Band Funding

If you receive funding from your First Nations Band or the Métis Nation to cover tuition, books, living expenses, and more, you are considered a sponsored student.

Your Indigenous support coordinators are trained to navigate Band Sponsorship policies and can help with breakdown complex cases. 

Responsibilities

Application Processes

You are responsible for applying to be a funded student with your specific band funding organization.

Your band will complete Laurier’s sponsorship process. This means that they are invoiced for your tuition and student fees directly by Laurier.

As a student you are not required or expected to send your student invoice to your band. If your funder is requesting one from you, you can direct them to the ISS team.

Program Changes or Dropping Classes

Notify your band if you plan to change your program or course registration as soon as possible.

Different sponsoring agencies have varying policies and procedures for these changes, and making changes without prior approval could affect your living allowance or future sponsorship. Your ISSC can assist you with these discussions.

Paying Tuition and Fees

Typically, your band funder will pay for your student invoice after the final add/drop day of classes which occurs the first few weeks of September.

If you have no other financial aid (OSAP, etc), you may have an outstanding amount owing until this time and that’s okay, any costs covered by your band funding will not be considered late. 

Textbooks and Health and Dental Insurance

It is important that you are in contact with your band funders and stay up to date on what is covered under your funding, so you can plan financially. 

Here is some information around textbooks and health and dental plans that you should know. 

Textbook Credits

There are two different ways your sponsorship may cover your textbooks costs: either through credits at the Laurier bookstore, or by reimbursing you once you have purchased your required textbooks. 

Bookstore credit:

• To access your bookstore credit for course materials, inform the staff at the bookstore that you are a sponsored student during checkout.
• The staff will confirm your status as a sponsored student and complete the checkout process.

Reimbursement:

• Check your Band’s education policy. Most bands that provide reimbursement for approved course materials will need copies of your receipts to be scanned or faxed to their office. 

Opting out of the Health and Dental Plan

If you are covered under another extended health and dental plan, you may consider opting out of your student health and dental plan.

The information you require to opt out includes: 

• name of your insurance is Non-Insured Health Benefits (NHIB)
• policy number is your Status Card number
• certificate number is your student number and add the 00 at the end

OSAP

Even if you receive financial support from your organization, consider how the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) can benefit you. It provides opportunities to apply for student aid through grants and loans, offers unique experiences, and grants access to awards not available through Laurier's scholarships and bursaries. You can choose to accept only eligible OSAP grants or any eligible OSAP loans and grants.

Paying Outstanding Fees

Due to the timing of sponsorship processing, you may have outstanding fees when OSAP is distributed. If you are receiving OSAP, these funds are automatically applied to any outstanding fees on your Laurier student account, which may appear to contribute to the fees your sponsorship covers.

Credits

Once your band sponsor pays your tuition and fees, any OSAP that went to paying your fees will be available as a credit on your student account. You can request your OSAP funds as a direct deposit to your personal bank account after your sponsorship has been processed.