Alberta post-secondary students waiting on aid funding amid record number of applications

Adeline Lavallee had to dip into her savings to make sure she can be on the right track to start her second year for an online social development study program at Waterloo University in Ont.

"I'm worried about rent for sure," Lavallee told CBC in an interview about having to use money for housing to pay for tuition. 

"If I don't get [funding] by the end of the month, I'm gonna be in hot water." 

Lavallee is not alone. The province is currently experiencing a backlog of student aid applications due to high demand.

Regardless of whether it's provincial or federal funding students must apply through Alberta Student Aid, which provides loan, grant, and scholarship funding to Alberta's post-secondary students. 

 A spokesperson with Alberta Advanced Education said in a statement that about three per cent of applications are exceeding the 45-day service standard for processing.

About 90 per cent of all applications are currently being processed within 30 days with the majority being completed within 3 days, the spokesperson said, noting there was a record number of applications this year. 

Lavallee said she applied for federal grants and scholarships in mid-July.

"The applications open very late this year, I applied, a couple of days later, and still no word," Lavallee said.

"I'm disabled, I have a dependent and I need these resources to be able to pay for child care, to access any of the resources I need, like learning supports and different forms of textbooks."

Lavallee said she has had a lot of back-and-forth with Alberta Student Aid, which she is concerned is playing a role in her application delay. 

"At first they asked me for proof of custody of my baby, which was very strange, and then I submitted that. Called them a couple of weeks ago, and they're like, 'sorry, you just have to wait until two weeks and then try calling again.' "

A spokesperson said Alberta Advanced Education has introduced quality assurance reviews related to students with dependents, for cases such as when a student's dependent information changes from prior years' applications.

"This additional verification is solely to ensure the validity of the information and the integrity of the system, and does not affect the eligibility of students with dependents," A spokesperson said, adding that there have been no changes to the process with respect to students who are disabled.