Financial Hardship Assistance

financial assistance

The following information should assist students experiencing financial hardship or difficulties with meeting their financial obligations associated with their studies at the University of Wndsor.

Domestic Students

1) Follow the instructions in the Financial Aid Steps link.

2) Log on to UWinsite Student > Student Homepage > Award Profile between August 1 and October 15.  Apply for as many scholarships and bursaries that are open and available where you have met the conditions of the award.  If you are in receipt of government student assistance, i.e. OSAP, be sure to apply to the University of Windsor In-Course Bursary.  Decisions are generally made in late November, early December.  After October 15, the next deadline is January 30 with decisions made by the middle to end of February.

3) Once you have completed steps 1) and 2), if you can not wait for a decision and your circumstances are dire, please send an email to award1@uwindsor.ca or submit a service request via www.ask.uwindsor.ca explaining your situation and you will be directed accordingly on next steps.  Be sure however, before you contact Student Awards & FInancial Aid, that you complete steps 1) and 2) first.

International Students

1) Ensure that you have exhausted all resources available to you, i.e. parental/family support, bank loans, etc.

2) Log on to UWinsite Student > Student Homepage > Award Profile between August 1 and October 15.  Apply for as many scholarships and bursaries that are open and available where you have met the conditions of the award.  If you are in receipt of family support, private or bank loans and you have indicated on your applicaiton that you are an international student in financial need, be sure to apply to the University of Windsor International Student Financial Support Bursary.  There is an application specific to graduate students and an in-course application that is specific to undergraduate students. Decisions are generally made in late November, early December.  After October 15, the next deadline is January 30 with decisions made by the middle to end of February.

3) Once you have completed steps 1) and 2), if you can not wait for a decision and your circumstances are dire, please send an email to isc@uwindsor.ca explaining your situation and you will be directed accordingly on next steps.  Be sure however, before you contact the International Student Centre, that you complete steps 1) and 2) first.

Emergency Relief Fund for International Students
Occasionally, international students are faced with unexpected situations which may lead to immediate financial constraints.  The University of Windsor has an Emergency Relief Fund for International Students that supports international students during a temporary and unexpected period of financial difficulty. More details can be found here.

Appeal Process for Domestic & International Students

If you have applied for general, financial need bursary support through the UWindsor In-Course Bursary (Domestic) or through the UWindsor International Student Support Bursary (International), and you have been notified that you were not approved, it may be due to one or more of the following reasons:

  • Based on your government student aid assessment, i.e. OSAP, your cost of attendance should be met by expected student and/or family resources (for dependent students) and by exempt student resources such as in-study, part-time employment.
  • If you are an international student, upon first review, you did not demonstrate through your written submission and supporting documentation that you have extenuating financial circumstances outside of normal cost of attendance expenses, that could not otherwise have been planned for, when compared to other applicants.
  • You may be receiving other institutional financial support to assist you with meeting your cost of attendance.
  • You are not enrolled or you are not enrolled in the minimum percentage course load required.

If you have not been approved and you would like your application reviewed once again, please send an email to award1@uwindsor.ca with the following information:

  • A further, detailed explanation of your financial situation, and the extenuating nature of the circumstances that you are currently facing that could not have otherwise been planned for.
  • Supporting documentation to corroborate your situation.

You have already received a bursary allocation(s) and after reviewing your budget, you believe that you will have a significant shortfall in the Winter term:

A student may request to have the level of their bursary reconsidered by submitting via email, to award1@uwindsor.ca, the following documents:

  • A statement of financial need (the statement can be embedded in the email) outlining any exceptional expenses or exceptional circumstances;
  • A detailed financial plan/budget for the academic year;
  • Supporting documentation to corroborate the exceptional expenses (medical, dental, etc.) or exceptional circumstances.

Please note however, that our budget is limited and we have funding maximums in place.  Therefore, we may not be able to approve every student's request for additional assistance.

Students may consider the following strategies depending on the situation:

  • Part-time employment,
  • If you have a tuition balance owing, make installment payments (however you will not be able to register in a subsequent term until your balance is paid in full),
  • Request support from family and friends

You should receive a response to your resubmission within 4 weeks of being received.  If you do not receive a response within 4 weeks, please follow-up with our office.

 

Services Available:

You may reach our office at: (519) 253-3000 Ext. 3300

Regular SAFA Service Hours 

 Monday  1:00PM - 4:00PM
 Tuesday  1:00PM - 4:00PM
 Wednesday    9:00AM - 12:00PM; 2:00PM - 4:00PM
 Thursday  9:00AM - 12:00PM; 2:00PM - 4:00PM
 Friday   1:00PM - 4:00PM

 

Please refer to ask.uwindsor.ca as there may be a knowledge base article that may answer your question.

In order to better assist you, please always include your UWindsor Student Number in your communications.

Students should complete their UWinAward Student Application/Profile via UWinsite Student > Student Homepage > Award Profile to be matched with eligible funding opportunities.

Additional Information for Domestic Students who are experiencing financial hardship.

Additional Information for International Students who are experiencing financial hardship.

If you require additional assistance you may contact our office by email at award1@uwindsor.ca.

 

 

Documents may be faxed, sent as an attachment via email at award1@uwindsor.ca, or placed in our drop-box located in the lobby of CHT or mailed to:

Student Awards & Financial Aid
University of Windsor
401 Sunset Ave. CHT Room 102
Windsor, ON N9B 3P4

Fax: (519) 973-7087

Please refer to https://ask.uwindsor.ca/ as there may be a knowledge base article that may answer your question.

 

Student Awards & Financial Aid Office

University of Windsor
Chrysler Hall Tower, 1st Floor
401 Sunset Avenue
Windsor, ON, Canada, N9B 3P4

We are available for in-person service during the following hours:

Regular SAFA Service Hours

 Monday  1:00PM - 4:00PM
 Tuesday  1:00PM - 4:00PM
 Wednesday   9:00AM - 4:00PM
 Thursday  9:00AM - 4:00PM
 Friday   1:00PM - 4:00PM

 

To enter our in-person service queue with the Student Awards or the Financial Aid office, please scan this QR Code or click if using a mobile device:

If you feel that you need to talk to someone about your situation, please take the following steps:

1) Try asking your question using https://ask.uwindsor.ca.  We have many knowledge base articles that might be able to assist you with your question.

2) Log on to https://ask.uwindsor.ca to submit a service request and a Student Awards or Financial Aid Representative will respond to your inquiry as soon as possible.

3) Call our office during our phone service hours.  A Student Award or Financial Aid Representative may be able to resolve your issue over the phone.

4) If options 1) through 3) do not resolve your issue,  we will schedule you a virtual Teams meeting/appointment with a Student Awards or Financial Aid Specialist for a time that is mutually convenient.

 

UWinAward Profile/Application Support

Here is the schedule for our virtual drop-in sessions available for students who require assistance with their UWinAward Profile/Application for bursary and scholarship applications.

Important Notes:

  • We will attempt to return messages and service requests within 2 business days where possible.  In September, January & May however, our response time may be closer to 7-10 business days.

  • Please do not leave/send multiple messages/emails as this will delay our response time.