Ontario Ignored Three Years of OSAP Fraud Warnings, Documents Reveal
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Career colleges flagged massive application spikes and eligibility misrepresentation years before the province acted, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill.
The Ontario government ignored three years of warnings regarding suspicious activity within the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) at several career colleges, according to documents reported by CBC Toronto and CityNews Toronto.
Career Colleges Ontario began alerting the Ministry of Colleges and Universities to "indicators consistent with suspicious activity" in January 2023. Executive director Kate Bartz noted that the association held four meetings with the ministry that year and later requested that specific concerns be referred to law enforcement. While the ministry stated it contacted police, the specific nature of those concerns remains redacted in court records.
Data analyzed by Career Colleges Ontario from 2022 to 2024 revealed anomalous growth at 10 schools, with an average increase in applications of 855%. One specific institution saw applications surge nearly 2,700%, jumping from 107 in 2022 to 2,992 in 2024. Bartz reported that these trends, alongside reports of eligibility misrepresentation and misuse of funds, were flagged to the ministry's inspection and compliance unit.
Reporting by The Canadian Press shows that in 2024-25, just seven career colleges received approximately $385 million in provincial grants—a sum exceeding the total grants given to all Ontario university students that year—plus $137 million in federal grants.
Critics argue this represents a systemic failure of oversight. NDP Leader Marit Stiles stated that students are now being punished for the government's failure to act quickly, while interim Liberal leader John Fraser suggested a double standard in how the province monitors career colleges compared to public institutions.
Colleges and Universities Minister Nolan Quinn has since implemented sweeping changes, including barring career college students from grants. Spokesperson Dayna Smockum defended the province's oversight as "robust," stating the government has "zero tolerance for bad actors."