Health · Healthcare & Policy · 1 day ago
Ontario OSAP pause leaves paramedic students without funding
Ontario has paused OSAP funding for private postsecondary colleges while it audits how the student aid program is being used.
The pause affects students at CTS Canadian Career College in northern Ontario, the only career college eligible for the province’s Learn and Stay Grant.
That grant covers tuition for students in health-care programs who agree to work in underserved areas after graduating.
More than 40 affected students have already left their studies, the college says.
Some private colleges saw large increases in OSAP use, but CTS’s use rose 14 per cent over three years.
The government says it is reassessing CTS’s eligibility for the grant, which has separate accountability requirements.
The audit and the government’s next steps will determine when funding can resume and what support affected students may receive.
Ontario’s pause on student aid for private postsecondary institutions has affected paramedic students at CTS Canadian Career College, the only career college eligible for the Learn and Stay Grant.
More than 40 affected students have already dropped out, the school says.
The grant covers tuition for students in health-care programs who agree to work in underserved areas.
Colleges and Universities Minister Nolan Quinn paused OSAP funding for career colleges while KPMG audits its use.
The government says the pause is intended to protect the integrity of the system, while students say the loss of funding has put their studies and finances at risk.
- Who
- Paramedic students at CTS Canadian Career College in northern Ontario, including students in Sault Ste. Marie.
- What
- The provincewide OSAP pause for career colleges has disrupted funding for students approved for the Learn and Stay Grant.
- When
- The articles were published on November 3, 2026. The date the pause began is not stated.
- Where
- CTS campuses in North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury, Ontario.
- Why
- The province paused OSAP funding for career colleges while KPMG audits its use, citing concerns about the integrity of the system.
Ontario government
Affected students
Reason for pause
Ontario government
The government says preliminary audit findings raised concerns and the pause is intended to protect OSAP’s integrity.
Affected students
Students say the funding pause threatens their ability to continue their education and meet living costs.
Provincial OSAP grants to career colleges nearly doubled to about $1-billion in 2024-25.
Minister Nolan Quinn paused OSAP for career colleges and other private postsecondary institutions while KPMG audits OSAP use.
More than 40 affected students had dropped out, according to CTS Canadian Career College.
Quinn told the legislature that the Learn and Stay Grant supports students pursuing in-demand health-care careers in communities that need them.
- Affected students
- More than 40 had dropped out, the school says
- Eligible career colleges
- 1: CTS Canadian Career College
- CTS campuses
- North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury
- OSAP grants to career colleges
- About $1-billion in 2024-25
- CTS OSAP usage increase
- 14 per cent over three years
- Auditor
- KPMG
3 sources
What people are saying
It kind of ripped away all the goals and aspirations that I had for me and my family, and I was gutted at the time
supporting students pursuing in-demand health-care careers in communities that need them the most