Pathways to Equity: WIL Bursary

To be eligible students must: 

 Identify as a member of an equity-deserving group, such as:

• Indigenous (including non-status), First Nations, Métis, and/or Inuit
• Black
• Racialized/person of colour
• Newcomer to Canada (within the past five years)
• Student from  refugee pathways
• Official minority language communities
• Student with disabilities
• Female-identifying and non-binary people studying STEM
• LGBTQ2S+
• Student living in/from rural and remote locations
• Student with low socioeconomic status
• Mature student

 Be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program at Toronto Metropolitan University.

 Be enrolled in a course offering a curricular WIL experience between September 1 and December 31, 2025.

 Have an unpaid WIL experience for a minimum of 60 hours with a WIL partner that meets CEWIL criteria.

 Be eligible to work in accordance with relevant provincial or territorial legislation and regulations.

Important note: While students may meet all of the criteria listed above they also must have a community/industry partner who meets the criteria below in order to be considered eligible. 

 Be a Canadian organization or have a Canadian office

 Have a 9-digit GST/HST number

 Be offering a TMU student(s) a curricular WIL experience

 Will contribute 20% of the costs of the student’s WIL experience through in-kind (i.e. mentorship and supervision) or in cash contributions. 

*Note that for purposes of this funding, non-eligible WIL partners include: Post-Secondary Institutions; Federal, Provincial, Territorial and Municipal governments; members of the House of Commons and Senate, organizations that engage in partisan political activities, financial sector employers with 500 + employees, and organizations for which you are paying for a service.  This list is not exhaustive and individual WIL partners will be reviewed for eligibility prior to funding being awarded.

The Pathways to Equity Bursary is designed to provide financial support to Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) undergraduate students from equity-deserving groups who are participating in unpaid curricular work-integrated learning (WIL) experiences. The bursary helps offset costs such as travel, lost income, childcare, eldercare, supplies, health-related costs, and more, ensuring equitable access to these critical learning opportunities.

To qualify, students must:

• Identify as members of an equity-deserving group.
• Be enrolled in an undergraduate degree program at TMU.
• Be taking part in a curricular WIL experience between September 1 and December 31, 2025. 
• Participate in an unpaid WIL experience for at least 60 hours.

For full details on eligibility, please refer to the student eligibility details above on the bursary website.

Yes, before applying for the Pathways to Equity Bursary, students must first register on the AwardSpring (external link)  portal. This portal is used to streamline and manage the application process for scholarships and bursaries at Toronto Metropolitan University. You can find detailed information on registering for the AwardSpring portal.

Registration on the AwardSpring portal is required to ensure a secure and standardized application process for all TMU scholarships and bursaries, including the Pathways to Equity Bursary. This portal helps track your application and provides important updates and notifications throughout the selection process.

To register on AwardSpring, you’ll need your TMU student ID, along with your TMU username and password to sign in. Be prepared to provide personal and academic details, including financial information for need-based awards, to complete your profile and the general application smoothly.

For this bursary, a Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) opportunity refers to an unpaid, curricular experience that is part of a TMU course or program. These opportunities integrate academic learning with practical, real-world experience. Examples include:

• Community and industry research or projects
• Entrepreneurial WIL experiences
• Field placements
• Community service learning

To be eligible, the WIL opportunity must be a formal part of your academic program and involve at least 60 hours of participation.

An equity-deserving group refers to individuals or communities that have historically faced systemic barriers and discrimination in accessing resources and opportunities, including education and employment. This designation includes, but is not limited to:

• Indigenous (including non-status), First Nations, Métis, and/or Inuit
• Black
• Racialized/person of color
• Newcomer to Canada (within the past five years)
• Student from  refugee pathways
• Official minority language communities
• Student with disabilities
• Female-identifying and non-binary people studying STEM
• LGBTQ2S+
• Student living in/from rural and remote locations
• Student with low socioeconomic status
• Mature student

The Pathways to Equity Bursary aims to support students from these groups to enhance their access to work-integrated learning opportunities and help remove barriers they may encounter.

Yes, both international and domestic students who identify as members of equity-deserving groups are eligible to apply for the Pathways to Equity Bursary. Both domestic and international students can apply to receive financial support for their unpaid work-integrated learning (WIL) opportunities as long as they meet the other eligibility requirements. 

Apply for the international students’ bursary application via AwardSpring (external link) .

Eligible students may receive between $1000 to $1800, depending on the number of hours they are engaged in their WIL opportunity. Additional considerations, such as the barriers students face in participating, will also impact the final amount.

The bursary can help cover various costs, including but not limited to:

• Travel to and from the WIL opportunity
• Lost income from missed paid work
• Childcare or eldercare expenses
• Necessary materials or supplies (e.g., PPE, software)
• Pre-WIL health-related costs (e.g., immunizations, mask-fit tests)
• Police reference checks/vulnerable sector screenings
• Professional fees, memberships, and clothing

No, students will not be required to provide proof of expenses. However, students will need to confirm that they have costs associated with participating in their WIL experience.

While demonstrating financial need is encouraged, students who do not fill out the financial section or do not appear to have financial need based on the standardized form will still be considered for this bursary.

Interested International (external link)  and Domestic (external link)  students can apply through the AwardSpring portal. The application will ask for information about your WIL organization and supervisor (if applicable), as well as your TMU experiential learning contact. The Project Coordinator will review the applications, and the TMU Student Awards and Scholarship Office will distribute the funds.

Once you submit your application, you can expect to hear back about the status of your bursary application within 2 to 4 weeks. However, response times may vary depending on the volume of applications received. Be sure to apply early, as funding is limited and awarded on a first-come, first-served basis until exhausted.

The Pathways to Equity Bursary is distributed by the Student Awards and Scholarship Office at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). Once your application is approved by the selection committee facilitated by the EL Hub, the funding will be awarded directly to your bank account.

To be eligible, WIL partners must:

• Be a Canadian organization or have a Canadian office.
• Have a 9-digit GST/HST number.
• Offer a TMU student a curricular WIL experience.
• Contribute 20% of the student’s WIL costs, either in cash or in-kind (e.g., mentorship or supervision).

For full details on WIL partner eligibility, please refer to the partner eligibility details above on the bursary website.

Yes, as part of the application process, the EL Hub may contact your WIL organization, supervisor, or relevant field/internship coordinators to confirm details about your work-integrated learning opportunity or to seek additional information that we must share with our funder. This step ensures that we have accurate information to support your application and verify your participation in the WIL experience.

Your privacy is a priority during the application process. When we contact your employers or WIL coordinators, we will only share the information necessary to verify your participation in the work-integrated learning opportunity. All communications will be conducted confidentially, adhering to privacy regulations and guidelines.

At Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), we collect and use your personal information to support decisions related to scholarship, award, bursary eligibility, and eligibility for government or other TMU financial assistance programs. In some cases, we may need to disclose your personal information to limited third parties, such as government funding agencies, financial institutions, or independent student loan administration companies, solely for the purpose of processing financial assistance applications or confirming student enrollment.

Additionally, we may share some information about award recipients with donors or use limited information for promotional purposes, such as in departmental brochures, newsletters, or other media. Other than as specified, we will not disclose your personal information without your prior written consent or unless required by law.

If you have specific concerns about privacy or confidentiality, please feel free to reach out to the Project Coordinator at pathwaybursary@torontomu.ca. We are here to address your questions and provide further clarification. For more detailed information, please refer to the TMU Notice of Collection.

If you have questions regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of student information by TMU, you may contact the Secretary to the University Registrar at the Office of the Registrar, Toronto Metropolitan University, 350 Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5B 2K3, or call us at 416-979-5100.

The application deadline is October 31, 2025. Bursaries will be awarded to eligible students with fully completed applications after the closing date and on a first-come, first-served basis until exhausted.

If you need assistance or have any questions, please contact us at pathwaybursary@torontomu.ca. We are here to support you through the application process.

We are hosting information sessions for both staff/faculty and students to provide further details on the bursary.

Find dates and registration links above in the Important Information section