Co-op work terms are considered full-time for OSAP purposes. If you have previously received OSAP funding but don’t plan on applying during your work term then make sure that you complete an Interest-Free Status application.

Fall/Winter

If you plan on completing a work and study term, or two work terms, during the academic year then you must complete two separate OSAP applications. This means submitting one application for your work term and one for your study term, or and application for each of your work terms.

Updating your income

It’s important to report your study period income as accurately as possible on your OSAP application. When reporting your income don’t forget to include your expected earnings from your co-op work placement. If you have already submitted your application and need to update your reported income, contact the Awards Office. We can take care of that for you.

Taking classes

Many students decide to take a half-credit course while completing a work-term. When you apply for OSAP and select a work term, your funding will be assessed based on your co-op fees.

If you plan to take a class and would like to be assessed for additional funding, send us an email so we can update your application to reflect your additional tuition and fee costs. Make sure that you include your student number in any email that you send to us.

Your Part-Time OSAP Funding Certificate is available for pick-up in the Awards Office. Be sure to bring government-issued photo-I.D. and proof of SIN with you when you come to pick it up.

There are several reasons OSAP may refuse funding, but the most common is that OSAP has determined you have enough resources available to cover your education costs. You will also be refused funding if you miss the application deadline.

Things you can do:

• To find out exactly why you have been refused funding, contact the Awards Office and ask to speak with your Financial Aid Administrator (FAA). Your FAA will review your application with you and can also discuss possible review options.

We have cancelled your application at your request.

We cannot complete our review of your application because we are missing information or supporting documentation.

Things you can do:

• Check your Carleton email for details and respond to your Financial Aid Administrator as soon as possible.

The first installment of your OSAP funding has been issued to you. Your application will remain at this status for the rest of the current academic session.

Things you can do:

• Review your “Funding Summary” on the OSAP website to find out how much funding was issued, and on what date(s).  Monitor your bank account and your Carleton student account, on Carleton Central, to make sure you receive your funding within 5 to 10 days of the issue date(s).

Your funding entitlement has been calculated, BUT be sure to check if you are required to submit any supporting documents and ensure that you submit them early, otherwise the release of your funding may be delayed.

Things you can do:

• Check the status of your application at least once a week.
  • To do so, log in to your OSAP account. Click on “My Applications” and select “Check Status” next to your current OSAP application. Be sure to review any required items that are your responsibility.
  • If there are any documents listed, ensure you follow the instructions provided and submit your required documents right away, otherwise release of funding may be delayed!
• Review your OSAP funding entitlement on the OSAP website by checking the status of your application and clicking “Funding Summary”.  Here, you will see when your funds are scheduled to be release.

The Ministry has notified the Awards Office that you have submitted a full-time OSAP application.  We have created a record in our system and assigned your application to a Financial Aid Administrator for review.

Your application may remain in this status for a while before moving to the next stage. This is normal.

Things you can do:

• Check the status of your application on the OSAP website to make sure you have submitted all required supporting documentation. 

If you are in a co-operative education stream or the industrial experience program, the administration of your scholarship will work differently because of the work terms. You will not be able to draw upon scholarship funds during the work period. Once you return to full-time studies, you will come under scholarship provisions.

If you anticipate being on a co-op work term some time during the academic year, please contact the Awards Office in order to make the necessary arrangements to defer your scholarship to when you return to full-time studies and once again come under scholarship provisions.

By law, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) requires Carleton to provide students with a report that lists the amount received in bursaries, scholarships, awards, prizes, and tuition waivers. These amounts are shown as income in Box 28 of your T4A. You can view your T4A on Carleton Central in February which will reflect the amounts you have received from Carleton during the calendar year (January 1 to December 31). For income tax purposes and preparing your T4A slip, your Social Insurance Number (SIN) is required.

Visit the CRA website for more information on students and income tax.

For scholarships, all original/earned grades (grade points of all Carleton credits/courses) taken in the last 12-month period (previous Summer, Fall and Winter terms) are included in the calculation of your annual GPA. For each of your courses you will be given a letter grade. That grade corresponds to a numerical value.

You can find the letter to numerical value conversion table here.

To calculate your annual GPA follow these steps:

• Add all the sums and divide by the total number of credits.
• Determine the letter grades for each of your courses.
• Determine the numeric value associated with each grade.
• Multiply that number by the credit value of the course.
• Please note, scholarship assessment is based on annual GPA, not CGPA.

No – In order to renew your entrance scholarship you must have a GPA of 10.0 or better. If your GPA is lower than 10.0 you will lose your scholarship for this coming year. If you do not meet the academic and course load requirement for renewal, the scholarship may be regained in a subsequent year of your first four years of undergraduate study.

For more information on the academic and course load requirement for renewal, contact the Awards Office.