Ontario university students protest OSAP changes

University and college students on campuses across Ontario staged walkouts on Thursday to protest cuts to financial assistance and increases to tuition that are crushing them in a financial squeeze. 

At Carleton University in Ottawa, a crowd of peaceful protesters held signs bearing messages that included “Our Education is Your Future,” and “Hands off our OSAP!”

The walkout was part of the “Hands Off Our Education!” campaign organized by the Ontario branch of the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) to protest the growing cost of pursuing a degree. 

“Students are having to completely reconfigure how they’re going to access education,” said Cyrielle Ngeleka, Chair of CFS–Ontario. 

“We’re seeing a lot of students getting more bank loans, having to stretch into their savings, or ask extended family for help to finance their education, said Ms. Ngeleka “It’s really just pulling at teeth.”

Fourth-year Carleton student Hailey Mouchette said completing her education means being $60 000 in debt. She said she’s maxed out her bank loans, while working 15 to 20 hours a week at a bookstore to cover groceries and other day-to-day expenses. 

As the first person in her family to attend post-secondary education, Mouchette said pursuing a degree is important, for her to set an example to her two younger sisters and step-siblings.

“It is possible for our family, and we can do it,” said Ms. Mouchette. 

Walkouts continue a year-long campaign

The “Hands Off Our Education!” campaign launched in October 2025 after the provincial government introduced Bill 33, the Supporting Children and Students Act. The law, which received Royal assent in November 2025, mandates “merit-based admissions” in colleges and universities, among other measures. The campaign expanded further in February 2026, after the province announced changes to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and lifted the seven-year tuition freeze. 

Under the new OSAP framework, students beginning eligible programs on or after Aug.1, 2026, can receive a maximum of 25 per cent of their provincial OSAP funding as grants with at least 75 per cent provided as loans. 

In its spring 2026 budget, the province announced $6.4 billion in funding for colleges, universities and Indigenous institutes over four years, alongside the changes in OSAP and tuition. Under the new tuition framework, publicly assisted colleges and universities can raise tuition by up to two per cent annually for three years. 

“With these changes, our government is ensuring Ontario students receive a world-class education that will launch them into good paying jobs and careers for many years to come,” said Bianca Giacoboni, press secretary of Minister of Colleges Universities, Research Excellence and Security Nolan Quinn.

Ms. Ngeleka says the campaign is currently demanding the government stop its interference in admissions, research, policy, student fees and democratic spaces, as well as reversing the changes to OSAP. 

Norah Bello, advocacy commissioner with University of Ottawa Students Union, said, “Students are facing several different crises at the same time; housing costs, food costs and tuition related expenses.”

She said some students are taking on additional work or missing classes to pick up shifts to deal with the financial strain creating a cycle that can affect their academic performance and ability to participate in campus life. 

“If students aren’t able to come to classes, then [professors] can’t teach their students as well,” said Ms. Bello.

In a statement, Ms Giacoboni said the government changed OSAP because the previous framework was “no longer sustainable.”

She said the province’s enhanced Student Access Guarantee, alongside existing financial aid programs such as the Ontario Learn and Stay Grant, would continue to support eligible low-income students.

The Ontario government has recently frozen all OSAP payments for students in private career colleges pending an investigation of alleged misuse of OSAP funds by some of those colleges. Public colleges and universities are not affected by the freeze or the investigation. 

Carleton Faculty Association voices support

Dominique Marshall, president of the Carleton University Academic Staff Association, said the faculty association fully supports the campaign. 

Conditions today are “way worse than when I was studying 35 years ago,” Dr. Marshall said, in reference to the financial assistance offered by the government. 

According to the second annual DrinkSmart Campus Pulse Survey released Nov. 2, 66 per cent of Ontario post-secondary students surveyed had experienced financial challenges related to their education, while 58 per cent reported experiencing stress or anxiety frequently or constantly. This is up six percentage points from 2025. The survey involved more than 3,000 Ontario University and college students.

“We really want the Doug Ford government to see how these issues continue to have such serious consequences on students and our families,” said Ms. Bello. 

“At the end of the day, everything is about priorities,” said Ms Ngeleka. “If the government truly prioritized ensuring that students have adequate access to education they wouldn’t have been cutting as much as they have over the past couple of years.”