Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 45.51
Liaison Mat Thijssen
Submission Date Nov. 6, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Waterloo
PA-7: Affordability and Access

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 4.00 Mat Thijssen
Sustainability Manager
Sustainability Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

Support for Low-Income Students

Does the institution have policies and programs to make it accessible and affordable to low-income students?:
Yes

None
A brief description of any policies and programs to minimize the cost of attendance for low-income students:
In accordance with the Province of Ontario’s Student Access Guarantee, Waterloo ensures that Ontario students in need have access to the resources they need for their tuition, books and mandatory fees that are not covered by the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP). Students are required to seek financial support from all sources, including family, employment, loans, and government support programs. https://uwaterloo.ca/student-awards-financial-aid/bursaries/support-statement. For students who are not Ontario residents, there are other Canadian and U.S loan programs https://uwaterloo.ca/find-out-more/financing/paying

None
A brief description of any programs to equip the institution’s faculty and staff to better serve students from low-income backgrounds:
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A brief description of the institution’s programs to guide and prepare students and families from low-income backgrounds for higher education:
The University of Waterloo offers a bursary for low-income students to help with tuition costs for the University Co-operative Education Program, which connects high school students with Waterloo for an opportunity to experience university life.

None
A brief description of the institution's scholarships for low-income students:
All Ontario students are encouraged to apply for the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) to support their academic expenses. In addition, the University offers various entrance, automatic, and full-time bursaries available for students who demonstrate financial need. Student Awards and Financial Aid maintains a database of awards available for students, including those marked for “financial need awards/bursaries.”

A brief description of the institution’s targeted outreach to recruit students from low-income backgrounds:
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A brief description of the institution’s other policies or programs to make the institution accessible and affordable to low-income students:
Federation of Students offers a Food bank for use by all students. UW administers 1st Generation Bursary Funding on behalf of the provincial government.

Support for Non-Traditional Students 

Does the institution have policies and programs to support non-traditional students?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s scholarships provided specifically for part-time students:
The University of Waterloo has a part-time bursary for students who are enrolled in no more than a 40% course load. Students must be in satisfactory academic standing and have applied for OSAP or other provincial aid.

A brief description of the institution’s on-site child care facility, partnership with a local facility, and/or subsidies or financial support to help meet the child care needs of students:
UW has two day care facilities on campus that promote subsidies available through the Region. The Graduate Studies Office also offers a Child Care Bursary for the graduate student population.

A brief description of the institution’s other policies and programs to support non-traditional students:
Through the government of Ontario and/or other donors, the University also offers scholarships and bursaries for aboriginal students, refugees, mature students, and Ontario first generation students. These are listed in the database of student awards.

Part 2 

Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (tracking accessibility and affordability)? (If data is not available, select 'No'):
No

The percentage of entering students that are low-income (0-100):
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The graduation/success rate for low-income students (0-100):
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On average, the percentage of need that was met for students who were awarded any need-based aid (e.g. as reported to the U.S. Common Data Set initiative, item H2) (0-100):
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The percentage of students graduating with no interest-bearing student loan debt or for whom no out-of-pocket tuition is required (i.e. the percentage of graduates who have not taken out interest-bearing loans) (0-100):
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Optional Fields 

Estimated percentage of students that participate in or directly benefit from the institution’s policies and programs to support low-income and non-traditional students (0-100):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.