Ontario
The Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) is a financial program that can help you pay for post-secondary education if you meet their eligibility requirements. On the OSAP website, you can use a financial aid estimator to see if you qualify for grants or loans from the Government of Ontario based on your financial need (e.g., students with lower household incomes).
Be aware that portions of OSAP loans could be from either the Ontario Provincial Government, or Federal Government. The repayment and interest rules may differ depending on the source. Typically, loans from the Ontario Government start to collect interest immediately (Government of Ontario, n.d.). However, you don’t have to start repaying the loan until six months after you’re out of school.
As of April 1st, 2023, the rules surrounding the Federal Government portion changed. Under the new rules, no interest builds on the original amount, meaning your Federal Government loan will not collect interest at all (National Student Loans Service centre, 2024). If you receive a loan from OSAP, check whether it’s from the provincial or federal government (or a mix of the two). Ensure that you know the up-to-date rules for repayment and interest for both sources.
These resources are also helpful:
- Student Loans and Grants: Ontario
- Paying for College: Tuition and Financial Assistance
- Paying for University: Tuition and Fees
- Directory of all Canadian Colleges and Universities
- The Globe and Mail Canadian University Report
- The MacLean’s University School Rankings
Information on the post-secondary programs available in Ontario is available via OUInfo.
Use the Transition Resource Guide to compare different colleges or universities, and the special education accommodations they provide.
References
Government of Ontario. (n.d.) Pay back OSAP. https://www.ontario.ca/page/pay-back-osap
National Student Loans Service Centre. (2024, April 10). What’s new. Government of Canada. https://www.csnpe-nslsc.canada.ca/en/what-is-new
How to Cite this Chapter Using APA Style
*Nusselder, F., *Burrows, H. M. R., Giovannangeli, A. J., Armstrong, A. M., & Xu, Y. (2024). Ontario. In Pay for post-secondary: A student’s guide for securing financial aid. Queen’s University, eCampus Ontario. Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/payforpostsecondary/chapter/ontario/
*denotes equal contributions as first authors
Money awarded to a person (or organization) by the government or a private organization for a special purpose. This can be to pay for post-secondary or to conduct research, and it does not need to be paid back.
An amount of money that is borrowed and has to be paid back, usually with interest.
The set period of time you have to pay your loan back.
Money that a bank or other financial organization chargers for taking a loan.
