Information for public postsecondary education partners
Find information and resources for management and administrators of Ontario’s publicly funded colleges and universities.
College program standards
Program standards apply to all similar programs of instruction offered by publicly funded colleges across the province. Individual colleges also determine whether additional learning outcomes will be required to reflect specific local needs and/or interests.
Read the program standards if you're designing a program for a college.
Degree authority
Learn about postsecondary institutions' degree-granting authority and how it is granted.
Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board (PEQAB)
Graduation rates and graduate employment outcomes
Key performance indicators for public postsecondary institutions:
International Student Program
Requirements to apply for or renew status as a Designated Learning Institution (DLI) in the International Student Program. (ISP)
Forms to apply for status as a Designated Learning Institution
Ontario Qualifications Framework
The Ontario Qualifications Framework (OQF) includes all non-religious postsecondary certificate, diploma and degree programs offered under the auspices of the Province of Ontario. This includes:
- apprenticeship certificates
- the qualifications awarded by career colleges
- the qualifications awarded by public colleges
- degrees offered by public universities and institutions authorized to award degrees by a consent of the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security
Policy frameworks and operating procedures
Binding Policy Directives, Operating procedures and frameworks provide details about the roles and responsibilities of CAATs under the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act, 2002 and Regulations for the Act: O.Reg. 34/03.
- Annual report operating procedure (Revised September 2010)
- Board nominations and appointments, protocol, CAATsCAATs
- Business Plan operating procedure (Revised April 2026)
- Conflict of Interest Minister's Binding Policy Directive (April 2003)
- Entrepreneurial Activities Minister's Binding Policy Directive (April 2003)
- Framework for funding approval of programs of instruction (April 2003, revised April 2005)
- Procedures for funding approval of programs of instruction (April 2003, revised October 2007)
MCURES Approved Program Sequence table
The table provides pre-approved funding codes that colleges and universities use to communicate with the ministry via the Program Funding Approvals and Administration Module (PFAAM).
- Framework for programs of instruction for colleges of applied arts and technology (July 2009)
- Funding of part-time activity binding policy directive (April 2003)
- General admissions criteria (April 2003, revised November 2004)
- Governance and Accountability Framework Minister's Binding Policy Directive (Revised: 2010)
- Major capacity expansion policy framework for Ontario's colleges and universities
- This updated policy framework provides a guide for all future major capacity expansions for Ontario's postsecondary education sector. (July 2020)
- Minister’s directive on anti-racism and anti-hate for publicly assisted colleges and universities, September 9, 2024
- Minister’s directive on student mental health for publicly assisted colleges and universities, September 9, 2024
- Minister’s revised directive on the costs of educational materials to publicly assisted colleges and universities
- This directive replaces the previous directive issued August 16, 2024.
- Prior learning assessment and recognition guide
- Program Suspension and Cancellation Operating Procedure (Revised 2007)
- Public college-private partnerships: Minister's Binding Policy Directive
- Strategic plan operating procedure (Revised September 2010)
- Tuition and ancillary fees (August 2024)
- Tuition fee framework and ancillary fee guidelines, publicly assisted universities, March 2019 (Archived)
All policy framework guidelines and operating procedures are available upon request from postsecondaryeducationprogramsbranch@ontario.ca.
Workplace insurance for postsecondary students
Postsecondary students in publicly assisted colleges and universities are eligible for ministry sponsored
Download the ministry's application form
Notice of Collection of Personal Information
Publicly assisted colleges, universities and other partners in the postsecondary education system may be required to report information about those postsecondary educational programs and services that the Ministry administers or funds. The Ministry uses this information to plan and provide postsecondary education in Ontario.
The information collected by the Ministry may include personal information, such as information about salary and other benefits paid to employees of postsecondary institutions.
This personal information is collected by the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security from Ontario public colleges of applied arts and technology under the authority of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. M.19, and the Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology Act, 2002.
The Ministry has the authority to collect information for purposes that include, but are not limited to:
- administering, funding, monitoring, and overseeing Ontario public colleges
- supporting accountability, reporting, audit, compliance, and performance measurement requirements
- developing, evaluating, and improving postsecondary education policy, programs, and services
- fulfilling legislative and regulatory responsibilities related to the operation and governance of public colleges
In limited circumstances where authorized by law, personal information may be disclosed to persons or entities.
If you have questions concerning the Ministry’s collection, use, or disclosure of personal information, please contact:
Director, Strategic Policy Coordination Branch
Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security
315 Front Street West, 16th Floor
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 0B8
StrategicPolicy.CoordinationBranch@ontario.ca
Related
Ontario College Application Services (OCAS)
Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board (PEQAB)
Program Funding Approvals and Administration Module (PFAAM)