The organization representing vocational schools in Ontario raised concerns to the government about potential irregularities in student financial aid at a few campuses three years ago, according to documents. Career Colleges Ontario urged authorities to involve law enforcement regarding specific issues, although the exact nature of these concerns and their applicability to particular institutions remains unclear.
As part of a legal challenge to a government decision blocking students at five career college campuses from accessing OSAP loans this academic year, two letters from Career Colleges Ontario to the Ministry of Colleges and Universities were submitted. In February, correspondence from Career Colleges Ontario indicated that they had flagged signs of suspicious activity in OSAP applications since January 2023 and had held multiple meetings with the ministry during that period.
At a subsequent meeting, the organization requested that related issues be escalated to law enforcement, as mentioned in the letter, although the specifics were redacted in the court records. Executive director Kate Bartz explained that the ministry had contacted the police, who expressed the need for their own investigation before taking further action.
Further details regarding the police involvement were not disclosed by Career Colleges Ontario or the ministry to The Canadian Press. The reasons for the redaction in the court-filed letter are also unclear, leaving the specific concerns referred to the police, and their impact on individual institutions, unknown.
Career Colleges Ontario, responsible for processing OSAP applications for vocational schools, informed the ministry in a January 2025 letter that an analysis of data from 2022 to 2024 revealed significant anomalies at ten schools, with average increases of 855% over two years. Notably, one school experienced a surge from 107 applications in 2022 to 2,992 in 2024, representing a nearly 2,700% rise, while most schools reported consistent enrollment figures annually.
The data, coupled with reports from Financial Aid Officers, suggested irregular patterns not in line with typical enrollment trends, as highlighted by Bartz. Concerns related to potential misrepresentation of eligibility and misuse of OSAP funds were promptly passed on to the ministry’s OSAP inspection and compliance unit.
Information obtained through a freedom-of-information request by The Canadian Press revealed that approximately $385 million in provincial grants was distributed to students at just seven career colleges in 2024-25. This sum equaled the total grants awarded to students across all publicly funded colleges in Ontario that year, and exceeded the grants received by all Ontario university students.
Following the submission of data by Career Colleges Ontario, the government disqualified five schools from OSAP eligibility due to concerns about compromised participation in asynchronous online programs, where students complete coursework at their own pace. Critics argue that the government’s oversight allowed a handful of career colleges to dramatically increase OSAP usage, leading to the program being deemed unsustainable and grant access reduced for all post-secondary students.
In response to these issues, Colleges and Universities Minister Nolan Quinn announced significant modifications to OSAP earlier this year, including restricting grant access for career college students and reducing grants for university and publicly funded college students. Quinn’s office emphasized the robust oversight of the sector and pledged additional measures to address any misconduct jeopardizing the integrity of the post-secondary system.
NDP Leader Marit Stiles criticized the government for penalizing all post-secondary students due to delayed actions. Interim Liberal leader John Fraser highlighted apparent inconsistencies in oversight, pointing out the significant growth at one career college that would typically prompt government intervention if observed in a university or college setting.
Three Academy of Learning career college campuses contested the decision to bar their OSAP eligibility for the upcoming year, arguing against the minister’s authority to make such a ruling and asserting compliance with inspection procedures. The Academy of Learning clarified that Career Colleges Ontario did not proceed with pausing OSAP applications for the 14 campuses initially identified as problematic after legal intervention.
The Academy of Learning stressed its commitment to ethical standards in administering OSAP, citing the implementation of numerous controls in response to ministry inspections. They also noted that Career Colleges Ontario’s board comprises individuals from competing private career colleges. The organization disclosed that they had not received any follow-up communication from Career Colleges Ontario and were unaware of any outstanding concerns regarding their operations.
Court documents revealed that the ministry’s concerns with the five schools stemmed from compromised participation in asynchronous learning programs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, OSAP eligibility was extended to students in online and asynchronous programs, a measure subsequently made permanent by the province.