• OSAP

    i may be noise-sensitive, but i’m not time-sensitive

    May 16, 2014

    Hi,
    My question is in regards to OSAP. I applied to OSAP got my signing papers in the mail but now no one will cosign for me. Since I am 18 can I sign for myself as an individual and if so would I have to apply again or sign my signature on the paper I got in the mail never mind my parents and send it back to them? Let me know as soon as possible! The application deadline is soon!!!?
    Thanks!

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    i just wanna remind y’all that there is no guarantee that i can answer your question right away! i’ll always get to your question within two weeks’ time, but i can’t make any further promises than that – and?i want to be honest with you?dudes. so please, if you have a time-sensitive question, call the appropriate uoft number?right away.

    as to your question, the parent signature pages have to be signed by your parent/spouse/guardian (whichever one applies to you), unfortunately.

    good luck to ya,

    aska

    P.S. by the way, if you’re in grade 12 and applying to OSAP for the first time, may i suggest the incredibly helpful (and surprisingly well-produced) fastanswers YouTube channel.?they’ll be releasing an episode about OSAP this coming week!

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  • OSAP,  probation

    osap probation declaration

    April 24, 2014

    hey,
    I was put on osap probation for dropping below 3.0 credits because I realized I would fail some courses. Then during the spring semester I dropped another course. These happened due to personal reasons (no medical certificates to back anything up though) and I’m pretty sure I can do a lot better than this year. So having been put on probation will I be suspended?

    Thanks

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    when you’re put on OSAP probation, you stay on probation for 12 months. during that time, you’re expected to pass all the courses you register for. if you do, you’ll be taken off probation. if you don’t, you’ll be restricted from receiving OSAP for one school year.

    take a look at Question #19 to read more about it, but note that this PDF is a 2012-2013 document, so i’d recommend you call financial aid to double-check, just in case something’s changed since then.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • OSAP,  Transferring,  UTM

    transferring (you to the experts)

    April 17, 2014

    Hi there!
    I’m trying to transfer to UTM for the 2014-2015 year from another university. This meaning I’d be in second year if I got in. Now I’m worried
    sick. I’m afraid I won’t get accepted. I did pretty amazing first semester and was able to get a 3.8 but this semester I probably won’t get more than a 3.0 (That’s just a guess but probably around there). Now I know UTM has requirements for the subject PoSts when it comes to gpa. Then theres also the fact that I can’t enroll into courses until I’ve declared a post. All I want to know is whether I’ll be accepted or not because then I have to make arrangements at another university which just seems really messy to me and want to avoid it.

    There was also a question of OSAP, not sure if you would know. I have an resp which I’ve taken out but most of it is with my parents and not in my hand. I did get some of it but it was used up due to emergency’s and I don’t plan to use the one my parents have with them this year. When I apply to OSAP do I need to let them know of this money? I don’t want money that I don’t have anymore to affect my funding.
    Thank you!

    ———————————————

    hey there,

    whoa nelly, you’ve got a lot of super specific question, my friend! i want to offer my sympathies to you for having to go through the nerve-wracking process of transferring. believe me, i’m a transfer student too, and i know how anxious you must feel right now. despite that, i want you to channel the energy you’re currently experiencing that’s making you want to scream in a roomful of people or tear out your hair into something productive.

    i’m not gonna deny that asking me questions is usually productive (i mean i can just imagine what a privilege it is to have a chat with me, whatever the circumstance), but in this case, i think your questions would be better directed to people who know about the specifics of your situation. keep checking your application/admission status on the JOIN UofT Portal, but know that UTM will likely wait for your second term marks to make an admission decision, so you might hear back from them as late as the end of May. however, that is still not too late to sign up for courses and declare a subject POSt, so don’t worry.

    as for your chances about admission, i’d recommend calling UTM Admissions & Recruitment at 905-828-5400. they’ll have specific information about your application and also about what they look for in applicants, and can probably better predict whether you’ll get in than i can. i know some people have issues with calling institutions on the phone, but it’ll be fine. they specifically say to call that number with admissions inquiries, so you’re good. i promise.

    finally, for your OSAP question, there are people at the downtown campus who specifically answer questions about OSAP, and i think they’ll be your best bet. you can e-mail them at osap.staff@utoronto.ca for general questions, or if you want to talk with someone about your current application specifically, try calling them at 416-978-2190.

    i hope that is helpful in pointing you in the right direction!

    best,

    aska

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  • OSAP

    an osap follow-up

    April 15, 2014

    hi, i’m returning for my second year at uoft. i’ll only be getting 2?credits this year though, so my course enrolment start time is in july. so?i was wondering am i just suppose to wait till after i enrol to apply for?osap? i want to apply for the 30% off mostly, but they tell you to apply as?early as you can. i was just wondering cause i wasn’t on osap last year. i?realize this is sort of a dumb question, like, i assume you enrol in your?courses first, enter your student number (and all the tax form stuff) on?the osap site and that’s how they get the 30% off, by actually seeing your?course load. so its needs to be done in that order. but i just thought i’d?ask, y’know?

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    the main thing you have to make sure of is that you apply as early as possible before the deadline to defer payments, which is not the same date as the date you enrol for classes. you don’t need to be enrolled in your courses for the year when you apply for OSAP, just as long as you’ve enrolled in them by the time you actually have to be, y’know, taking classes.

    course enrolment isn’t really directly related to applying for OSAP – it’s something OSAP checks up on after you apply, later in the year. the important thing you need to focus on is having your application in well before the deadline to defer payments, which is August 19th at the downtown campus.

    cheers,

    aska

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  • OSAP

    what a(n) (o)sap!

    April 10, 2014

    Hi,

    I’m entering 3rd year this upcoming term and, financially, my school savings just aren’t enough. This may seem like a simpleminded question but, how does one apply for OSAP??Also, are there specific deadlines I should be aware of??How will I know if the application is successful? Will anything appear on ROSI?

    Thanks!

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    i really wish you’d specified which term you were going into. does ‘upcoming’ mean the summer or fall 2014? *diva sigh* accuracy, people…

    ‘s ok, i’m over it now. so, if you’re taking courses in the summer, you’ve missed the march 31st deadline to apply for osap and defer payments. you’ll now need to go physically to enrolment services and fill out a deferral form – that is, if you’re not able to pay for the courses in full by april 24th.

    if you’re talking about fall 2014, then you’ve got lots of time left to apply, but you should still do so as soon as possible. the application opens in may, but the sooner you apply after that, the sooner you will be assessed* and the sooner you will be all ready to defer your payments** in august. there’s no real deadline for osap; just make sure to have it done a couple weeks before the date you need to defer payments to the school, which is august 19th.

    as for applying, it’s fairly straightforward. it’s done online, and utm has released a really great step-by-step powerpoint about how to do it if you haven’t before (but obviously just don’t put UTM as the school you’re attending if you’re downtown or at UTSG).

    OSAP typically communicates with you by e-mail when anything significant happens, good or bad, so just keep an eye out there for information about your application. but don’t worry too much about verifying if you’ve done it right; if you just go through the steps and fill everything out as the website prompts you to, you should be fine.

    i don’t think anything happens on ROSI when you apply; you just go to ROSI to defer your fees after you’ve applied for OSAP.

    i hope that all made sense. please e-mail me if you run into any problems!

    best,

    aska

    * assessed = i.e. for financial need, which determines the amount of funds released to you.

    ** deferring payments = osap gets released to you in chunks throughout the school year. ?this means that if you’re getting osap to pay your fees, you need to let the school know that it’ll take you some time to pay them, but that you understand it’s your responsibility to pay them, and that you will pay when the money is available to you. this is done on ROSI, and is called “deferring your payment.”

    P.S. by the by, it’s not a simple-minded question. believe me, i wish i’d had someone to ask about it when i first applied.

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  • OSAP

    plot twist: something involving osap works out well

    March 31, 2014

    Hi aska,

    I hate to bother you with an OSAP question and I think I already know the?answer, but I just wanted to double check.

    So, I was a full time student at the beginning of this school year, but I?dropped some courses and ended up part time by beginning of second term.?But I’m planning on going back as full time in September.?I didn’t apply for OSAP last year, but I’m going to apply for the 30% off?this year (I qualify financially). Will my full to part time switch and?being in my second year affect anything? Or is it pretty straight forward?as long as I’m signed up for a full course load for next year?

    ???????????????

    hey there,

    my experience with osap applications is that they ask for your program and student status in the year that you’re asking for OSAP only, which would be next year for you. so i think you’re right; just go ahead and apply, and it should be fairly straightforward from there!

    and don’t worry, you guys never bother me. i’m an incredibly bored little hermit, so a chit-chat is always welcome.

    best,

    aska

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  • OSAP,  tuition

    the post-secondary payment pickle

    March 18, 2014

    Hey,
    So I ended up being really stupid with money and am paying too much rent/so on. I know now for a fact that I will not be able to pay off quite a bit of my tuition by the time school is over this year. What does that mean? If I cant pay it off will I not be able to enrol in classes for next fall? Will my new tuition fees be put on top of that if I do get to stay and will that mean that I will then be paying interest on the whole lot of it?

    Aside from that, say I were to take a year off to try and pay off my tuition from this year. I know that my student loans start to need to be payed off within 6 months of the last day of my enrolment, so if I do decide to come back after my year off, does that mean I will still have to be paying off my students loans (as it would have been more than 6 months from the end of this year) even though Id be back in school? Or would the payments stop?

    SO STRESSED!!

    ———————————————

    Hey there,

    Alright, I wanna start off by saying that the documents I’m going to link to use a lot of terminology that can sound TERRIFYING if you don’t know what the terms mean. They throw around words like “sanctions” and “penalty” like they’re about to excommunicate* a nation.

    I understand that trying to pay for tuition when you can’t is super stressful (trust me, I break down whenever I see the train fare price on my Presto card). BUT I wanna help you, not add to your panic. What I’m saying is I don’t need you STRESSING OUT, K? Bottom line is: you and the school both want the same thing, which is for the tuition to be paid. That means you can work together to find a solution.

    Onto some policy-mongering:

    Uoft has a variety of ways to deal with people who haven’t paid tuition, which you can read about in more detail here. To sum it up, if you haven’t deferred or made your payment after November 15th, a service charge will start to be applied, which is basically interest on your tuition. If it still hasn’t been paid in full by April 30th, your outstanding fees will eventually be transferred to a an “external collections agency,” which will then take over the job of collecting your debt (you can take a look at the exact schedule of that transfer here). They may also impose academic sanctions, which can include anything from stopping you from requesting a transcript to refusing you future registration, as well as financial holds starting May 1st. That’s the condensed version of it, but I’d really recommend you read the pages I’ve linked to to understand all those things better.

    Depending on how much you owe, it might be a good idea to take a year off and focus on paying the school back. 6 months after you leave school, you would have to start making OSAP payments (they would stop as soon as you re-enrolled into school), but it may be possible to negotiate lower payments or even the preserving of interest-free status with the national student loans centre. I don’t know enough about the situation to be able to recommend taking a year off one way or the other, but what I would do is go to your college registrar’s office to talk about your specific situation, and you guys can figure out the best thing to do from here.

    I know this is a tough time. I know school is hard enough as it is without dealing with all these financial shenanigans. I know tuition rates in this country are absolutely SOUL-SUCKING. Believe me, I cannot empathize more; but it’s not impossible. So listen to some meditative music in your underwear and then go out and calmly speak with people who can help you sort out the problem. It’s gonna be fine.

    Good luck!

    aska

    *excommunicate is not the word I’m looking for. Does anyone know the word for when a nation is being bad and all the other countries, like, say they don’t approve of what it’s doing or whatever? Hmm. You can tell I’m not a Geography student.

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  • OSAP

    osap shmosap

    January 13, 2014

    Hi there,

    I am a first year student in a 2 year program on OSAP, I just finished my first semester and unfortunately I am unable to move onto next semester because I failed three of seven of my courses. I logged onto my school account and it still has me registered as a student and my schedule for next semester is up. What I want to know is will my OSAP be discontinued?? Or will I still receive it in second semester?

    -Silently Stressing

    ?????????

    hey there,

    OSAP will receive a report on your academic progress at the end of this term, so you should receive your second instalment if you are continuing with school into this term, regardless of what happened in the fall. however if you’re still registered for this term and you don’t want to be because, like you said, you’re unable to continue, then?you need to call your college registrar and talk to them about that! if OSAP discovers in April that you received money for a semester when you weren’t enrolled in any classes, you’ll be forced to pay it back. and that is majorly uncool.

    hope that helps!

    aska

     

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  • OSAP

    osap loans more like osap MOANS amirite

    January 10, 2014

    dear Aska,

    This question is related to student loans. OSAP allows 6 months after your full-time studies before dropping a load of interest on top of your principal debt. Normally this allows you to not study every second semester, without interest.

    But consider the summer. Suppose you take the three courses you need to be considered full-time. Q1) If they are all F-section courses, does your ‘full term period of study’ end in July or August? Q2) If it ends in July, does that mean you can’t not study next fall semester without paying interest? Q3) How could you know these things anyway?

    Your immediate reply is very much appreciated!

    ?????????

    hey there,

    i know this reply isn’t as ‘immediate’ as you probably hoped, but i did tell you i’d be away, dude! anyway, hopefully this answer will still be useful to you.

    basically, if i’m understanding you correctly, you’re asking about doing 3.0 FCEs one fall, not doing any courses in winter or summer (to go off and party it up or sum shizzle i know how y’all are), and then going back the next fall. that means you would not be in school for eight months, so Q1) your grace period ends in July and Q2) yes, you’d have to start making payments in July, though you’d only have to make them for July and August before going back to school for September.

    as to Q3) i know because i work in an office that’s responsible for knowing these kinds of things. i haven’t for the life of me been able to find that specific information on the tragedy that is the OSAP site, but please feel free to contact them?if you wanna double-check what i’m telling you. they also might be able to let you know about any possibility of alleviating or even eliminating those two months’ worth of payments in the summer, which they can sometimes do if there are extenuating circumstances.

    good luck and toodles,

    aska

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  • OSAP,  Transferring

    osap being a lil’ butt: college transfer edition

    December 4, 2013

    hi aska,

    I’m a first year student at UofT and I’m planning on transferring to George?Brown next september (2014) to change programs. My parents suggested that I?should not attend school second semester so that we wouldn’t have to pay?for the next semester. So I went to my registrar yesterday (Nov.25) to ask?how i can officially unenroll from next semester and if there’s a way that?I can only pay for the current semester. The counselor told me to just drop?all my courses in ROSI (for next sem AND current sem) and I did. As for the?tuition, little did I know that the refund schedules would be so confusing?but I did get the gist of it and turns out it’s not as simple as just?dividing the tuition by 2. Since I didn’t drop my courses by a certain?date, I still have the majority of the tuition left to pay. The thing is?though, im with OSAP. Will I still be able to receive my second release of?funding in January or do I need to start panicking since I won’t be a?full-time student next sem? The counselor said something about writing a?letter to OSAP? Also, i do plan on attending school again next September so?do I need to worry about repaying OSAP six months from now since im?technically unregistered from UofT?

    ?????????

    hey there,

    disclaimer: i’m going to tell you everything i know about this, but as soon as you’re done reading, you need to march yourself over to enrolment services?and discuss this with them in detail. going to the registrar was a good move, but enrolment services will be able to tell you the exact next steps needed when it comes to osap and repaying, etc. etc.

    you’re very right about your tuition payment not just being a division by two. if you want to know the logic followed when it comes to refunds and things, take a look at this lovely lil’ document.

    now here’s the part that’s gonna sting: you probably won’t receive your second payment because you won’t be a full-time student any more (i told you). also, since you’ll be out of school for eight months, you will probably be required to start paying back after the 6 month grace period. i say ‘probably’ because there is a possibility that your payments can be alleviated or suspended entirely for those two months. take a look here?and here?to explore that – and then once you’ve done that, go and ask enrolment services – and maybe even national loan services if need be – about it for a definitive answer, ’cause goodness knows osap’s website is horrible.

    so, in sum: probs won’t get second payment (i know, osap is a butt. i’ll keep calling it a butt because i try to be pg on this blog), talk to enrolment services, you can maybe apply not to have to start paying the loan back in 6 months’ time, talk to enrolment services, maybe contact national loan services for further information and talk to enrolment services.

    best,

    aska

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  • CR/NCR,  OSAP,  probation

    osap being a lil’ butt

    November 25, 2013

    I’m in my fourth year of university at UofT. I’ve always been in good academic standing?with my GPA and CGPA and never worried about being put on academic probation since I?obtain low 80’s. However, today I received a Notice of Academic Probation in the mail.

    I need a 0.5 credit within my program to graduate, so I decided to take electives and?bump myself up to full time studies for the winter/fall semester under OSAP. I wasn’t?aware of the Credit/No credit option until October this year, and decided to opt two of?my three courses this semester since I didn’t want the final grades of elective courses?to impact my CGPA for grade school. I was under the impression that it wouldn’t impact my?funding or academic progress since I will still obtain the credits for the courses in?which I’m doing fairly well.

    Why am I on Academic probation and what steps am I suppose to take in order to rectify?this situation? The last thing I want is this to affect my transcript. The only?conclusion I can come up with is that the Credit/No Credit option isn’t sanctioned by?OSAP and it looks as though I’m takin less than 60% of full time study credits. Is there?way to fix this?

    Thank you for your time,
    A concerned potential graduate.

    ?????????

    hey there,

    the credit/non-credit option should not affect your full-time status. it’s not something OSAP considers, and it’s really hard for them to track it anyway, since students have such a long time they can switch between making something credit or non-credit.

    the only thing i can think of is that you’ve been put on academic probation for some other reason, and it’s just taken OSAP a while to notify you about it, so it seems like it’s because of something that’s happening now when it’s actually not. OSAP often takes a really long time to correspond with students (sluggish little buggers), so this might have to do with something that happened a while back.

    another option is simply that OSAP made a mistake. since your CGPA is in the low-80s, this is a pretty real option, but whether they messed up on something or you did, the only way to pinpoint your problem is to run not walk to your registrar’s office. they should be able to help you sort out your issue.

    hope it all works out,

    aska

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  • OSAP,  tuition

    procrastinate on ALL the things!

    August 19, 2013

    Hi,

    my college’s fees are due tomorrow August 20th (victoria college). I applied for OSAP,however it hasn’t come through yet and so ROSI is not letting me defer my payment. The minimum payment is almost $5,000, which is very difficult for me to pay. What should I do? what’s the best option?

    Is there a smaller fee that i can pay?

    ———————————————

    Hey hey

    Lol nope. There is no smaller fee.

    You’re paying your minimum.

    But what you need to do is get a form from Enrolment Services for registering without payment. As long as you’ve already handed in your OSAP signature pages et al, they should give it to you.

    Now… what did you learn from this experience?

    Apply. For OSAP. Early.

    Cheers!

    aska

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  • OSAP,  suspension

    a friend in need is not a friend at all — it’s a pseudonym!

    June 7, 2013

    Hi,

    I’ve been trying to research what the consequences of academic suspension are. My friend was on probation last year and was informed at the end of this academic year that she is now suspended for one year where she is not allowed to enroll at uoft or any other university during that time. She has gotten a job to earn money during her year off but she is having difficulty understanding her options next yearl during the suspension. She has been trying to contact the advisors and registrar etc. but no one has replied thus far.

    The first concern is about OSAP during the year off. Will the repayment begin after 6 months such that she will have to start paying back loans during her year off until she returns to school after the suspension?

    The second concern is the dropout process as she feels she will not be successful upon returning and wishes to switch to a college program. Is it possible to transfer passed credits of university courses towards a college program? Also will OSAP cover her again if she switches and begins taking a full course load at a college instead?

    Any info/advice is appreciated.

    ———————————————

    Yo.

    Your “friend” is on suspension huuuuuh? 😉 Alright. I can give your “friend” some info/advice.

    Firstly, tell your friend to make an appointment with her registrar’s office.

    For the most part, colleges make an effort to contact the student when they’re in the red zone. Like if you’re at risk part way through the semester, your college will actually call you in to have “k what are you doing?” sort of conversation to get you back on the right track. This means they’ll be just as accommodating when you’re suspended.

    So if you haven’t heard back, I feel like that’s cuz your “friend” emailed them at like 2AM and failed to take into account the fact that most offices are open 9-5. But if there’s been no response, why can’t she just call them? Or go in person?

    Again, make an appointment!

    But OSAP — because your “friend” is not enrolled as a fulltime student, OSAP wiiiiill be on her back nagging. Or well, they won’t be nagging so much as piling interest. But she WILL be bothered to start paying some back at any rate.

    AFTER her suspension though, she can either reapply for OSAP to kind of “freeze” (for lack of a better word) the repayment process, or she can get a form that prevents interest from building while she’s a student no longer receiving OSAP.

    Next, there’s no process to dropping out really. It’s as simple as not signing up for classes.

    Lastly… ah, I just love it when aska gets regarded as this omnipotent being that knows everything about anything, including schools that are not nearly as awesome as UofT St. effin’ George.

    Anywho, whether or not x college will take your “friend’s” past credits is entirely up to them, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t. For example, Seneca seems to consider credits. And Humber too. Yeah I guess most colleges do.

    And yeah, OSAP is still doable at whatever college she chooses as long as she’s a fulltime student and the college is legit — or like, considered legit by OSAP. They have to approve of that stuff, so no sketchy places.

    Cheers!

    aska

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