Eastwood Collegiate Institute Financing Your Future Today 1

Eastwood Collegiate Institute Financing Your Future

Today 1. Understanding Costs 2. Budget 3. Finding Money: Scholarships Awards Bursaries OSAP Private Loans

The Cost of a Post. Secondary Education § A rough estimate: § § § § Tuition (will vary wildly by location and program) Other Fees (student association, supplementary, etc. ) Books/Computers (will vary with the program) Accommodation (varies wildly) Food (will vary with school residence and location) Entertainment (movies, trips, music, etc. ) Utilities (phone, cable, Internet, etc. ) Transportation (will vary with location to campus) Totals: $2500 -7000 $500 -2000 $600 -2500 $0 -6000 $1, 500 -4000 $3, 000? ? ? $700 $0 -800 $8800 -26000 § See the point? Do some research to find out how much YOUR program will cost.

Let’s do a Budget… § http: //ssbc. scotiabank. com/ssbc/

You need to sit down… § …and budget the big picture. § Goal isn’t to have a stressful “ 10 year plan” but rather just to know the parameters. 1 st Get a rough idea for the total cost 2 nd Estimate what you are hoping to bring in through various sources. 3 rd Look at starting salaries for paying off any potential debt

What do they make? Actor / Actress: Advertising Manager: Chef: Civil Engineer: Dentist: Doctor: Ecologist: Lawyer: Pilot: Plumber: Police Officer: School Teacher: $18, 942 $70, 495 $29, 977 $68, 813 $85, 842 $69, 062 $43, 894 $81, 774 $73, 622 $49, 328 $75, 913 $58, 589* *Say “baloney” to these kinds of charts (Averages vs Medians vs starting salaries, etc. ) Do some research to find the ‘real’ answers. *

Awards vs. Scholarships vs. Bursaries vs. Loans § Award: An award is given in recognition of outstanding achievement. Awards may come in the form of books, plaques, subscriptions, or money. A monetary award can be called a bursary or scholarship. § Scholarship: A non-repayable sum of money awarded to a student to help finance further education. Most scholarships are based on merit in areas ranging from academic achievement to athletics. Scholarships are not given for financial need alone, but are “earned” by merit. § Bursary: A non-repayable grant of money, bursaries are awarded primarily based on financial need, but academic achievement is also considered. Usually, the applicant must provide detailed documentation describing their financial situation when applying for a bursary. § Loans are money given to you that you will need to pay back overtime and at different rates of interest. Pay close attention to the difference between OSAP and Private loans.

Somes Types of Scholarships, Awards, etc § Merit-based: granted for achievement in academics, athletics, artistic, etc. § Need-based: given to those who demonstrate a need (unless your dad is Warren Buffet, you likely have a need) § Student Specific: who you are determines your eligibility § Career Specific: what you want to be determines eligibility § School Specific: includes entrance awards § School-Nominated Awards: you only need to get yourself known…

Typical “Criteria” § Year of Study (entrance, first, second, third, fourth, final year, graduate) § Special Circumstances (amputee, brain injury, orphan, parent, etc. ) § Financial Need (pertains to your income, check with the scholarship administrator for more details) § Academic Average (usually your last year of study marks) § Heritage (Aboriginal, Chinese, Polish, etc. ) § Field of Study (the program you’re interested or currently in) § Affiliation (companies, religious groups, unions, and associations, that you or your family are affiliated with) § Activities (sports, religious, academic, leadership, community involvement, etc. ) § Location (where you live and go to school)

Random facts § Don’t waste time on graduate scholarships § The Scholarship/Award calendar begins in September, and doesn’t really end. There’s no off-season. § A lot of awards don’t even ask for your marks* § 26% of awards require you to have financial need, but many will take that into consideration* § Awards by category: § § § § 9% business related 8% humanities 7% engineering 7% creative arts 6% community services, 5% computer studies and medical programs 46% of the scholarships do not require a specific field of study* *check out the data published by the Schoolfinder group

Underlying key understandings for Scholarship Searching § § § #1 Put in the time. #2 Think outside the box, keep looking #3 Ask everyone under the sun if they have heard of anything that could help you § #4 You can’t win an award if you don’t apply. The numbers of applicants are sometimes shockingly low

OSAP § In 2015, the Average Canadian student graduated university over $25000 in debt § OSAP allows this to happen § OSAP opens applications for Sept in mid-Spring. § You’ll need to know some of your parent’s financial information to apply (Tax info from the previous year) § When you apply, you’ll get an idea of how much financial support OSAP will offer you § In Fall, the school will “sort it out” for you § You NEED to apply to OSAP, because doing so: § A. Is sometimes required if you want to be eligible for other uni/college financial aid § B. Is required if you want to get the government’s student rebate § After you graduate/leave school, you’ll have a grace period from OSAP, and after that, they’ll start demanding repayment § http: //osaphelp. blogspot. ca for example of being smart

OSAP 2 § OSAP is open to Ontario residents who are a: § Canadian citizen § permanent resident or § protected person § When determining if you're eligible, the government considers: § your status (e. g. , married or a dependent student) § the school you attend/will attend (a school needs to be approved for OSAP) § program of study § course load (full or part-time) § study period § academic progress § education expenses § you and your family’s financial contribution

Next Steps… § www. scholarshipscanada. com § www. studentawards. com § http: //ssbc. scotiabank. com/ssbc/ § www. ontarioscholarships. ca

Private Loans § Don’t do it unless you are desperate.