These are short programs that can be completed within a limited number of hours or weeks.
Before you apply you can use this tool to get a quick estimate of your potential funding.
Applying to OSAP
Next, you need to fill out your basic information. This includes your name, your SIN number, your birth date, your Ontario Education Number (OEN), and a number of questions that will determine your status and eligibility.
Then, you need to complete a small information session (with quizzes) that will teach you all about OSAP, your roles and responsibilities if you become an OSAP recipient, and basic financial information that will help you manage your loan.
The rest of the application is extensive and can take a while to complete, but most of the questions are fairly straightforward:
They will ask you everything about the program you intend to attend.
If you’ve been out of high school less than six years, they will ask how much your parents make (which needs to match what was reported to the CRA).
They will ask whether you’re married, single, or in a common-law relationship, and whether you have children or dependents.
They will ask how much income you make and how much you have saved, how much you have received in grants or other funding, whether you receive social assistance, etc.
All this information is crucial to determine your financial need, and how much money you are eligible to receive in both grants and loans.
It’s a lot of information so it can feel a little overwhelming, but it’s important that you take your time and provide accurate information.
If you don’t, the estimated funding amount may be way off what you actually get, and your application might be stalled, rejected, or you may end up owing back a lot more money than you had originally anticipated.
You finished applying for OSAP, now what?
Once you finish your application, OSAP will give you an estimate of how much money you are eligible for.
Your actual funding amount will not be confirmed until you submit all of your supporting documentation and your school confirms your enrollment.
The status of your application can be seen within your account.
Just make sure you pay attention to outstanding notices and documents, because your application will not move forward until everything is submitted.
Once you have submitted your documents, OSAP will review them and assess your personal financial situation. It will calculate financial need by taking your educational costs minus your financial contributions into account.
Your funding of both loans and grants will be based on this need.
How much money will OSAP give you?
OSAP provides aid amounts up to a weekly maximum, taking into consideration where you’re going to school.
For the 2022-23 school year, the Ontario Student Assistance Program provides the following maximum assistance levels (grant and loan combined):
$410 per week for single students;
$705 per week for students who are married or sole support parents; and
$210 per week if you attend a private post-secondary school outside Ontario, or a post-secondary school outside Canada.
When will I receive my funds?
For most students OSAP releases financial assistance funding in two installments (once all your documents are submitted and your application is finalized).
The first deposit is usually made when you start your study period. The second is made at the start of your second semester.
OSAP will directly pay your school for tuition and other mandatory fees with your funding first. Any leftover amount will be deposited directly into your bank account.
What if OSAP doesn’t give you enough money?
Sometimes, even with OSAP funding, you need more financial assistance.
If you think your OSAP funding won’t be enough to cover the cost of attending your program, talk to your school’s student financial services through the Student Financial Aid Office.
They can better inform you about Student Access Guarantee, which is a partnership program between the Ontario Ministry of Education and post-secondary schools that can help you find other funding sources, including bursaries, scholarships, student awards, and work-study programs.
Loans vs. Grants
When you apply for OSAP assistance, you are automatically considered for both loans and grants.
Grants tend to make up the smaller portion of your financial aid, but you will not go into debt by receiving this type of funding.
Generally speaking, you don’t have to pay back any money that you receive as a grant – unless that grant gets turned into a loan because you don’t maintain your full-time student status throughout the year, or you receive unreported income.
Loans, on the other hand, need to be repaid. The portion that is funded by Ontario will begin accruing interest the moment you leave school.
As long as you are in school, you can keep your loans interest free, even if you are not applying for OSAP every year. You just need to log into the OSAP website and confirm that you are still enrolled in full-time or part-time studies.
You can choose to only receive the grant part of your funding after your OSAP application has been fully approved.
If you do receive both funding options, you will begin accumulating debt for every year that you receive OSAP loans. Six months after you graduate or leave school, you will enter the repayment period.
You can use this calculator to estimate how much you will need to pay monthly to pay off your debt.
Repayment
Once you graduate, or leave school, you will need to start paying back the loan portion of your funding.
Just like with any other type of loan, making timely payments matters. A good repayment history will help you establish and build your credit. A bad one will lower your credit score and might affect your ability to get other loans in the future.
Your repayment information is all compiled through the National Student Loan Service Centre, not OSAP. You will need to log in to check your loan details – including how much you owe, when your pay period begins and your interest rate.
Through NSLSC’s portal, you can adjust how much you pay monthly and set up automatic payments.
You can also extend your repayment period up to 14.5 years (which will decrease your monthly payments) or shorten your repayment period (which will increase them, but means you will pay off your loan faster).
And, you can also make extra payments to help pay down the principal of your loan faster.
If you can’t afford payments right away, you can put off the start of your repayment period by applying for a deferral, but your loan will begin accumulating interest as soon as your study period is finished.
You can also apply for repayment assistance through the National Student Loan Service Centre.
