Funding of universities and colleges
OFTP's efforts with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) have resulted in changes to funding policies for Ontario colleges and universities, as of May 2001. Previously, home-educated students were not eligible to be counted for funding purposes.
MTCU Wording Changes
Excerpt from the August 2001 issue of Home
Rules
(From
an email exchange on the higheredforhomelearners
email list and reported by Shelley Welchner)
Last week OFTP received a letter from the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) informing us of a change in the Document that governs educational transfer payments to universities. Ineligible students are now described as:
"an undergraduate level student who is registered in the first year
of an undergraduate degree program and, on the applicable count date, has
not successfully completed the requirements for the Ontario Secondary School
Honour Graduation Diploma (SSHGD) or the Ontario Secondary School Diploma
with six Ontario Academic Credits (OSSD with 6 OACs) or the equivalent....."
The change is in the addition of the phrase "or the equivalent".
So, the criteria which would have made home educated students ineligible is
no longer there.
Nobody spoke to the Ministry. This was in response to a letter that the project
wrote to the Minister. In our upcoming meeting with the Ontario Council of
University Admissions (OCUA), one of the issues we will discuss is the question
of defining "equivalent".
Note: University funding is tied to the guidelines set out by the MTCU. All of the universities and colleges are audited annually to determine their level of funding, based in part on the number of students admitted who meet MCTU rules. If a student does not meet those criteria, the university does not receive funding for that student. Tuition fees only cover a portion of the actual cost of educating any individual student, and the shortfall is made up by the government, but only for those students who have the credentials which the Ministry deems appropriate.
Letter from MTCU to OFTP President, Albert Lubberts, regarding the funding changes
Dear Mr. Lubberts,
Thank you for your letter dated April 2, 2001 requesting an amendment to the Ontario Operating Funds Distribution Manual to remedy the fact that home-educated students are not eligible for funding purposes. The Honourable Dianne Cunningham asked that I respond to your letter directly.
I can advise that the Ministry issued a memorandum to all universities on May 17, 2001 stating that effective immediately, qualified home-educated students will be eligible to be counted for funding purposes. This change will be reflected in the next Operating Funds Distribution Manual. The revision will define an ineligible undergraduate student as:
an undergraduate level student who is registered in the first year of an undergraduate degree program and, on the applicable count date, has not successfully completed the requirements for the Ontario Secondary School Honour Graduation Diploma (SSHGD) or the Ontario Secondary School Diploma with six Ontario Academic Credits (OSSD with 6 OACs) or the equivalent .....
This change is reflected in the recent revision of the operating grants manual for colleges.
The Ministry appreciates the efforts of the Ontario Federation of Teaching Parents in bringing this matter to our attention.
Yours sincerely,
B. James Mackay
Director
Universities Branch
Attending College or University as a Mature Student
Excerpt from the December 2000 issue of Home Rules
University Admissions
(note: Mr. Arai is a professor at the Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo; he is also a homeschooling parent and a member of OFTP)
The requirements for university entrance change once a person reaches the age of 21 (19 and in some cases 18 for college) in Ontario. If a person will be 21 on or before the day classes start, has been out of school and working full-time for two full years, they can apply for part-time entrance to university without any other requirement. If they complete two full credits (two eight-month courses) with a 70% average or better, they can transfer to full-time status. In other words, people who meet these requirements are admitted as mature students and they are not subject to the usual requirements of those under 21 (i.e., they can get in without an OSSD). I believe these are Ministry of Colleges, Training and Universities (MCTU) rules which are standard across the province. These are the criteria for mature entrance to a general Arts program. Business and Science programs usually have additional requirements like grade 12 calculus, and in some cases specific science requirements as well.
Note: it is recommended that you determine what the admissions policies are for Mature Students for the particular college or university that you are interested in attending. The specific admissions policy for mature students may vary for each college and university from what is indicated above.
External links
Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU)
