Maximum Weeks

For most students the maximum number of weeks of assistance (which includes period of interest-free status), is 340. There are two exceptions:

• The maximum is 520 weeks for borrowers who were issued loans prior to August 1, 1995, or who have a disability.
• The maximum is 400 weeks for borrowers enrolled in doctoral studies.

Program Length

Students are eligible for the minimum number of years remaining to complete their current program plus one additional year. When a student graduates from a program, the program length count starts over; the student begins a new round.

If a student changes to another program without having completed the first program, they will be eligible for only the number of years normally required to complete the new program – NO plus year. This is considered their first switch.

If the student switches a second time, they are eligible for the number of years of the new program plus one year minus the number of years that they have received funding in this round of study.

Note: Students with permanent disabilities are exempt from this rule even if they are taking 100% course load. If a student is taking less than 60% of a full course load, they would be unable to complete the program within the required program length.

Note: In some cases, a student may transfer their credits to a new program. For example, a student may switch from a Bachelor of Business Administration to a Bachelor of Commerce program. These are similar programs, and this would not be considered a program switch.

Note: Students may appeal the decision to limit the Program Length.