Overview

Organizations require either an act of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario (Post-Secondary Education Choice and Excellence Act, 2000), or a Ministerial consent to:

  • grant a degree
  • provide a program or part of a program of post-secondary study leading to a degree to be conferred by a person inside or outside Ontario
  • advertise a program or part of a program of postsecondary study offered in Ontario leading to a degree to be conferred by a person in or outside Ontario
  • sell, offer for sale or provide by agreement for a fee, reward or other remuneration, a diploma, certificate, document or other material that indicates or implies the granting or conferring of a degree
  • operate or maintain a university
  • use or be known by a name of a university or any derivation or abbreviation of a name of a university
  • hold oneself out to be a university
  • make use of the term "university" or any derivation or abbreviation of the word in advertising relating to an educational institution in Ontario

Legislative authority

Postsecondary institutions with the authority to issue degrees under legislative authority:

Partial degree-granting authority under an Act of the Legislative Assembly:

The ministry does not exercise direct oversight of programs delivered by institutions with legislated degree-granting authority.

Ministerial consent

Under the Post-Secondary Education Choice and Excellence Act, 2000, Ministerial consent is required by all:

  • public or private degree-granting organizations, either for profit or non-profit, based outside the province to offer all or part of a degree program in Ontario
  • all private organizations in Ontario, either for profit or non-profit
  • all Ontario public organizations not empowered to grant degrees by Ontario statute to offer all or part of degree programs and
  • consent is required to use the word "university" relating to an educational institution in Ontario

Review of applications

Under the Post-Secondary Education Choice and Excellence Act, 2000, the Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board (PEQAB) is the Ontario agency that reviews and makes recommendations to the Minister of Colleges and Universities about the program quality of applications for Minister's consent.

Current Ministerial consents

Visit the PEQAB website to see postsecondary institutions with the authority to issue degrees with a current Minister's consent:

Renewals

Consents are normally granted for a limited time (5 or 7 years.) At the end of the consent period, the applicant wishing to continue to offer the program must apply for renewal of consent and undergo a review in accord with PEQAB's guidelines in place at the time of renewal.

Visit the PEQAB website to see applications and renewals.

Students:

If you have questions about whether an institution has the authority to offer the program in which you are interested, contact the Postsecondary Accountability Branch, Ministry of Colleges and Universities:

 postsecondaryaccountability@ontario.ca

Organizations making an application:

Visit the PEQAB website to learn more about Ministerial consent,legislation, application process and fees or contact the Postsecondary Accountability Branch, Ministry of Colleges and Universities:

 postsecondaryaccountability@ontario.ca