Eligibility Requirements		Appeals
	Financial Assistance Awarded		Additional Information
	Eligibility Period
	Debt Limit

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

You qualify for this program if:

* You do not have to be enrolled in a recognized program, but the courses you are taking must be part of such a program.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE AWARDED

The financial assistance you are awarded is broken down into installments in order to cover your allowable expenses for each term. You may receive one, two or three installments during the award year. The financial assistance is generally issued at the beginning of the term or as soon as possible during the term.

Your loan is guaranteed by the government for as long as you are studying part-time. The government also pays the interest on your loan.

As soon as you complete your studies, you become responsible for the interest charges. Six months later, you must start making payments on both the principal and the interest of your debt.

If you have received loans under the Loans and Bursaries Program, you must continue to make payments on these loans, even while you are a part-time student.

If you are studying part-time and decide to go back to school full-time, you will, for the duration of your full-time studies, be exempted from making payments on the loans you contracted for your part-time studies.

ELIGIBILITY PERIOD

You may receive financial assistance, in the form of a loan only, for up to 14 terms of part-time study at all levels of education combined. Only those terms for which you receive a loan under the Loans Program for Part-Time Studies are counted. Terms of study for which you received financial assistance under the Loans and Bursaries Program are not counted.

DEBT LIMIT

To continue to qualify for the Loans Program for Part-Time Studies, you must not owe more than $8 000 in student loans. This limit applies only to loans awarded under this program (all levels of education combined).

APPEALS

A number of means of appeal are available to you if you are not fully satisfied with the way in which your application was processed. Depending on your particular case, you may report a change in your circumstances, request a review, file an application with the Examination Committee for Exceptional Cases, or file a complaint.

Changes

If you wish to have a correction made in your file after your file has been processed or if you wish to report a change in your circumstances,* you must fill out a special form entitled Part-Time Studies Loan Application Update.

Before you do this, however, you must:

Reviews

If you are not happy with a decision concerning your eligibility for the program or the amount of financial assistance you are entitled to, you may file an application with the Review Bureau. The Review Bureau will examine your case and make sure that it was processed in keeping with the provisions of the Act respecting financial assistance for education expenses and the attendant Regulation.

Aide financière aux études recommends that you first speak with the person in charge of financial assistance at your educational institution in order to get an initial assessment of the situation.

You may also fax your application to (418) 528-1941 or mail it to the following address:

Bureau de révision
Unité des droits de recours (Aide financière aux études)
1035, rue De La Chevrotière
Québec (Québec) G1R 5A5

* A “change in your circumstances” means a change in your personal situation or in your family’s situation.

Exceptional Cases

If your studies are in jeopardy because of an exceptional event or situation that is not covered in the rules for awarding loans and bursaries, you may file an application with the Examination Committee for Exceptional Cases.

You may also file an application with this Committee if you have already received financial assistance for the maximum number of terms of eligibility set for the Loans Program for Part-Time Studies but need financial assistance for additional terms.

The Committee will examine your application and make a recommendation to the Minister of Education, whose decision will be final.

If you wish to file an application with the Examination Committee for Exceptional Cases, you must do so in writing and attach a letter from the person in charge of financial assistance at your educational institution. This person will be able to provide you with information on the admissibility of your application and on the supporting documents you must submit with your application.

For more information, call Aide financière aux études at (418)643-3750 or 1-877-643-3750 (toll-free in Québec).

Applications must be sent by mail to the following address:

Secrétariat du Comité d’examen des demandes dérogatoires
Unité des droits de recours (Aide financière aux études)
1035, rue De La Chevrotière
Québec (Québec) G1R 5A5

Complaints

If you are unhappy with the service you received from Aide financière aux études, you may file a complaint. Simply fax your complaint to (418) 528-1941 or mail it to the following address:

Bureau des plaintes
Unités des droits de recours (Aide financière aux études)
1035, rue De La Chevrotière
Québec (Québec) G1R 5A5

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

For additional information on the Loans Program for Part-Time Studies:

• Our interactive telephone service
  Québec City: (418) 646-4505
  Elsewhere in Québec : 1-888-345-4505 (toll-free)

• The financial assistance office at any secondary school
  offering vocational training programs, college or university in Québec

• Our reception and inquiries desk
  Service de l’accueil et des renseignements
  Québec City: (418) 643-3750
  Elsewhere in Québec : 1-877-643-3750 (toll-free)