Fall/Winter 2025-2026: Applying for Part-Time OSAP

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible to apply for OSAP, you must:

• be a Canadian citizen, Permanent Resident or Protected Person
• meet Ontario’s provincial residency requirements
• be enrolled in a degree, diploma, or certificate program
• be studying full-time or part-time at an OSAP approved institution

Percentage Course Load Guide

Undergraduate students must be taking 40% or less of a full course load to be considered for the part-time student assistance program (part-time OSAP). This means a maximum course load of 1.0 credits per term. For students with a registered disability, you are eligible for either full-time or part-time funding if you are taking a 40% course load.

Graduate students must be designated as a part-time graduate student by the Office of Graduate Studies

The chart below can be used to determine your course load percentage based on the number of credits you’re taking:

Application Instructions

Step 1 – Start a new part-time OSAP application.

• Login to your OSAP account at ontario.ca/osap and start a new part-time OSAP application.
• When you are asked when your classes start:
  • Select September 2025 for a fall term application, or
  • Select January 2026 for a winter term application
• Click Next.

Step 2 – Select your program and study period

All of the questions on the following OSAP page are mandatory. Here are some tips to help you find what you are looking for quickly:

• Use the program search function to find and select the correct program and study period for your application.
  • Use all of the optional filters to narrow your search results.
  • For your program name, enter a single keyword (or at most two) to identify your major (e.g. “History”, “Aerospace”, or “Art History”, “Political Science”)
  • Choose September (fall term) or January (winter term) as the month your program starts.
  • Program year refers to your academic year standing.
• Include your student number. Not including your student number could cause a delay in processing your OSAP application.

Study Period

The study period start and end dates will always be the same as the Fall and Winter term start and end dates. Use the table below to find you start and end dates.

Percentage Course Load

Your percentage course load corresponds to the number of credits that you will be taking. Use the table below to find your course load percentage.

Step 3 – Complete and submit application

Review your application carefully before you submit it. It is recommended that you submit your application by June 30, 2025. For a full list of deadlines view our dates and deadlines page.

Step 4 – Upload required documentation

You may need to upload documents to support your application. If so, they will be listed on the Print/Upload page of your online OSAP application. When you have them ready, scan them and return to the same page to upload them to your OSAP application. You should aim to get this done before fall classes get underway.

For a full list of deadlines view our dates and deadlines page.

Step 5 – Monitor your application

After you submit your application, monitor your Carleton email account for important messages from the Awards Office. And be sure to log in to your OSAP account regularly to check for unread messages in your OSAP Message Centre.