OSAP by Student Population

If you’re on a required work term or co-op work term, you've got 2 OSAP options:

1. Apply for full-time OSAP:
   You can apply to be considered for full-time OSAP funding. If you do so, please indicate that your course load is 100%, which is equivalent to 5 courses for OSAP eligible work terms
2. Apply for Continuation of Interest-Free Status (CIFS):
   If you don’t want to be considered for full-time OSAP, you can still apply for CIFS via your OSAP portal (external link) . This will allow you to keep your previous loans interest-free and out of repayment
   

We encourage you to apply at the start of your work term or co-op work term to avoid interest from accumulating. We’ll review your application and notify the National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) of your status. Be sure to submit your CIFS application within the CIFS deadlines.

Eligible Programs

If you're a student in an internship, practicum or placement in one of the programs listed below, you can apply for OSAP or interest-free status based on your actual course load.

Mandatory Internship

Mandatory Practicum/Placement

If you're on a work term, internship or practicum for a program not listed in the sections above, you're not eligible for OSAP funding or Continuation of Interest-Free Status (CIFS). However, if your previous OSAP loans enter repayment, you can apply for the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) (external link) . 

The application is available through your National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC) account (external link) . If you have any questions, please contact the NSLSC (external link) .

• Work term shorter than 6 months?
  Don’t worry about it – you won’t enter repayment.
• Work term longer than 6 months?
  You'll enter repayment, but not until the end of your 6-month grace period. During this period, the NSLSC will get in touch through your NSLSC account (external link) . Check your NSLSC mailbox for more information about the RAP.
• Returning to full-time studies after your work term?
  Remember to either apply for OSAP or CIFS (external link) . Be sure to submit your application within the deadlines. When we confirm your enrolment, your loans will return to interest-free status and you won’t be expected to make payments.

Admitted into TMU on the condition that you complete a specialized undergraduate course in preparation? That course may qualify for funding, under OSAP’s Make-Up Year/Qualifying Year policy.

What Is a Make-Up Year/Qualifying Year?

A Make-Up Year or Qualifying Year occurs when you must complete courses as a prerequisite for admission into either a:

• University program (e.g. Direct-Entry, Advanced Standing, Degree Completion, graduate studies, etc.)
• Any second-entry level program that leads to a credential (degree, diploma or certificate) like a Juris Doctor or Doctor of Medicine

Typically, you’ll already have an undergraduate degree in a related field and only lack a few courses required for entry into the graduate or second-entry level credentialed program. You can be considered for OSAP funding to support the cost of prerequisite courses.

For a Make-Up Year or Qualifying Year, you can take a maximum of 5 courses total per academic year to qualify for program admission. This includes courses taken across the fall, winter and spring/summer semesters.

Qualifying Programs at TMU

The following TMU undergraduate programs have post-secondary qualifying courses that must be completed prior to admission:

• Early Childhood Studies: Direct Entry (full-time or part-time)
• Occupational Health and Safety: 2-Year Program for University Graduates
• Public Health: 2-Year Program for University Graduates
• Social Work: Advanced Standing to Second or Third Year
• Urban and Regional Planning: Post Baccalaureate or Degree Completion

Covered Costs

The costs of the qualifying courses may be included in your OSAP application once you’ve been admitted into the program. This is because most of the requisite courses are shorter than 6 weeks in length, making them ineligible for a standalone application.

Applying for OSAP

Learn how to apply for OSAP by visiting our full-time or part-time OSAP pages linked below.

Going on exchange? You may qualify for OSAP! Please review some frequently asked questions below to help you prepare for applying for OSAP when on an international exchange!

Will OSAP Consider My Added Expenses for My Exchange?

OSAP provides financial assistance for educational costs like tuition fees, books and basic living expenses.

OSAP won't cover your travel expenses like your airline ticket, visa application fees to your chosen country or health insurance.

Budgeting is the best tool to manage your expenses while you're abroad.

How Is My OSAP Calculated?

OSAP is a needs-based program. Your financial aid through OSAP is based on a formula that compares your educational costs to expected contributions from your parents or spouse (if either is applicable) and your own income and assets.

How Will OSAP Assess My File If I'm Going on Exchange for the Fall and Winter Terms?

OSAP will assess your file and provide you with financial aid to help with your educational costs and your basic living expenses.

How Will OSAP Assess My File If I'm Going on Exchange for the Winter Term Only?

OSAP will assess your file and provide you with financial aid to help with your educational costs. It'll assess your basic living expenses as living at home for the fall term (if applicable) and as away from home for the winter term.

How Does My Exchange Program Study Period Impact My OSAP Assessment?

If there's a break of 4 or more weeks between your studies at TMU and your time on exchange, your file will be reassessed and your funding might decrease. When you have a break of 4 or more weeks, we adjust your file to reflect the duration you're in school (e.g. September 4 to December 15 or February 1 to June 1). If the break between your studies at TMU and your time on exchange is less than 4 weeks, your study period will remain as one continuous block (e.g. September 4 to June 1).

How Will I Receive My Funding Abroad?

OSAP funding will be deposited directly into your TMU student account if you have fees owing once your school confirms your enrolment. Any remaining funding will be directed to your bank account. For the second term funding, you must update your estimated income on your online OSAP account if it has changed.

Can I Appeal My OSAP Funding If My Assessment Doesn't Meet My Needs?

If your file is reassessed due to the gap of more than 4 weeks during the study period then you can request a review on your file to override the second expected contribution. You must provide the following:

• A letter confirming you will be unable to work abroad during the break of your studies
• A completed Appeal Pre-Study Contribution form (if applicable)

You may also submit an appeal if you have a special situation which isn't recognized in the standard OSAP assessment of financial need.

If you're a First Nations Technical Institute (FNTI) students, you may qualify for OSAP and/or Continuation of Interest-Free Status (CIFS) as long as you remain in a full-time course load of 3 courses per term (or minimum 2 courses per term if you have a permanent, persistent or prolonged disability).

If you're taking courses in a block format (e.g. in the fall term, you take Course A from September to October, Course B from October to November and Course C from November to December), if you drop a course, you'll no longer qualify for OSAP or CIFS.

If you receive OSAP funding then subsequently drop one or more courses, please note this puts you at risk of having an overpayment. This means you received more OSAP than what you were entitled to, which can impact your future OSAP eligibility. You may also be put on OSAP academic progress.

There are OSAP implications if you’re on academic probation or required to withdraw from your program.

All engineering programs at TMU have specific Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) and Term Grade Point Average (TGPA) requirements. The First Year Engineering Office (FYEO) supports your academic success to help you attain the grades you need. For detailed information, visit FYEO Academic Standing. 

If you’re placed on TMU academic probation, you’ll be required to attend a probationary seminar to obtain a probationary contract. This will outline the terms, conditions and requirements you must meet for the upcoming academic semester.

Being placed on OSAP academic probation is separate from TMU’s definition of academic probation. You may be on probation with TMU and still maintain academic progress with OSAP.

If you’ve been required to withdraw, this may impact your eligibility with OSAP. For guidance, please contact the ServiceHub.

You can apply for OSAP funding while you're participating in the Fresh Start program.

First Term

In the first term of the Fresh Start program:

• You can take up to 2 courses for your program, making you eligible for part-time OSAP
• If you have a permanent, persistent or prolonged disability and are taking 2 courses, you're considered full-time for OSAP purposes and are eligible for full-time OSAP

• Did you have previous OSAP loans?
  If you have previous OSAP loans, you may enter repayment. Unfortunately, with a part-time course load, you don't qualify for maintaining interest-free status. You do, however, have a 6-month grace period before you enter repayment (starting from the last study period end date on your full-time OSAP file).
• Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP)
  You can also apply for the Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) (external link) . The National Student Loans Service Centre (NSLSC), your OSAP funding provider, administers RAP. You can apply for this plan via your NSLSC account (external link) . Please contact the NSLSC at 1-888-815-4514 if you have questions related to RAP.

Second Term

In the second term of the Fresh Start program:

• You can take a full-time course load and apply for full-time OSAP
• If you don't wish to receive OSAP, but would like to keep your previous loans interest-free, learn more about your options to maintain interest-free status

Full-Time OSAP Graduate Students

As a graduate student, your full-time OSAP is assessed for the full year (fall, winter and spring/summer), but is released in 2 installments — fall and winter. When you receive your OSAP, plan to set funds aside to cover your spring/summer tuition fees (due in May).

Keep in mind that your OSAP entitlement is based on your income information, so if you receive graduate funding throughout the year, your assessment may change. If your OSAP does change for any reason, you'll receive a notification through the OSAP Message Centre.

If you're being assessed for OSAP for fall, winter and spring/summer and you know ahead of time that you don't plan to attend for the full academic year, it's important you let us know so we can update your file. Please contact our Student Financial Assistance team via the ServiceHub.

Graduate students in a full-time program, regardless of your course load, must apply for full-time OSAP.

Part-Time OSAP Graduate Students

As a graduate student receiving part-time OSAP, you must submit an OSAP application for each term you're studying part-time (i.e. a separate application for fall, winter and spring/summer) in order to be assessed for funding.

Graduate students in a part-time program, regardless of your course load, must apply for part-time OSAP.

Ineligible Graduate Programs

Please note that TMU's Professional Master's Diplomas aren't eligible for OSAP funding or Continuation of Interest-Free Status (CIFS).

As a candidate in the TMU Law Practice Program (LPP), you are not eligible for OSAP funding but you can apply interest-free status and suspend repayment on previous OSAP loans.

You can apply as early as 15 days before the first day of your program. We recommend applying as soon as possible to suspend repayment.

2026-2027 Start and End Dates

For the 2026-2027 academic year, please indicate:

• Monday, August 24, 2026 as your program start date
• Friday, April 30, 2027 as your program end date

Please note that if there are any adjustments to your program start date and/or program end date, you're responsible for updating our office via the ServiceHub.

If you're studying at TMU while also enrolled at another institution, you may be able to have your fees from the other institution included in your OSAP assessment.

How TMU Can Help

• Assist you (TMU students and visiting students) with processing your OSAP funding for courses taken at another institution
• Complete and verify OSAP forms for you if you're taking TMU courses on a Letter of Permission
• Provide guidance on document submission and OSAP eligibility

How It Works at TMU

TMU Students:

If you're taking courses at another institution while enrolled at TMU, you must complete the  (PDF file) Studies at Another Institution Form with the financial aid office at the other school. Once completed, you must scan and upload the following documents to your OSAP portal (external link) :

• The completed Studies at Another Institution Form
• Proof of payment for the courses
• A copy of your Letter of Permission for each course

Visiting Students (Non-TMU Home Institution):

If you're an OSAP student from another school and are taking TMU courses on a Letter of Permission, you may be considered for additional OSAP through your home institution. To be considered, you must complete the following steps:

1. Obtain the Studies at Another Institution Form from your home institution’s financial aid office.
2. Complete your sections. Then email the completed form to us at servicehub@torontomu.ca for review. The form will be returned to you within 7 business days.
3. Once TMU’s Student Financial Assistance office has completed reviewing your form, upload the completed document via the OSAP portal (external link)  to your home institution.

Deadline Dates 

Be mindful of deadline dates for OSAP at TMU. These deadlines are established by the Ministry of Universities, Research Excellence and Security (external link) , who governs OSAP.

Are you an OSAP student at TMU and a successful recipient of an award, scholarship or bursary? Congratulations! 

If you're receiving an award, scholarship or bursary, this information needs to be updated on your OSAP application:

• Any award, scholarship or bursary from TMU that appears on your MyServiceHub account is updated automatically by our Student Financial Assistance team on your OSAP application within 2 to 4 weeks or receipt. Once completed, we'll notify you of the change via your OSAP Message Centre
• You'll need to update your application with any external scholarships outside of TMU that don't go through MyServiceHub

How Do Awards, Scholarships and Bursaries Impact My OSAP?

Your OSAP funding may be impacted depending on the type of award, scholarship or bursary you're awarded and how much funding you receive. As a result, you may notice a decrease in your OSAP assessment once your award, scholarship or bursary information is added to your OSAP application.

What Happens If I Accidentally Reported My TMU Award, Scholarship or Bursary?

Don't worry — the Student Financial Assistance office can update that for you.

To fix your OSAP application, please write a letter explaining that you've accidentally reported a TMU award, scholarship or bursary. The letter must include:

Once completed, log in to your OSAP portal. Under the Required Documents, select "Optional/Other Uploads" then scan and upload your documents for review.

Please note that documents are reviewed within 3 to 6 weeks from the date of submission. You can keep track of your documents' progress by checking our OSAP Processing Dates page.

Out-of-Province and U.S. Student Loan Recipients

Please note that your out-of-province or U.S. government loan assessment may be impacted if you receive a TMU award, scholarship or bursary as well.

Please contact us via email at funding@torontomu.ca to learn more.

As an Indigenous student, you start by applying for funding through your First Nations. If you need additional assistance, we encourage you to apply for OSAP as well.

Remember that you can be considered for additional OSAP funding if you declare your Indigenous status as part of your OSAP application. If you receive First Nations funding, it won’t be considered when determining how much OSAP you’re eligible for.

TMU also offers financial assistance through scholarships and bursaries. Please visit Gdoo-maawnjidimi Mompii Indigenous Student Services: Scholarships, Awards & Bursaries for more information.

If you have a permanent, persistent or prolonged disability, OSAP may provide additional financial support. For OSAP purposes, a permanent, persistent or prolonged disability is legally defined as a functional limitation:

• Caused by a physical or mental impairment that restricts your ability to perform the daily activities necessary to participate in studies at a post-secondary level or in the labour force
• Is expected to remain with you for your expected life

If you haven't already done so, you can register with Academic Accommodation Support (AAS). We recommend doing so to help streamline your OSAP application between our Student Financial Assistance office and AAS. Be sure to provide any disability documentation outlined on your OSAP application to AAS. If you have any questions about the process, please let us know — we’ll be happy to help. 

AAS is there to help you throughout your time at TMU, not just during the OSAP application, so connect with them early on.

Once your disability is confirmed with OSAP, you'll be automatically considered for the Canada Student Grant for Persons with Permanent Disabilities (external link) . 

You may also qualify for the Bursary for Students with Disabilities (BSWD). The BSWD helps you as a full- or part-time post-secondary student pay for your disability-related educational services and equipment needed to participate in post-secondary studies. For information regarding the BSWD and other disability-related financial aid, visit AAS Financial Support.