USA to Canada

[sacklunch]

I'm curious about how funding works being a US citizen and applying for schools in Canada (UoT and UBC). If I do not receive enough scholarship money, how would I fund the rest? Are loans available?

thanks

[lewin]

The government student program is the Canada Student Loan Program. I don't know whether they have citizenship requirements but it must say so somewhere at that link. If you mean student loans from Canadian banks, the major banks are TD, RBC, CIBC, and BMO. As a non-Canadian they might have extra requirements (e.g., a cosigner) but their websites should state that. They all offer student lines of credit.

My own undergraduate student loans were a combination of government loans and a loan from my local credit union. For the government loans, the advantage is that interest is waived while you're in school but the rate after you graduate isn't great (mine is prime + 2.5%). Government student loans also have spending restrictions (e.g., no vacations, don't repay old debts). My credit union student loans are at prime, but I pay interest every month including when I was in school.

For the major scholarships (NSERC, SSHRC, CIHR, OGS) you need to be a Canadian permanent resident.

Edited July 14, 2011 by lewin00

[ktel]

Typically you have to get loans from the state/country/province where you live. As an Alberta student studying in Ontario, I have to get Alberta student loans, for example. You have to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident to get any sort of government loan. Most of the major scholarships are the same, you will have to look for those for US citizens that allow study outside of the country.

I'm not sure what program you're applying to, but U of T guarantees funding for almost all programs. For my program the funding was $15,000 + a tuition waiver. This gives an idea of previous funding structures:

http://www.sgs.utoronto.ca/Assets/SGS+Digital+Assets/current/Awards/Graduate+Funding+Structures.pdf

However that stipulates it is for Canadian students. Best to contact them and ask

[Henry Hudson]

I've been in a similar place as you.

my own experience: There have been two kinds of loans for grad students through the US Student Loan program, only one of which could be used outside the country. The one that could be used here in Canada was, until about 15 months ago, run through third-party providers (banks) with US backing.

About 15 months ago, to cut costs and improve efficiency, the Obama admin brought that program back in-house, cutting out the third party providers. For small/medium universities with few US students like Trent, where I've been, it was apparently too big a headache to continue; about 5 of us are due to finish up shortly and anyone new is out of luck - they'll need to do private loans (through US banks). For bigger schools, or those with more US students, they are likely continuing in the US loan program.

I would check with your Uni's financial aid dept to make sure, though.