McMaster students receive over $35 million in Millennium scholarships and bursaries

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May 7, 2007

More than 11,900 McMaster students have received financial support from a unique organization dedicated to increasing access to post-secondary education. The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation has given a total of $35,861,922 in scholarships and bursaries to 11,916 students at McMaster University between 1999 and 2006.

“Working with its partners since its creation in 1998, as of today, the Foundation has helped over 265,300 Ontario students pursue post-secondary studies,” says Norman Riddell, the Foundation's CEO and executive director. “This represents a total investment of more than $790 million in bursaries and scholarships and bursaries in the province. In 2006 alone, the Foundation has awarded 48,043 scholarships and bursaries to Ontarians for an overall value of more than $132 million.”

The Foundation manages three main programs:

  • The Foundation's Millennium Bursary Program represents 95 per cent of its spending and is intended for students in the greatest financial need. Students who apply for financial aid from OSAP are automatically considered for a bursary. Since 1999, McMaster University students received 11,350 bursaries worth a total of $33,571,422. During the same period, 671,884 Ontario students have received a Millennium bursary.
  • The Millennium Excellence Award Program provides financial and developmental support to students who are active leaders in their communities. Excellence awards are earned on the basis of academic merit, community involvement, leadership and innovation. McMaster University students received 539 excellence awards for a total of $2,209,500 since 1999. A total of 14,924 Ontarians have received a Millennium excellence award over the same period. Winners of the 2007 Entrance Awards will be announced in May.
  • The World Petroleum Council Millennium Scholarships offer petroleum industry-sponsored scholarships for students in related programs. Since year 2002, 363 Ontarians have received a WPC Millennium Scholarship.

    The Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation is a private organization created by an act of Parliament in 1998. It encourages students to strive for excellence and pursue their post-secondary studies. It distributes $340 million in the form of bursaries and scholarships each year throughout Canada. Since its inception, it has awarded approximately 800,000 bursaries and scholarships, worth $2.3 billion, to post-secondary students in Canada.