Press Release
As of Jan. 5, Ontario students can apply to get 30 percent off the cost of their tuition.
To help keep the cost of post-secondary education affordable, the provincial government is taking 30 percent off the average tuition for families—that means $800 for undergraduate university or college degree students and $365 for college diploma and certificate students this semester.
Then in September, the permanent “30% Off Ontario Tuition” grant will apply to the full school year.
Students in a university or college degree program will save $1,600 while those in college diploma and certificate programs will save $730.
More than 300,000 undergraduate students are eligible to receive the new grant this year. Students who already receive OSAP will be automatically considered.
Because the grant is calculated to be 30 percent off the average Ontario tuition, the amount will keep pace with any increased future costs—meaning it always will be 30 percent off the price of tuition.
Helping Ontario students with the price of tuition is part of the McGuinty government’s plan to keep post-secondary education within all families’ reach while building the best-educated workforce in the world.
That leads to a stronger economy, and creates good jobs.
“We are keeping our promise to make a real difference in the cost of tuition for undergraduate students and their families,” said Training, Colleges and Universities minister Glen Murray.
“This grant means that eligible students will enjoy the lowest tuition costs in the past 10 years,” he noted.
“We are being fiscally responsible while at the same time making a profound difference for the students and families who need the financial assistance,” Murray added.
“We are extremely pleased to see the government come through with the one of the largest investments in grants in the province’s history,” said Sean Madden, president of the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA).
Students must be less than four years out of high school, and their parents’ gross income must be $160,000 or less to qualify for the grant.
Students with disabilities may receive the grant for up to six years of study.
To fully offset the costs of the new tuition grant, efficiencies and savings were found, including the elimination of the Ontario Textbook and Technology Grant, as well as the Ontario Trust for Student Support and the phase-out of the Queen Elizabeth II Aiming for the Top Scholarships.
Ontario has created 200,000 additional post-secondary and apprenticeship spaces and, by re-instating student access grants, has tripled the number of grants available to students since 2003.
