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Interesting article about OSAP in The Spec

 
Old 03-08-2010 at 09:26 AM   #1
Kathy2
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Interesting article about OSAP in The Spec
http://thespec.com/News/CanadaWorld/article/733964
Old 03-08-2010 at 09:54 AM   #2
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It will be very interesting to watch this over the next two weeks. Hopefully it will open many eyes and bring about some much-needed change.
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Old 03-08-2010 at 01:13 PM   #3
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Hmmm, 7.50 a day compared to my 40-50ish bucks a month.

Yea, I can see how shitty your lives are. D:
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Old 03-08-2010 at 01:44 PM   #4
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This is actually one of the better OSAP cases. A lot of people (like me) don't get anywhere near the $12,000 limit.
Old 03-08-2010 at 02:07 PM   #5
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$12,000 just for living? With my total loan amount and breaking down for tuition and stuff I only managed to get that much TOTAL, and I'm one of the low income cases. I've been out of high school for 5 years (Class of '05, represent!) so they don't care about parental income.

That said, I was always under the impression that OSAP was for supplementing other loans and savings. So I don't think the $7.50 is out of the question, however I do think the system needs a bit of overhaul so that the students in need get the funding they should be getting.
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Last edited by temptingf8 : 03-08-2010 at 02:10 PM.
Old 03-08-2010 at 02:13 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by temptingf8 View Post
$12,000 just for living? With my total loan amount and breaking down for tuition and stuff I only managed to get that much TOTAL, and I'm one of the low income cases. I've been out of high school for 5 years (Class of '05, represent!) so they don't care about parental income.

That said, I was always under the impression that OSAP was for supplementing other loans and savings. So I don't think the $7.50 is out of the question, however I do think the system needs a bit of overhaul so that the students in need get the funding they should be getting.
No, the $12,000 isn't just for living. It includes tuition, books, etc. I live on my own, pay rent, utilities, my full tuition - but I received less than $300 from OSAP for this year because they considered my parents income (even though they contribute approximately $500 per year towards my tuition).
Old 03-08-2010 at 02:19 PM   #7
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It's a really unfortunate boat that I was in at one point, and that's where I think things need to change, more so than $7.50 a day for food.

Back when I was going to Sheridan College I was flat out denied for OSAP because my parents 'made too much money', yet I was the one who had to foot 100% of the tuition bill.
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Old 03-08-2010 at 07:58 PM   #8
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how does this work?

at mac, tuition + residence + meal plan = 12000

just enough. ofc, if you're in keyes it might be 13500, still if you're getting 12k for OSAP it's good.
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Old 03-08-2010 at 10:13 PM   #9
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$12,000 isn't very much for students not living on residence.

$6000 tuition
$700 books
$500 x 12 months = $6000 rent
$300 x 12 months = $3600 utilities, food, etc.

Equals much more than $12,000. Combine that with the fact that if you make more than $50 per week (most students probably make $10 for 10 hours a week = $100), then your OSAP is reduced substantially. (It is reduced much more than $100 per week. It's more worth your time to not work at all)

This isn't even including the cases where students who have to pay the entire price of tuition, rent, food, etc. are denied any OSAP because their parents make money - whether they contibute or not.
Old 03-09-2010 at 12:21 AM   #10
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But you are supposed to work while at school if you are on OSAP.


That way you can make the rest of the money you need,
...
which will then readjust your osap to something lower
...
so you need to work more,
...
which means your marks fall
...
so you lose that scholarship
...
so you have to work more
...
which means you have to drop a few classes,
...
which lowers your osap,
...
which means you cant afford to be full time
...
so you drop more classes,
...
which lowers your osap
...
so you work more
...
drop more
...
get less osap
...
repeat

until of course the OSAP system balances out. The equilibrium point, if you were wondering, is when you have dropped out of school due to financial reasons and slave away at a shit job to keep the OSAP people off your back.

This is all assuming you don't fit into one of the following groups:

1) If you are secretly being funneled money from some illegal source.(either selling drugs or something that just isnt officially on paper)

2) If you have figured out some way to live in a cardboard box licking the lichens and bacteria off rocks and fighting squirrels for their stash. Living below the poverty line of the worlds poorest countries is a luxury for you. Think lower.

3) You begin to trade services for goods. I, for example, hook for cheeseburgers.

It's a living.
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Old 03-09-2010 at 06:36 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rossclot View Post
3) You begin to trade services for goods. I, for example, hook for cheeseburgers.
A guy's gotta eat...
Old 03-09-2010 at 02:07 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kathy2 View Post
$12,000 isn't very much for students not living on residence.

$6000 tuition
$700 books
$500 x 12 months = $6000 rent
$300 x 12 months = $3600 utilities, food, etc.
wtf
$500/mo for rent?

And using 12 months is also stupid. You're only in school for 8 months.

Think of OSAP as a loan. The government provides assistance, they can't give you everything.
Take out another student loan if OSAP is too little.

Then there are bursaries too.

And remember that the government is not obliged to provide you these loans. Access to education is important, but the government isn't made of money.
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Old 03-09-2010 at 02:29 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FireDragoonX View Post
Think of OSAP as a loan. The government provides assistance, they can't give you everything.
Take out another student loan if OSAP is too little.
And that's what I'm more inclined to believe. I don't think OSAP was ever meant as a sole source of funding for students. Where it needs reform isn't the $7.50 a day for food, but rather the accessibility to students whose parents make more money but don't necessarily contribute.

I am on OSAP, and I am not currently working. But, the additional source of funding came from my busting my balls working for 6 months before starting this program.
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Old 03-09-2010 at 03:41 PM   #14
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I cant get a loan because I dont have anyone to sign. So some people who dont have a support structure just hook for cheeseburgers.
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Old 03-09-2010 at 04:51 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FireDragoonX View Post
wtf
$500/mo for rent?

And using 12 months is also stupid. You're only in school for 8 months.

Think of OSAP as a loan. The government provides assistance, they can't give you everything.
Take out another student loan if OSAP is too little.

Then there are bursaries too.

And remember that the government is not obliged to provide you these loans. Access to education is important, but the government isn't made of money.
Unless you live in a room in a house (ie. an apartment), you'll probably pay at least $500 per month for rent. My friends all live in crappy rooms in crappy houses and they still pay $430-$450 anyway.

I do take out bank loans since OSAP and what I make from work isn't enough. I know that OSAP is a loan, but the amount they give and the people they choose to give it to is f***ed up. And the point of OSAP is so that students don't have to take out bank loans that automatically charge ridiculous interest rates.
I'm not complaining about the $12,000 - I would love to have that much money from OSAP! I only get $300. That is the most pathetic "loan" I've ever heard of. I appreciate the governments help but the system needs an overhaul because a lot of people who need it aren't getting it. And a lot of people who are getting it are just putting it in the bank to collect interest and make money off it.

Last edited by Kathy2 : 03-09-2010 at 04:53 PM.



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