| # | First Name | Last Name | Please provide a comment or personal story. |
|---|
| 1401 | Muamer | Osmanovic | The worst thing is once you graduate there is no one from government to give you the job so that you can at least start paying loan back. My sister has graduated as Chemical Engineer and still has not found a job. There needs to be government institution which assures students position once they complete there studies. The government has created the system in which they take young people money and put than into years of debt. They day will come when we get the school system like most European countries have so that once you graduate you have no loans to pay. |
| 1402 | Courtney | Thomas | I recently returned to school at the age of 26. I have a previous student loan in BC and I am now recieving funding through Alberta. In October I requested forms to put my BC student loan on hold as I am studying full time. They sent me paper work and I filled it in and sent it back. I didn't think anything more until a few weeks ago (it's March now) I received a letter stating that my loan was now in collections and that my tax refund (over $2000) would be garnished. I wrote a letter explaining that I was a student and should have never even been charged interest during this peroid and went to my school's finance department to ask them to fax it for me, but I then learned from them that I had been given the wrong form in October. I have called 7 different people today without one person even listening to my situation. Because of an error on their part I may have to quit school with 5 weeks left so I can work full time to compensate for the loss of my tax refund. I eventually got a supervisors voice mail and when I called the call center back and told them I really needed to speak to a person, they told me my call would be returned in 24-48 hours and that I needed to wait for it. So now I am expected to miss 2 days of school and a job interview tonight because they could call me anytime from 9am-9pm in the next 2 days. So much for passing that midterm this Friday! I'm at my wits end. I don't even know who to contact anymore. So I;m sitting by the phone. I will go to my interview, but will miss my classes. Hopefully they do not call while I'm at my interview or I will miss another 2 days of school. |
| 1403 | tony | lefebvre | They should stop hiring cut throat collection agencies and be more understanding. Also, have a mediator in case something goes fowl. I was screwed by their "rehab" program. |
| 1404 | Anonymous | Anonymous | The Federal Government is using the Student Loan Program to generate revenue while impoverishing the lives of students. |
| 1405 | John | Wasteneys | I took out a loan for school in toronto and owed 15400. I have been paying it since last january 200 or so a month. and have only taken 200 away from the total, the rest? interest!
Had I known that the process would be this hard I would have saved more and gone to school later.
Since i have been unable to find work in my hometown. I am having to move away from home to work this summer.
Applying for interest relief has been frustrating. I made a mistake, so the application took to long to be processed and have been charged two 40 NSF(not sufficient funds) fees.
I thought that the government was trying to help me. Maybe a bit more of a grace period to complete the interest relief application.
I think there should be people phoning you and checking up what your plans are. I am intending on going back to school in september. One would think this would make them be easier on me, but no.. rules are rules.
I do feel like the customer service representative who served me was pleasant, and seemed to genuinely care.
I somehow doubt the administrators do... |
| 1406 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I began university at 29 as a single parent and welfare recipient. Throughout my five years of school I maintained a 4.0 GPA and was named one of the top students at my school. But, where was the government with their neo-liber4al promises of support for those who try to improve their lives through education. I am now $60,000 in debt and looking at more for grad school. The system is broken and it needs fixing now. |
| 1407 | Patricia | Reynard | My story would be to long to tell. However, from reading some of stories on your website, I'm glad to know that I'm not the only person that had a bad experiece with student loans. I was beginning to feel like I was crazy from all the doors that have been shut on me for just simple answers. |
| 1408 | Cole | Robertson | I'm convinced. |
| 1409 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I graduated in 2000 with a dept load of $25000.00. I've just received my yealy statement and still owe $17000.00. I paid $3600 this year to my loans and only $700 came off the princible. I've paid more to the bank then the original amount. |
| 1410 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I have student loans that are outstanding and in the hands of collection agencies. I have been unable to pay them because of financial hardship and health problems. The problem I have is why can't one agency take care of collecting them and why can't I get a statement saying how much I owe? If they did this and froze interest, a lot more loans would be paid back. |
| 1411 | maurice | king | i have been dealing with student loan problems for ten years now and finaly when my credit report came clean enough for me to try to consolidate my loans CIBC put me right back into Equifax and ruined my chances to repay the outstanding debt, yet the collection company keeps telling me i have to come up with the full ballance. this system is designed to keep the people who have had a hard time in the past down for much longer then the seven years that they innitaly give you, dosent make any sense to me. |
| 1412 | Anonymous | Anonymous | My story....I went to school for 7 years, tried to get a double degree, and failed to complete my last year, January 2001 was my last issued osap installment. I left school due to health issues. I had a nervous breakdown, saw a psychiatrist who gave me a diagnosis of major recurrent depression and that I had an 80% chance of relapse, and that I needed to be on antidepressants for the rest of my life. It took me a year to fully recover from that episode, in which I moved back home. I come from a northern town with no full degree program at the university in my town for what I was studying. So to finish would mean moving 600 miles back to southern Ontario. Afterwards I wasn't even able to open a book and read for about 2 years. I was soooo burned out. That's about when the student loans people started calling me. I think at that time my loans were about $60,000. They wanted a $650 monthly payment. My mother paid a couple of months for me so that I could qualify for interest relief. At that time I also signed over my mother as my "advocate", due to the fact that I could not handle talking to them anymore, they were in my eyes very abusive and belligerent and didn't care about my circumstance. For my sanity's sake, and my healing, I did that. So for a few times, probably a year and a half we submitted the interest relief forms. Then my mother got behind on it too, forgot to send the paperwork in on time, and it defaulted me again, at which point I lost the ability to care anymore, the situation felt so hopeless. I never spoke with them again. I've gotten a private number because the collectors would call like 6 times a day, 6 days a week. I have been unable to hold down steady employment, so they have never garnished my wages. I also currently am a single mother of 2 children, one of which is in the process of being diagnosed with autism. Much of my time is taken up with working with him. I have not been employed for 4 years now, since I had him. Last year they began taking my income tax return. I wonder how they can do that? We live well below the poverty line, and also reside in Housing as well. My yearly income is $15,000, that's including the CTB.
I've lost hope as to ever getting out of this situation. And I think having this debt over my head makes the depression that much worse.
I really want to just claim bankruptcy and be able to start over again. But from what I'm reading, that sometimes doesn't even work. There is no way in hell I'll ever be able to pay this debt unless I win the lottery. |
| 1413 | Anonymous | Anonymous | My husband (27 years old) passed away in Dec. 2006. He had student loans from all 4 years of university. The government forgave all the loans except for the one he incurred in 1st year university, which was also the largest loan amount. The bank refused to give me information about what would happen to the loan even though I was the executrix of the will and had power of attorney. I kept trying to contact the bank and the government for answers, but neither would tell me what would happen to the loan. In the mean time, they sent to loan to a collections agency which had started to leave cryptic messages on my answering machine. I did not even realize what was going on. I got in touch with the bank who was very unsympathetic and basically told me to sell any assets we had obtained to pay the loan. They also said that the loan would continue to accumulate interest every day that I did not pay them. They treated me very harshly and rudely, considering it was only months after the death of my husband. I was too tired and just wanted to be rid of the whole thing so I paid in full. I am disgusted by the lack of compassion that was expressed to me. If they had been upfront from the beginning about what was going to happen, I would have appreciated that atleast. |
| 1414 | Joan | Boyd | Presently I am paying 468.38 a month for my student loan. Last year I got audited for the interest portion of my taxes by Revenue Canada becuase they could not believe that I paid that much interest. |
| 1415 | Carlos | Paramio | The interest charged on student loans are criminal and self-defeating |
| 1416 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I'm having issues with a debt collector agency with my student loans. They are saying that i have never made payment, which i have. |
| 1417 | Gwendolyn | Adams | I have been paying off my student loan now for the last 8 yrs - I have reduced it by half - I still owe $36,000 - I am so tired of being poor!!! |
| 1418 | Geoffrey | Hughes | I am a graduate student that is involved in first nations communities and helping with their development goals. I find it hard to believe the government offers loans forgiveness programs to medical students when they are the ones making the big money. My area of specialization would help first nations communities become less dependant on the federal system through economic development. I am saving the government money and helping communities that need help yet i do not get a break. it is crazy.
I owe $100,000 in student loans. As a single parent my debt accumulated faster. when I did not have custody of my child the student loan program treated me as single shorting me the money, even though I still had an obligation to my child. Even under Canadian law a parent must support their children, so why does CSL short single parents without custody. It hurts the ones that need the education the most.
thanks for your efforts. |
| 1419 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I had an OSAP loan more than 10 yrs ago,and was unable to finish my course, then the school closed down. I was harassed by rude collection agents for a few years until they put a lien on my income tax refunds and gsts. After losing 1 entire refund and gst, and part of 1 last yr,(2006), it was transferred to yet another collection agency
who claimed were now collecting on behalf of the Provincial Government and that the other money taken was applied to the Federal portion. My financial situation is such that at the very least I need to be put on the financial hardship list, but need to fill out a financial statement in order to do so. For the entire more than a decade, I have never been sent any kind of accounting as to what has been paid to whom and how much is still owing. When I tried to phone around to have one sent to me, I was given one wrong number after another and the Federal Govt claims that they have never received any money towards the loan, that it would have all been applied to the Provincial portion, yet the collection agency for the Province and the Province claim they got no money either. Where did my money go and how am I supposed to get some sort of a statement from them? |
| 1420 | Carol | Dallas | In order to make Canada a better place we need to relize that education is the way no hurting us will rules that benifit the others at the collective end. Carol |
| 1421 | Sarah | Laesser | I graduated from an Engineering University with 65k in private loan debt. I have been consistantly paying $600 per month the past 2.5 years and my principle has gone down approximately 2k. At this rate I will have to pay $210,000 over the life of the loan. I had no idea I would have to pay so much in interest over the life of the loan. I've considered getting a second job to get the loan paid off as quickly as possible. |
| 1422 | Anonymous | Anonymous | Hello to all fellow sufferers on this petition. As an American, I have learned that the only solution to this issue is to move to a different country. Good luck to you all. Our governments are unfortunately totally corrupt. |
| 1423 | Angela | Bourque | I wracked up a very large student loan debt, working to complete all my studies needed to be a professor (ph.d.) but developed debilitating chronic health problems that are causing my physical and cognitive health to continuously deteriorate. I have had to withdraw from my doctoral program, move home, go on welfare and declare bankrupcy. There were no other options open to me as I am unable to work even a few hours a week. Now my student loan debt is in the hands of collection agencies and I am continually harrassed and insulted by their employees. I have diagnosed problems with anxiety and depression on top of the other health issues, so that kind of treatment is very difficult for me to try and deal with. It had always been my intention to work after completing my studies and pay all of the debt off, but life has a way of throwing curve balls sometimes. I am not irresponsible or lazy (if I were I could not have completed 15 years of university studies, all on the dean's honor roll) and it would be very appreciated if I could be treated more mercifully and respectfully. |
| 1424 | Anonymous | Anonymous | Throughout high school I worked hard under the naive impression that good grades would mean less debt and more grants/scholarships. I managed to achieve a 93% avaerage in my OAC classes. (One of the last years to have OAC.)Fast-foward 6 years. I have used up all but 6 months of my Interest Relief. At one point I was rejected even though I had just lost my job. I am charged 4 dollars a day in interest now- meaning that 130 dollars of a $250 monthly payment is solely interest. I have had nothing but contract or temp agency work since graduating in the summer of 2005 and no health benefits as a result. Having come from a lower income family that could not afford to send me to school otherwise, I deeply resent the fact that OSAP sets out such stringent requirements for financial need and then proceeds to saddle those of us from unprivileged backgrounds with significant financial strain upon graduation. Way to level the playing field OSAP. We now have over a decade to reach the same financial place as our peers who had familial support.
Ireland offers free post-secondary education to those with high marks. They now have one of the fastest growing economies.
Contrast this with current debt-riddled American economy. They too offer little support to bright minds with shallower pockets.
Coincidence?
I never thought that AFTER achieving a college education I would find myself in tears at a walk in clinic because I had no money for the sinus antibiotics I needed. I had to max out a credit card.
Thanks OSAP. |
| 1425 | Isaac | Neubert | I forgot to fill out a form to tell them that I was back in school and my student loan went into default when I was currently a full time student... they didn't contact me or anything... simply not fair... |
| 1426 | Maureen | Doyle | I'm 51 this year-and owe close to 65,000.00 in sutdent debt/interest accumalted. The stress is unbearable-and I've been getting treatment for depression-due to the debt. Can we not all get together-and stand outside the parliment building-and have them review all our stories? One thing is sure-if it weren't for the interest-and if the national student loan service would allow one to pay as they could-without interest-they would have received-by now-at least 7000.00. Maybe not much-but at least something-based on the fact that I'm unable to find a decent paying job. Why endorse education? So the government can make money. It's a scam-plain and simple. |
| 1427 | Melanie | Doucette | Approx 40,000$ student debt between myself and my spouse, i'm the only one working because my spouse has ADHD and having to travel 160kms to work running two households.....its just not working. |
| 1428 | larry | moore | I can not believe that today the federal loan sharking program raised my payments $200 above what i earn guess it's the streets os india where my job on graduation went |
| 1429 | Rhonda | Cromwell | Received student loan in 1983 or 2400. worked on and off, income assistance, EI. wasn't abled to pay on student loan 20 years later receive a small claims action suit in another city. Now judgement for 8,000 interest. Revenue canada collects my GST and income tax until it's paid. Not working at the present time. |
| 1430 | Anonymous | Anonymous | Student Loan debt is continuing the cycle of poverty. There is no hope for debt relief from people working in meaningful jobs in our society. The government should stop representing the interests of the few and once again work for the best interest of the people. |
| 1431 | Charles | Jedlicka | I am a education student with a massive loan and I am currently a relief teacher in London, England. I was to start paying back my loan in January and I am not able to do so and I can't apply for interest relief b/c I am overseas. I now have a collection agency phoning me and when I phoned student loans with a phone card, they were rude as always. Last year I conducted a phone survey with national student loans and this lady told me of dozens of ways to bring down my loan, but I can't find "these options" online and on the phone they said there is no such thing and I have only one option and that is to pay it back. The reason why I went overseas is b/c I could not find a teaching job. I have convinced 4 of my siblings not to go to school b/c of the grief and stress I am going through. |
| 1432 | Anonymous | Anonymous | 10 years i've been paying these loans, mostly interest only payments, as that is all I have been able to afford.. I still owe close to 30k, with no end in sight. |
| 1433 | Craig | Joy | I get a kick out of hearing stuff like this.....look to the future..help the kids and future kids with a tuition freeze...thats a short term fix for people in school NOW!...what about the people who have already had to go through the student loan process...What about the forgotten people..the people who are currently swimming in student loan debt...whats the province/government going to do about that??? Oh right NOTHING!!
I took a 1 year overpriced course from a school that no longer exists (CDI School of Business and Technology) $17,000 in student loan debt. There was no "interest relief" like they claim..I filed for Interest relief 5 times with the federal government, after not hearing anything back I called them and they told me that hadnt receive anything so I sent in another, when I called them this time to see if they had received it they said they had but "my signature was more than 30 days old" (which was probably one of the origional 3 that I sent in earlier!!!!) So they sent it back I sent it back to them and when I called them again to see if they had received it they said they had but it was too late...I was already sent to collections. Up until I had these student loans I had perfect credit..now I have two student loans in collections and couldnt borrow money to save my life..and why did I need Interest relief???..because when I got out of school and made $9/hour in the only entry level job I could find...student loans all they wanted was their money. $445/month....
You know the government needs to stop patching up problems and make some radical changes to the things that DONT WORK! Its not rocket science....if it doesnt work then FIX IT...this isnt just a provincial thing either....Federal Student Loans are the worst to deal with... I can honestly say I hate Student loans....I shouldnt even owe them anything for the pain and suffering Ive had to go through with collection agents and everything else..and all I needed was Interest relief...Sad the Federal Government cant even get that right. Explain to me how Canada can throw millions and millions out in a sponsorshoip scandal and hold no one responsible but I cant get rid of 18,000 in debt??? Holy Hell just call it part of the sponsor ship scandal...or the numerous other things politicians have done to swindal money out of the pockets of Tax Payers...I can live with that....they have... |
| 1434 | Pierre | Rzazewski | I've been out of full-time university studies for just over two years now. At the beginning of 2007, my BCSL was $14,249. Every month, I paid $410 towards this loan: x12 months, thats $4920. HOWEVER, on review of my account, of the $4920 that I paid, only $1204 went towards reducing my loan. What this says to me is that the government is pocketing $3716 OF MINE this last year. What kind of country are we living in? We are students not criminals, so why is the government abusing its greatest resource (social capital).
Something must give. |
| 1435 | Anonymous | Anonymous | This is a nightmare that I can't wake up from. Education is a luxury but it shouldn't also be a burden. |
| 1436 | Tara | Sieg | All the Points raised have affected me personally and it's an outrage that we should be burdened with such debt upon completion of our Education! A University degree should not be such a luxury like a new Audi! yet we're paying as much (or more!) in Interest. I can't afford to pay my rent with the amount mowing on my student loans! And having to deal with several different loans and rude greedy banks makes it all that much worse :(. |
| 1437 | Anonymous | Anonymous | Since I finished school I was lucky to get a job enough to make payments of around $300 a month, then I lost my job, I lost my apartment and unable to find a decent job to support myself I had to move back home, which is not the best place to get a job so I have to go back and forth to Toronto. I am technically homeless, my best friend has been kind to give me roof and food until I get a job there and for some stupid reason the student loan people believe I was not entitled to intered free period relief under the fact that I have no documents to prove it... my savings account is 500 overdraft and my credit cards are over the limit! What else do they need from me! No job no house no money! |
| 1438 | Brandon | Melanson | Thank you to the government for providing me with the possibility of higher education. Canada is a blessed country, however, the payback is a killer! The money you are making off of me contradicts the point of getting a higher education. |
| 1439 | Anonymous | Anonymous | The National Student Loans Service Centre gave wrong advice and charged me extra interest. I was trying to get someone to investigate the errors and they just told me there is no one who can do that. |
| 1440 | Anonymous | Anonymous | Does parliament want me out on the street? Interests rates are so high. Why is so much money made of my education. The fact that it got this bad makes me not want to ask for help nicely. Give your heads a shake. |
| 1441 | Matthew | Barbour | Student Loans force us to pay higher interest rates to offset the number of defaulters. |
| 1442 | Calvin | Horne | I have heard many horror stories from people about student loans. I can only hope that it's not always going to be horrible. |
| 1443 | Jade | Powers | I am a person who thought going to school would better my life...when in fact its done the opposite. I came out of school with an undergraduate degree, a masters degree and a life time of debt. I will never get ahead in life because of my student debt. I am 33 years old an living with my parents because I cannot afford to live on my own. How pathetic is that? I cant go bankrupt and I cant get any credit because my credit is completely over extended. My advice to those in high school is to not go to school because the end result is worse than for someone who doesn't have an education. Its all well and good to give a 20 year old a loan, but back then I didn't realize my life would be like this... |
| 1444 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I regret going back to school...due to my student loans and the inability to get my foot in the door anywhere within a 30 mile radius of where I live. I am also military spouse which amplifies why local employers will not give a degree'd military spouse equal paying positions as civilians. I am disgusted and regretful. |
| 1445 | Sean | OGorman | My life since student loans has been worse than I am sure it would have been without any education - I am a person with a disability - but my loan was not processed that way - and two consecutive interest relief docs were lost - thus collections - always requesting full payment or nothing at all - I have not made a payment in many many years - now my taxes are being with held - this is the first year I have made an income since school - 10 years and now if they keep my tax return I am worse off than ever before - I hate this and I have lost my love of Canada because of it - I used to be such a patriot and voted since 18 years old - now I do not care as my own government does not care for me! |
| 1446 | Marissa | Hoodikoff | Our government is crying for nurses, yet will not help them obtain an education. I am in my 4th year of the nursing program, have volunteered an unbelievable amount of hours to the hospital in the name of "education," and owe over $60,000 to the government and banks. Great way to show need and appreciation. |
| 1447 | Aaron | Mallo | the government. |
| 1448 | Anonymous | Anonymous | I am currently graduating from a university which has one of the highest tuition rates (just this year they have finally put a tuition freeze on). This has me extremely stressed because I have yet to be able to find a job yet and the interest will start racking up starting in May. Two years ago, I got a call from one of the student loans telling me they required my confirmation of enrollment form, which they informed me was required before the end of a week and a half. I had to scramble to contact my school to send the form (I was on a co-op term and on the other side of the country). I thought everything was fine until November, when they withdrew my money from my account and added on over a thousand in interest. When I contacted them, they told me they never received the form, even though the school confirmed that it had been sent. There should be an easier way for a student studying outside of their home province to provide information for the student loan office. Until recently, we could not even apply online for student loans, but had to send paper copies.
I believe that the provincial and federal governments should work together as one so that there is no need for separate payments, or separate phone calls. I always need to double check that I am calling the correct office when I have a problem with my student loan. |
| 1449 | Kai | Mortensen | I am a previous student who racked up an enormous debt due to 7 years of university; the education and all amenities associated with such! My story involves a policy change that I would like implemented.
When applying for student loans I was turned down by the government since it was found that my parents income was in excess of what they considered the max parental income after which I was not allowed to apply for government student loans. My parents are not millionaires, in fact, far from it. They are not the ones going to school, I am, and they do not have to pay for my education, I do. I do not see a law stating that parents after a certain amount of income must support and fund secondary education for their children - nor do I want to see I law like this. Parental income should have nothing to do with my application process. There are many families over the allowable income that do not help fund secondary education for their children making other funding options necessary.
I was forced to go to the only other place that would offer funds: THE BANK! I signed up for a Student Line of Credit and racked up a nice debt after 4 years of study.
After four years of living away from my parents I was allowed to apply for a government student loan. Now isn’t that nice, the amount of time it (usually) takes to get an undergraduate degree is the exact amount of time I am not allowed to apply for a government student loan! I, like many other students, did not finish in this allocated time period. After 4 years living away from home I was able to apply for Canada and Alberta student loans for my next 3 years of University.
In my endeavors I was able to rack up a whopping $55,000 in debt to the bank and an additional ~$25,000 to the government; my payments per month with all considered is more than $900 per month. Finding it difficult to fork over this kind of money every month I applied for my so-thought saving grace: Interest Relief. However, I was turned down on this because the government does not count my Student Line of Credit from the bank into consideration.
How is this fair? I am turned down in the first place because “my parents make to much money” so I have to find another option to finance my education. Now the government does not consider these student loans but personal loans and does not add these payments into the equation for interest relief let alone debt reduction. This is a huge factor in why I can barely scrape by month to month and is in direct correlation with my secondary education and is not considered part of a student loan? REDICULOUS!
This system has to change and should not segregate applicants on basis of parental income. If a parent does not want to help financially they don’t have to regardless of if they are millionaires or not. It is not the student who has the money; it is their parents and not all parents help support secondary education. This policy really hurts students from above average income families that are not backed financially by their parents. I am proof and need help but the government doesn’t consider my payments to the bank as part of my overall student loan.
My 2 cents…
Kai |
| 1450 | Curt | McCall | Monthly loan payments of 800, with 225 of that being interest...need I say more? |
