OSAP-student-loan

OSAP Student Loan.

If you need funding to help pay for college, and you live in Ontario Canada, there are things you need to know for an OSAP student loan. The OSAP is the Ontario Student Aid Program, and through this program, you can obtain a large portion of the funds that you need to pay for your education. It’s for Ontario Canada students only.

1. A student must be absolutely honest in all of your dealings with the OSAP. This includes the information that you supply on your OSAP student application form, and other OSAP forms that you may be required to fill out. Providing false or inaccurate information will usually result in being banned from the program, possibly for life, but at the least for the current academic year. Do not assume that the OSAP does not check the information – it is all checked and verified.

2. The OSAP student loan application will be returned and all documents if they are not the way that they are required to be. Each document that you submit must include your social insurance number, your name and the date, and your signature. Without these inclusions, the OSAP document will not be accepted.

3. Pay close attention to deadlines. It doesn’t matter to the OSAP why a deadline was missed, if it was missed, you are out of luck. There are no grace periods granted, for any reason at all. Make those deadlines!

4. Students must practice patience when dealing with the OSAP. It can take up to six weeks for forms to be processed, but submitting forms online is usually faster. Nothing you say or do is going to speed up the process, so start early.

5. If changes are made in your life, a student must notify OSAP immediately. Failure to notify OSAP about certain changes could prevent you from getting the funding that you require. Changes that a OSAP student must be notified about include name changes, changes in marital status or dependent status, changes in schools or programs, changes in income, and changes of address or telephone information.

6. An OSAP student must have the proper identification. This includes a valid social insurance card and a valid photo identification card. The identification card must be issued by the government. For example, identification cards issued by your school will not satisfy this requirement.

7. OSAP loan funds are only distributed twice each year. The largest bulk of the amount that you are entitled to – 60% – is issued in September, and the remainder is issued in January. There are no exceptions to this.

8. You need the services of your schools financial aid office. This is the most effective way of working with OSAP, and the personnel in the student aid office are experts at working through OSAP student red tape.

9. Check with the financial aid office at your school concerning all of the funding that you receive for your college education. Funding that does not come directly from OSAP for students must be managed separately.

10. Make it your business to know exactly what the OSAP requires from a student who works with them, and meet those requirements. It is your responsibility to do this, and the OSAP will generally only tell you that something is needed once – and if it isn’t provided, your funding is denied or cut off.

Dealing with the OSAP isn’t hard, if you know the rules and the facts. Students can learn more about the OSAP and what the program can do for you visit: OSAP student.


Related OSAP Student Reading

Applying for OSAP Eligibility Funding – Checklist