OSAP
Once you finish high school, paying for your university education can be hard and may seem impossible. In Canada, there are different programs that may help you pay for your education. One of them is the Ontario Student Assistance Program or OSAP, which has different options to help students that need it. Get to know about the OSAP Eligibility, Student Loans Ontario, and more from OSAP Ontario Website.
What is OSAP?
The Ontario Student Assistance Program or OSAP is a program that helps students paying their university education after they finish high school. The program help students through grants, which is money they won’t have to pay back in the future, and through student loans, which is money you will have to repay in the future once you finish your higher education. There is also the possibility of getting free tuition if you are a full-time student.
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Once you apply for OSAP you will be considered to get grants and loans, but if you don’t want to take a loan, you can decline it in case you are accepted. However, OSAP also has programs to help you repay student loans once you are done studying.
OSAP may help to pay tuition, books, equipment, and supplies you may need; the mandatory student fees that your school may charge you, child care in case you have children and/or living expenses in case you are a full-time student.
What is the OSAP Eligibility?
In general, OSAP is available for Ontario residents who are Canadian citizens, permanent residents or protected persons, which are those who hold a valid Verification of Status document, or a valid Protected Persons Status Document.
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However, you may not be eligible in case you are an international student, you have reached your lifetime limit of student loan funding, you failed a credit check, you don’t meet the academic progress requirements, you have enough financial resources to pay the expenses allowed by the program, you have defaulted on a student loan or have grant or bursary overpayments, you declared bankruptcy or consumer proposal, or if the reported income of your application is significantly different from the one reported to the Canada Revenue Agency. From the Service Ontario, you can get info on the OSAP Eligibility.
How do I know how much money I will get?
The amount of money you will get from the program depends on different aspects, which include your education expenses (tuition, books, supplies, equipment, childcare and personal living expenses), your course load (if you are a full-time or part-time student), and your personal financial situation. To determine your financial situation, the program will consider your family’s income, the size of your family, dependants, etc.
There are people who could get additional funding. This applies to those who are disabled, first-generation students, indigenous or current/former Crown ward.
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If you visit the website of the program, ontario.ca/osap, you can get an estimate of the money you will get from grants and loans. The website has a calculator where you can quickly consult it by introducing certain information, like the year you left school, your parental income, if you have children or married, the type of school you will go to and if you will live with your parents or a guardian.
Once you introduce all the information, you will get an estimate of the amount of money you will get from grants and the amount of money you will get from student loans. You will also get an estimate of the amount of money covered for tuition, fees and supplies and child care or living costs if they apply to your situation.
You can get a more precise calculation if you use the Aid Estimator, where you will have to provide more information, like your school and program. Costs of tuition and books or the income of your parents or spouse. But you will get a more accurate estimation of the money you will get from the program.
How do I apply to OSAP?
In case you want to apply to the Ontario Student Assistance Program, you have to do it online. First, you will have to register and create an account on the website of OSAP. To do it, you will need to have your Social Insurance Number. Then, you will have to start your application by providing the information required. Like your school and program, your parents’ or spouse’s SIN (if applicable). Your tax information and your parent’s or spouse’s tax information.
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Before doing this step, check if the university or college you chose is on the list of approved schools by OSAP. Remember you can go to a private or public school anywhere in the world. As long as it included in the list of approved schools.
Then you will have to submit your application by the deadline. It may vary depending on if you are a full-time or part-time student. After this, you need to provide some documents, like your signature and declaration forms. You may also require to complete your Master Student Financial Assistance Agreement (MSFAA).
Once you finished, aware and check the status of your application regularly. You can also ask OSAP to send you notifications about this by email.
How do I contact OSAP?
If you need more information, visit OSAP’s website. Or Call them from Monday to Friday, between 8:30 AM to 4:40 PM. The OSAP Toll-Free number 1-888-449-4478.
OSAP Website: https://osap.gov.on.ca
OSAP TTY Contact Number: 1800 465 3958
Address Details
189 Red River Road,
4th Floor, Thunder Bay,
Ontario – P7B 6G9