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Ontario refers career college OSAP concerns to OPP
An independent audit found serious concerns in the private post-secondary sector, including common ownership, immigration firm links and 87,000 students receiving aid.
Ontario delayed decisions on career college OSAP eligibility this academic year, leaving thousands of students and schools in uncertainty as the academic year progresses in early October.
Career Colleges Ontario flagged "indicators consistent with suspicious activity" in OSAP applications dating to January 2023, prompting the ministry to launch targeted inspections and commission a KPMG audit that identified "serious concerns."
The Canadian Press reporting showed 95 per cent of year-over-year OSAP growth in 2024-25 went to career college students, with seven schools receiving about $385 million—matching all Ontario publicly funded colleges combined.
Executive director Michele Lupa at Mothercraft, which has a "stellar" compliance record, expressed concern six weeks into the academic year; student Daliah Gardoque said "It's extremely stressful" and warned peers may drop out without funding.
Ontario Minister of Colleges and Universities Nolan Quinn referred concerns to the Ontario Provincial Police and notified the auditor general last week, escalating the government's response to the crisis affecting the entire sector.