Career Colleges Ontario had alerted the government about potential “suspicious” activity related to student financial aid at select campuses in Ontario three years ago, according to documents. The association had urged the government to involve law enforcement in addressing these concerns, although the specifics of the issues and their scope were not fully disclosed.

The association communicated its worries about questionable activity in Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) applications starting in January 2023, with subsequent meetings held throughout the year. Requests were made to the Ministry of Colleges and Universities to escalate the concerns to the police, as per correspondence filed in a court case against the government’s decision to restrict OSAP loans for students at five career college locations.

Career Colleges Ontario shared findings in a letter from January 2025, indicating abnormal spikes in applications across 10 schools, with one institution experiencing an almost 2,700% surge from 2022 to 2024. These anomalies, coupled with feedback from Financial Aid Officers, raised doubts about eligibility accuracy and potential misuse of OSAP funds, leading to prompt reporting to the ministry’s OSAP inspection team.

Despite efforts to address these issues, critical data revealed substantial provincial grants allocated to seven career colleges in the 2024-25 academic year, totaling approximately $385 million. This amount exceeded the grants distributed to all publicly funded colleges and universities in Ontario during the same period.

Following the association’s data submission, the government disqualified five schools from OSAP eligibility due to concerns related to online program participation integrity. The move triggered criticism regarding oversight failures and subsequent changes to OSAP policies affecting students across various post-secondary institutions.

Government officials defended their actions, emphasizing a robust oversight mechanism and a commitment to curbing unauthorized growth in the education sector. The ongoing dialogue between stakeholders highlights the complexity of balancing financial aid distribution with regulatory compliance to ensure the program’s sustainability and integrity.