Academic Novel Coronavirus Frequently Asked Questions

The Ministry of Colleges and Universities has no plans to penalize a student’s OSAP funding if they are unable to complete a lab or practicum in March/April 2020 due to COVID-19.

The Ministry of Colleges and Universities are aware that many colleges and universities closed for a short period of time to transition programs to online learning and advise that this will not accept OSAP funding. Centennial College students are not required to amend their OSAP applications to reflect the short closure in March to allow for the transition to online learning.

For any full or partial withdrawals related to COVID-19, students will not be penalized through OSAP reassessment or OSAP academic penalties, providing the student provides documentation to the student financial services outlining their withdrawal was due to COVID related issues. Students who withdraw will be eligible for special consideration, authorized through the College’s financial aid office. For additional questions or concerns, we recommend you visit Student Financial Aid on our website or email them at financialaidquestions@centennialcollege.ca.

Your academic progress will be recorded based on the reduction of your course load or withdrawal unless you request special consideration from Student Financial Aid. The Ministry of Colleges and Universities has provided the financial aid office with authority to grant special consideration for lack of academic progress in most cases. Please contact the financial aid office at financialaidqquestions@centennialcollege.ca for more info.

Yes, the Ministry requires institutions to revise the summer 2020 semester study period start date for OSAP from May 4 to May 25, which will delay the release of funding and will result in two weeks of reduced funding for the Summer term. Due to the complexity of the OSAP assessment rules Student Financial Services is unable to gauge dollar amounts until the work is done.

The Ontario Indigenous Travel Grant (OITG) continues to be available to help full-time eligible post-secondary students, and/or their spouse and/or dependent children living with them, to assist with the costs of travelling between their remote First Nations community to the post-secondary school they are attending.

The Ministry of Colleges and Universities will also review and approve the requirement to make additional trips (i.e., return home due to COVID-19 and make additional return trips to school to complete practicum) as a one-time exception to the existing maximum number of allowable trips.

The Ministry recognizes that eligible students may have been impacted by unexpected surges in travel-related costs. If eligible students find themselves in this situation, please contact your Student Financial Services representative at financialaidquestions@centennialcollege.ca for more details or visit Student Financial Aid on our website.

Consistent with 2019-20 OSAP policy, expired cards can be accepted as Indigenous identification for OSAP-purposes. As per Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, “Indian status does not expire (an individual’s card can)”.

Based on the principles of public safety Centennial College has suspended clinical and onsite unpaid field placements. Labs, field and clinical placements, and all or part of unpaid internships have moved to teaching at a distance where feasible. In programs where labs, placements or unpaid internships cannot not be facilitated through alternative/distance models, we have extended the Winter 2020 semester and will extend the Summer 2020 semester as needed to allow students to complete these components at a later date.

Students are not required to complete the work experience component of their program while public health directives are in place and students may complete placement requirements at a later date. However, students may opt to complete their placement requirements at sites currently deemed as essential workplaces (that are willing to accept the student) either onsite, following appropriate health and safety protocols, or remotely. Students who voluntarily accept such placements will be asked to read and sign a Student Informed Consent form in order ensure that they understand their rights and the potential health and safety risks. Similarly, employers and/or placement hosts will be required to complete an Employer/Placement Health and Safety Site Checklist. We’ve also created two resources for students on a work placement - Working from Home During COVID-19 and Safety Tips for Working During COVID-19.

All online courses in Part-time Learning will continue as scheduled. While on-campus, face-to-face classes are suspended, all online courses (OntarioLearn) are ongoing and will continue as originally planned. This includes full-time students registered in a part-time online course.

You are paying tuition fees for a quality education and we will continue to deliver that quality through Teaching at a Distance and online learning, so tuition will not be discounted or refunded. Our faculty, with the support of their colleagues at the College, have transformed their learning materials and created digital content that you can access remotely. We have also transitioned our student services, including counselling, to allow us to continue supporting your success via phone, email and video conferencing.

The College will continue to support your success, no matter how long the Declaration of Emergency lasts, and remain committed to helping you as you complete your Centennial College program. We are monitoring official public health and government directives as we develop our plans for delivering fall 2020 semester programs. Keep in mind; our plans will be flexible to allow us to adjust for sudden changes or resurgence of COVID-19. Rest assured, every option balances your health and safety with your academic success.

We encourage you to continue with your studies. Consider this: withdrawing from your program at this point would have consequences such as academic penalties and loss of fees, and possibly change your eligibility for OSAP, sponsorships and eligibility for intercollegiate sports. You have paid for a quality education and we will continue to deliver that quality during the Teaching at a Distance period from March 23 to the end of the semester. Your professors have transformed their learning materials and established a variety of ways for you to engage digitally through technology. If you have any concerns, we encourage you to reach out to your faculty or to a member of our student services team. By now, you would have received a Semester Recover Plan that outlines our commitment to supporting you in completing your semester. Visit Student Success Resources for important contact information.

You are paying tuition fees for a quality education with specific learning outcomes over the entire semester. You can be certain that we will continue to deliver programs to ensure these learning outcomes are met through online learning and Teaching at a Distance for the duration of the summer semester, so tuition will not be refunded.

Your professors have transformed their learning materials and established a variety of ways for you to engage digitally through technology. Student services have also migrated to virtual formats that you can access from the comfort of your home. Rest assured, we are committed to supporting you in completing a successful semester.

There are several ways to pay your fees during the College closure. If you are an international student wishing to make a payment, please visit Payment Options for International Students. Domestic students may pay fees for one or two semesters at a time using one of the following payment plans or methods.

1. Pay Online at myCentennial

It’s the easiest and fastest way to pay. Go to myCentennial and login with your student ID number and password and follow these steps.

• Log into myCentennial using your Centennial Student ID.
• Select the Student Services Tab (Left side of the screen)
• Click Registration
• Under the “Registration Information” section, click on payment
• From there you can make your tuition payment using your credit card or debit card.

2. Pay by Telephone

You can call 416-289-5300 and pay your fees with the assistance of our Enrolment Services Representatives. Payment can be made by Credit Card.

3. Pay at a Canadian Bank or Financial Institution

Payments made at your bank will take approximately five business days to be sent to Centennial. Please allow sufficient time to avoid missing the fees due deadline. Visit our webpage for more information about paying at your bank or financial institution.

4. Pay with Aeroplan Points

Visit HigherEdPoints for information on how to redeem your Aeroplan Miles and transfer them to your Centennial account. Please note, you can only convert points through this website, and not through Centennial College or via the other payment options on myCentennial.

Visit this webpage for more information on paying your tuition.

The tuition deposit deadline for Summer 2020 was May 4, 2020. Students can still enroll in available programs and pay tuition fees up until June 1 via myCentennial, by telephone at 416-289-5300 or through your Canadian Bank (allow 5 business days to process the transfer).

Tuition Payment Flexibility

Students do not need to abandon their Centennial College application due to the challenges of personal finances during the pandemic. The College understands the financial impact that COVID-19 is having on students and is therefore offering flexible payment options.

Domestic Students

1. If you are not able to afford your tuition deposit, you may:

• Request Centennial waive your tuition deposit so that you may register in your courses

2. If you are not able to afford to pay the balance of your fees by your due date, you may:

• Request a Tuition Fee Payment Plan

Please note, if you have not already done so, you may apply for Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) assistance. If you are a recipient of OSAP assistance, Centennial will automatically defer your full tuition fees deadline until the Ministry electronically remits fees to Centennial on your behalf for your tuition balance.

International Students

• If you are not able to access your tuition to make full payments due to COVID -19 related issues you may be eligible for emergency consideration for a promissory note with payment options.

Click here for more information on tuition payment options.

Students who rented textbooks should check their myCentennial email for a message from Follett with instructions on how to return rented books. The deadline to return books without penalty was May 8. To return rental textbooks, students need to contact their campus bookstore to request a shipping label that will allow them to return their textbooks without paying for shipping. Can’t find the email? Click here for the pdf document.

Students who originally rented textbooks online have the option of extending the rental or purchasing the book online via the Rentals page. This option is not available to students who originally rented textbooks in a campus store.

No, online buyback is not currently available in Canadian college bookstores. Please wait until the campus bookstores reopen.

All campus bookstores are currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Students can order from the bookstore website by clicking on their campus link at the bottom of the main Bookstore webpage.

The item may be shipping from a location that has closed due to COVID-19 concerns. Orders will be filled when that location is once again accessible. Items that are in this situation are marked as BACKORDERED on the website. However, the BACKORDERED status may not have been displayed if the ship-from location was not yet closed or was in the process of closing when the order was originally placed. We recommend students recheck the item for confirmation. Sorry for the inconvenience during this uncertain time.

Students who wish to cancel material in BACKORDERED status can click “Contact Store” in the website footer and complete the section under “Questions & Comments”. Remember to provide your Web Order Number.