OSOTF and Other Endowed Awards

Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund (OSOTF), Ontario Trust Student Support (OTSS) and Other Endowed Awards in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine

(1) Purpose - Departmental awards are open to the students of specific graduate units. Academic merit and financial need may be considered. All departmental awards are listed in the SGS calendar and award conditions vary. Each graduate unit should have a list of the departmental awards available for their students.

Most of the award funds come from interest income of endowed funds donated from various sources. There are over 250 awards including Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund (OSOTF) and Ontario Trust for Student Support (OTSS) awards. OSOTF awards were established in the late 1990's during a period of fund matching from both the university and the government of Ontario. Departmental awards can be "partly OSOTF", where additional donations were made during the matching period, creating an OSOTF portion of the award to supplement the already existing, non-OSOTF fund. OTSS awards were established in 2005 building on the OSOTF program, where the Province of Ontario matches dollar-for-dollar all cash donations to establish permanent endowed awards.

(2) Length of support/renewability – depending on financial need, OSOTF, OTSS and other endowed awards through Graduate and Life Sciences Education is for up to one year and is not renewable, however new application may be made for support to subsequent competitions.

(3) Level of support – amounts available from OSOTF, OTSS and other endowed awards offered through the Temerty Faculty of Medicine are generally limited by the amount of income from endowed funds. Committees have the option to set award levels, including top-ups. The Temerty Medicine Graduate Awards Committee takes into account each department's minimum funding level and that determined by general University policy in establishing award levels.

(4) Eligibility - awards are allocated on the basis of academic excellence however financial need is the primary consideration when giving OSOTF and OTSS awards. The award holder must be a full-time student for at least 14 weeks in any term during which they hold the award. Internal awards are automatically used to pay the student's outstanding fees. Preference in funding decisions will be given to students in year 1-2 of their MSc or year 1-5 of their PhD. Students beyond these years will be considered under exceptional circumstances.

(5) International students – OSOTF and OTSS awards are restricted to Canadian Citizens, Permanent Resident of Canada or Protected Person but most other endowed awards are not limited in regard to legal status. It is best to consult the Office of Research and Health Science Education regarding eligibility.

(6) Top-up awards - Depending on the policies of the review committees, top-ups may be available for major external award holders. This decision is dependent on the funding available and the number of applicants for the competition.

(7) Application Procedure - An application procedure and policy should exist within each graduate unit for their respective departmental awards. In the case of awards administered at Office of Research and Health Science Education, competition and specific application instructions are announced to students in all eligible graduate units.

Each official award record clearly states the eligibility requirements.

Additional conditions must be met for the allocation of OSOTF and OTSS funds. These awards are restricted to individuals who meet all of the following criteria at the time of application:

Canadian citizen, Permanent Resident of Canada or Protected Person;
Resident of Ontario*; and
Demonstrates financial need.

*What are the requirements to be considered a resident of Ontario?

you need to have always lived in Ontario or
Ontario is the last province you lived in for 12 months in a row without being a full-time postsecondary student
you live in Ontario now AND have lived in Canada for less than 12 months in a row

If you are married/common-law, you can be considered an Ontario resident if:

your spouse has always lived in Ontario or
your spouse has lived in Ontario for the last 12 months in a row without being a full-time postsecondary student or
All of these statements are true:
you now reside in Ontario
you’ve lived in Canada for less than 12 months in a row
your spouse has lived in Canada for less than 12 months in a row

If you qualify as a dependent student, you’re considered an Ontario resident if:

Ontario is the last province in which your parent(s) have lived in for at least 12 months in a row or
All of these statements are true:
you now reside in Ontario
you’ve lived in Canada for less than 12 months in a row
your parent(s) have lived in Canada for less than 12 months in a row

The above requirements are the guidelines established by OSAP to determine Ontario residency for OSAP purposes.

Faculty-Wide OSOTF and other Endowed Awards
Departmental OSOTF, OTSS, and Endowed Awards