General Discussions

Thanks Jeremy - I checked with our Student Accounts area and they also stopped a duplicate file last Monday - first time they said this has happened. Luckily our system is set-up to notice these duplicates so it wasn't processed again on our part

To pay for a psych ed assessment through BSWD, the student MUST submit a DVF with the app. That is not to say they must upload it to their OSAP profile, but it is needed for BSWD payment.

We have several students that get an assessment, have DVF completed, and submit it along with BSWD app to the ASO, but never upload to their OSAP app. We require students to give us to consent to upload it to their OSAP profile on their behalf in order to establish PD/PPD (if not already established) to facilitate changing their status. We do this because we can't update their profile without their consent and/or docs, so with this consent, it's confirmed they are requesting a change to their profile. However, that cannot be said for the DVF submitted solely along with the BSWD as consenting to updating their profile if they said 'no' to uploading it.

In these cases, we would be uploading the DVF to FAOBSWD only, since it only pertains to BSWD administration (and archival purposes). We would not be uploading to FAPROFIL to update their disability status where consent wasn't provided.

Students are encouraged to authorize us to upload or upload themselves, so they can take advantage of the benefits for PD/PPD status, but are not required to. However, they would remain ineligible for any other cost accommodations through BSWD since their disability status wasn't 'established' on their profile.

Hi Pam!

Sorry for taking so long to respond - but this is an excellent question and is worth some discussion.

I think the answer depends on both the audience and, to some extent, on your institution's position. When I'm speaking with current students, I can look at their current assessment to give them an idea of how their current provincial grant funding might change under the new calculation, but that doesn't work for a prospective student, or for a group of students.

For prospective students, our recruitment team is still directing students to use the OSAP aid estimator - it should give them a reasonable idea of total assistance available, though not the grant/loan split. We remind students that OSAP is funded by both the federal and provincial governments, and that the recent announcements apply to only the provincial portion of the assessment.

On the last MCURES/OASFAA executive call, the Ministry said that they expected the OSAP aid estimator to launch in early May, so we're also ready to tell students to run the numbers as soon as they can, in order to help them plan. We might also talk about the Repayment Assistance Plan and especially RAP PD, to show that OSAP debt doesn't have to ruin a student's life after graduation, and that help is available.

But at the end of the day, our message hasn't changed that much - we encourage students to carefully consider their postsecondary program, not just as a short term cost, but as a meaningful long term investment in their financial future and in their quality of life. Beyond the financial component, postsecondary education represents a huge commitment of time and effort, and can radically change the trajectory of a student's life. We still think that's a worthwhile investment, and we'll still support students in need with scholarships, bursaries, and other programs to make study more affordable.

As an aside, I believe we're also giving students a pass to skip classes on the 4th, to participate in the protest at Queen's Park, because that's another way we can show support.

Hope this helps.