OSAP Indicators — Explanatory Notes

General

In response to the Ministry of Training, Colleges, and Universities’ (MTCU) 1998-1999 OSAP policy requirement that institutions make available for students data regarding default rates, graduation rates and graduate placement rates, the University of Toronto is posting the three “OSAP Indicators” below. Graduation and default rates have been calculated by the MTCU using existing data sources while employment rate data was collected through a graduate survey conducted by the Ontario University Application Centre (OUAC).

The data are published in 27 program categories. The following provides additional information regarding three particular categories used:

“Other Arts and Science” — includes students enrolled in all Arts and Science programs except for students in Commerce, Computer Science and the UTM/Sheridan Fine Art/Drama program.

“Other Education” — includes students enrolled in Physical Education, Kinesiology, Recreation and Education programs in non-teaching fields.

“Health Professions” — includes students enrolled in the B.Sc. in Biomedical Communication.

To maintain adequate confidentiality in light of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, information has not been shown in instances where the number of students is four or less.

Employment Rates — University Graduate Survey

To determine employment rates of recent graduates, Ontario universities conducted a survey of all 2002 graduates of undergraduate degree programs. Graduates were asked 11 questions regarding their employment situation six months and two years after graduation.

Table 1 indicates the employment rates for 2002 graduates of U of T’s undergraduate programs, by program category, six months and two years after graduation. Table 2 indicates the same employment rates for all universities in Ontario. The overall employment rates for 2002 graduates of U of T’s undergraduate degree programs is 90.2% six months after graduation and 95.9% two years after graduation. These compare to system-level rates of 92.3% six months after graduation and 96.0% two years after graduation. The employment rate is defined as the number of employed persons expressed as a percentage of the labour force where the labour force is those persons who were employed, or unemployed but looking for work.

The University of Toronto Careers Centre provides career and employment services exclusively to U of T students, recent graduates, and employers.

Graduation Rates

The MTCU has calculated graduation rates using a single entering cohort of students and determining whether or not they graduated within seven years. The methodology employed involves the selection of all new full-time, Year One undergraduate students on the official Fall 1997 enrolment file, who have a valid (and unique) student ID number, and were seeking either a bachelors or first professional degree. The subset was then matched against the records for students who received a degree (in any program) from the same institution during the period 1997-2003.

Table 1 indicates the graduation rate for all programs at U of T is 79.5% (compared to 74.9% for all programs at all Ontario universities — see Table 2).

Default Rates

The 2004 default rates reflect the repayment status of students (undergraduate and graduate) who were issued Ontario Student Loans in the 2001-2002 academic year and did not receive an Ontario Student Loan in 2002-2003, and who defaulted on their repayment obligations approximately two years after graduation. Student loan recipients/defaulters are, for the purpose of calculating default rates, assigned to the last institution/program they attended in 2001-2002. The status of these loans was assessed as of July 2004 or about two years after entering into repayment.

Table 1 indicates the 2004 default rate for all programs at U of T is 5.3%. This compares to 7.6% for all programs at Ontario universities (see Table 2). As approximately 40% of U of T students receive OSAP, the number of graduates who have defaulted on loans represents less than 3% of the student population. It is also important to note when reviewing the data that they may include student loans from more than one program as well as programs from other universities in Ontario and across Canada.

U of T, which provides over $142 million in student aid annually from its operating budget alone, in 1998 introduced a policy stating that no student should be prevented from entering or completing a program of study due to financial need. The details are given in the Policy on Student Financial Support

Table 1: Graduation, Employment and OSAP Loan Default Rates: University of Toronto by Program Area

Program

     Graduation

       Employment Rate (2)

         Default

Rate (1)

Rate (3)

6 months

2 years

Agriculture/Bio Sci

(5)

92.9%

96.6%

4.1%

Architecture & Landscape Architecture

84.7%

94.7%

94.7%

4.1%

Business & Commerce

78.0%

89.0%

99.3%

3.4%

Computer Science

70.0%

71.8%

91.0%

2.0%

Dentistry

97.0%

95.8%

100.0%

0.0%

Education

98.9%

97.3%

99.3%

1.7%

Engineering

85.2%

76.0%

94.1%

3.3%

Fine Arts

77.0%

88.2%

90.5%

5.4%

Health Professions

(5)

100.0%

100.0%

0.0%

Humanities

(5)

93.9%

94.1%

9.3%

Kinesiology/Rec/Phys Ed

82.5%

100.0%

100.0%

4.1%

Law

96.4%

100.0%

100.0%

0.0%

Mathematics

(5)

81.0%

95.5%

3.3%

Medicine

95.5%

100.0%

100.0%

1.4%

Nursing

82.2%

100.0%

100.0%

5.9%

Other Arts & Science

73.9%

94.7%

94.7%

9.1%

Other Education*

(5)

(5)

(5)

6.9%

Pharmacy

95.2%

100.0%

100.0%

0.0%

Physical Sciences

(5)

71.4%

75.0%

6.9%

Social Sciences

80.8%

91.3%

95.0%

5.7%

Theology

67.9%

(5)

(5)

4.9%

Therapy & Rehab

93.4%

100.0%

86.7%

0.0%

Unmatched

5.2%

Not Reported

10.2%

U of T Average

79.5%

90.2%

95.9%

5.3%

  1. Percent of year 1 students in bachelors or first professional degree programs in 1996 who subsequently received a degree between 1997 and 2003 in any program area.
  2. Percentage of 2002 graduates of bachelors or first professional degree programs who were employed 6 months and two years after graduation.
  3. These 2004 default rates reflect the repayment status of students who were issued Ontario Student Loans  in the 2001-2002 academic year and completed or exited their studies in 2002-2003.  Includes graduate students in these programs.
  4. For employment rate, sample size of four or fewer individuals.
  5. Data not available/not reported.
  6. Number of Ontario Student Loans issued was less than 5.

*   School librarianship, education administration, education psychology, guidance and counselling, curriculum specialization, measurements and evaluation, education foundations, other non-teaching fields.

Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities:Universities’ Key Performance Indicators

Table 2: Graduation, Employment and OSAP Loan Default Rates: Provincial Averages by Program Area

Table 2: Graduation, Employment and OSAP Loan Default Rates: Provincial Averages by Program Area
March, 2006

Program Graduation Employment Rate (2) Default
Rate (1) Rate (3)
6 months 2 years
Agriculture/Bio Sci 76.6% 92.7% 96.1% 4.1%
Architecture & Landscape Architecture 78.7% 94.8% 98.2% 8.7%
Business & Commerce 73.8% 92.5% 96.9% 4.5%
Computer Science 64.4% 75.6% 91.1% 6.2%
Dentistry 98.1% 96.8% 100.0% 0.0%
Education 97.8% 96.4% 98.6% 3.5%
Engineering 78.0% 81.4% 94.6% 5.8%
Fine Arts 64.0% 92.1% 94.3% 11.2%
Food Science 83.0% 100.0% 98.2% 0.0%
Forestry 75.0% 100.0% 83.3% 14.3%
Humanities 66.8% 93.7% 95.6% 10.7%
Journalism 74.9% 95.6% 97.8% 5.8%
Kinesiology/Rec/Phys Ed 79.5% 96.8% 96.6% 6.3%
Law 91.5% 98.3% 95.5% 6.1%
Mathematics 74.5% 86.4% 96.0% 6.0%
Medicine 97.6% 100.0% 100.0% 0.4%
Nursing 80.6% 98.2% 100.0% 4.8%
Optometry 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 0.0%
Other Arts & Science 70.4% 92.7% 96.5% 13.3%
Health Professions 69.2% 95.4% 96.6% 0.0%
Pharmacy 95.2% 100.0% 100.0% 0.0%
Physical Sciences 65.6% 87.7% 94.0% 5.8%
Social Sciences* 68.0% 92.3% 94.8% 9.9%
Theology 68.2% 100.0% 90.9% 9.1%
Therapy & Rehab 95.3% 100.0% 97.6% 0.0%
Veterinary Medicine 97.9% 97.7% 100.0% 0.0%
         
Provincial Average 74.9% 92.3% 96.0% 7.6%

 

  1. Percent of year 1 students in bachelors or first professional degree programs in 1996 who subsequently received a degree between 1997 and 2003 in any program area.
  2. Percentage of 2002 graduates of bachelors or first professional degree programs who were employed 6 months and two years after graduation.
  3. These 2004 default rates reflect the repayment status of students who were issued Ontario Student Loans in the 2001-2002 academic year and completed or exited their studies in 2002-2003.*Law included in Social Sciences for Carleton and Laurentian.  Includes graduate students in these programs.

Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities:Universities’ Key Performance Indicators