Easier to access a Postsecondary Education

As the PC Party Critic for Training, Colleges and Universities I have had the opportunity to talk to a great many people in Haliburton-Victoria-Brock and across the province about postsecondary education issues.

One of the clear messages is that our province will need more students pursuing postsecondary education if we want to have a competitive economy. There will be an increasing need for more university and college graduates and more skilled tradespeople in the near future.

Bob Rae, in his recent report on postsecondary education observed “the federal government estimates that up to 70% of all future jobs created in Canada will require some postsecondary education. With a current participation rate of around 40%, Ontario must take a more active approach if it is going to meet its labour market needs and improve its economic performance.”

All political parties need to work together to accomplish this goal. My recent private members bill will make it more affordable for people to pursue a career in the heating, air-conditioning and fuel technician trades now that it has been passed by the Legislature.

Governments have been working for several years to make all sorts of postsecondary education more accessible so that more people will be able to choose to continue their education. Whether you are interested in continuing right after secondary school, or looking at returning to school later in life as a full-time or part-time student there is financial help available from federal and provincial governments as well as through scholarships and bursaries.

In Ontario, the financial aid system provides both grants and loans to students. If you are a qualifying first-time, first-year student you will be able to receive grants from the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation and the province that could allow you to receive as much as 100 per cent of your tuition, or $6,000, as grant rather than loan. If you are a qualifying second-year student you will be able to receive an access grant funded by the province worth up to 50 per cent of your tuition or $3,000.

For people who are relying on loans - Ontario will continue to provide Ontario Student Opportunity Grants that limit the amount of Canada-Ontario Student Loan debt that a student has to repay to $7,000 for a typical year of studies. The Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) administers student financial assistance programs on behalf of the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario, and a single application is all that is needed to apply for both sets of programs.

In the past, it has been very difficult to qualify to receive grants or loans, but starting this year more people than ever before will be able to qualify for financial assistance.

Ontario is lowering the amount it expects parents to contribute to tuition costs. A student entering first year at an Ontario college or university whose family earns less than $35,595 per year and has no more than three children, could qualify for a first-year grant. The qualifying income threshold climbs with each extra child in the family, so that a family with nine children could qualify with an income of less than $61,492.

If you have been putting off pursuing post-secondary studies for financial reasons, I encourage you to take a look at the financial help that is now available for full & part-time students. It may be that you will find it more affordable than you thought it would be.

For more information on the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP), you can visit their web site at http://osap.gov.on.ca or you can call 1-807-343-7260.