You can find your tuition fees on ACORN once you log in: “Dashboard” -> “View Invoice” or “Financial Account” -> “View Invoice”. Your invoice is a complete record of everything you must pay during the upcoming academic year. Here’s a guide to reading your invoice. If you are living in a student residence, you will find your residence fees here as well. The cost of attending U of T can be challenging, however, there are plenty of ways to receive financial aid and help manage the cost.
Financial Assistance and Exemptions
UTAPS
The U of T Advanced Planning for Students (UTAPS) is a funding program that aims to fill the financial gap for eligible U of T students who meet certain eligibility criteria.
OSAP
The Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) is a financial aid program for college/university students offered by the Government of Ontario. This program is only available for Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or protected persons who are Ontario residents.
There are 2 types of OSAP funding, grants and student loans. A grant is money that you don’t have to pay back, whereas a loan is money you have to pay back after you finish school. One benefit of OSAP loans is that it is interest free until after you graduate. After graduation, you can start to pay back your loan and interest rates will apply.
To learn more about the OSAP program and how to apply, check out the OSAP website and U of T’s Finances page.
Other Provincial Student Aid
Every Canadian province has its own student aid system like OSAP. If you are a domestic student from outside of Ontario, you may be eligible to receive student aid from your province, which you can use even when studying outside of that province. For complete information, visit this Government of Canada site on Student Grants and Loans.
Note that some provincial aid will arrive only after the deadline for making a deposit payment has passed. In this case, you should apply for a fee deferral, where upon uploading proof of incoming student aid, you can receive an extension on your fee payments to accommodate this. Warning: if you do not have a fee deferral and fail to pay your fees on time, you will be charged interest.
International Student Aid
Some countries or companies will sponsor international students to study at certain universities; if you are an international student, you should check your eligibility for any opportunities associated with your home country.
Other Private Loans
Many banks offer student loans as well; check with your bank to see if you’re eligible. However, unlike government loans, some bank loans will accumulate interest.
Scholarships
As an incoming student, if you received an entrance scholarship, you would have received it with their offer of admission. If you applied for a scholarship through the Engineering ePortfolio, you can expect to hear back soon. You can check out the Award Explorer to find other scholarships, with the ability to filter awards based on faculty, award type, citizenship, nature of award, etc.
Some scholarships require specific applications, while others automatically consider all eligible students. At the end of each academic year, you can update your ePortfolio to be considered for scholarships for the upcoming year. Many companies and foundations also deliver scholarships to students, so do some research to find anything for which you’re eligible. Some of these internal and external scholarships will be featured in the weekly EngSci Newsletter you will receive starting in September.
If you are coming from a high school outside of Ontario, find out how to apply for province-specific scholarships; usually, provinces give out scholarships worth a few thousand dollars to anyone with an average above a certain basic threshold; as EngScis, you would have all cleared these thresholds, so don’t miss out on some free money. Make sure to also look for scholarships offered by other organizations or private companies.
Scholarship decision-making committees may consider factors such as your grades, extracurricular activities, leadership, written application, household income, and more. Make sure you craft a well-written and honest application for each scholarship you apply to. Best of luck!
Other Financial Aid Resources
The U of T Finances page has numerous financial aid resources about financial aid for out-of-province students, U.S. students, international students, and more.