Details of the Canada Student Service Grant, part of $9-billion student aid

In this morning’s press briefing, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced details of the Canada Student Service Grant as well as Canada Summer Jobs and Mitacs internships, programs that, along with the Canada Emergency Student Benefit, are part of a $9-billion investment in financial aid for students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are launching the Canada Student Service Grant to allow students to acquire skills and experience by contributing to their community. If you’re a college or university student, or if you just graduated and you decide to do some volunteering this summer, you can receive a grant of between $1,000 and $5,000. The exact amount will be determined based on the number of hours that you’ve worked between June 18 and Sept. 15.

“As part of our plan to support students, our government will also be investing $40-million to create 5,000 positions for students at the post-secondary level. Mitacs is an NGO that fosters collaboration between the private sector and students. It helps to form and train new students. Normally, Mitacs programs are for people at the Masters or PhD level involved in research. The funding we are providing today will allow them to extend the scope of the programs to include students at the undergraduate level or students in professional programs like law, medicine or business. For example, one of the new programs will allow MBA students to have contacts with small businesses facing specific challenges because of COVID-19. Mitacs will also be able to create new partnerships with organizations such as hospitals, foundations and municipal governments to create even more options for young people. This is good news, not only for students who will be able to use their knowledge, but also for business owners and the future of our country. We have to ensure that young people have the tools they need to work, innovate and succeed in tomorrow’s economy.

“Our government will also be investing in the summer jobs program to add 10,000 placements for students between 15 and 30 years old. We will also be supporting the creation of 20,000 other placements for college- and university-level students in sectors with strong demand, including practice sections for students. And to ensure the young people are well prepared for the jobs in the future, we are also investing in digital skills and computers for schools.”

Government of Canada I Want to Help portal.

MITACS website

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