Eligibility

To be eligible for a student loan, you must be a Canadian citizen, have permanent resident status, or protected person status under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

  • Full-time students: You are considered a full-time student if you are registered in at least 60% of the program credits (usually 9 credit hours per week) for each semester you had indicated on your loan application. Students enrolled in full-time programs are eligible for both provincial and national student loans. 
  • Part-time students: You are considered a part-time student if you are registered in 59% of the program credits (less than 9 credit hours per week). If you are a part-time student, you may apply for a part-time student loan. Make sure to review your province’s eligibility rules for part-time students.

If you are uncertain of your status, check with your advisor to see how many courses you need to be enrolled in to be considered to have full-time or part-time status prior to applying for a student loan.

For more information on eligibility and loans, visit Student Aid Alberta or Canada Student Loans. For more detailed information, please see the Student Aid Alberta Funding Guide.

Dropping a course may affect your student loan

If you're making changes to your schedule, make sure you're maintaining full-time status. If your status changes to part-time, any applicable tuition fee refund can be refunded directly to the student and should be paid back to the loan borrower (i.e. Student Aid Alberta or Canada Student Loan).

Please note: your student loan borrowers will be notified of the following changes.

  • When you drop from full-time to part-time status.
  • When you cancel prior to starting your program.
  • When you withdrew from the program.

Apply for your student loan

Applications are open now for the 2023/24 academic year.

Apply now to make sure your loan is processed as soon as possible. You don't have to be accepted to SAIT to apply for funding.

  • It can take up to two months or more for your loan to be processed — check your provincial student loan provider's site for their current processing time.
  • If you're an Alberta resident, visit Student Aid Alberta to apply for a student loan.
  • If you've lived in Alberta for less than 12 months before starting your program, you must apply for student loan funding from your province of residence.

Applications usually open in June for the upcoming academic year. Contact our funding advisors if you need help applying for an Alberta student loan.

If you've been approved for a student loan in a province other than Alberta, make sure you've emailed a copy of your student award letter to Office of the Registrar.

The student award letter explains how much money you'll get for the length of your loan, payment dates and how you'll receive it (for example, as a Canada Student Loan, Saskatchewan Student Loan, grants, etc.). We'll need this information to defer your tuition payment until your loan disbursement date. Tuition deferments are usually given until the end of the add/drop period for your program.

Find more information about applying for student loans on your province’s student aid website below:

*For Northwest Territories and Quebec student loan students please note that during the loan process we are not able to request tuition to be directed to SAIT, and as such, no tuition deferment will be completed.

If you're registered in a Red Seal trade apprentice program, there are many loan and grant options available:

Prior to your loan or grant being confirmed, you must first register and pay for your courses within your apprentice program. Read more on paying for your apprenticeship for tuition and fees, financial tips and more.

NOTE: When you apply for an Alberta student loan, please ensure to select Apprenticeship as the program name then select your specific trade as the specialization and/or major.

Getting your student award letter

After your loan application is processed, you'll receive a student award letter from your provincial student loan provider. It explains how much money you'll get for the academic year and when and how you'll receive it (for example, as a Canada Student Loan, Provincial Student Loan, grants, etc.).

If you receive less money than requested on your loan application, contact your provincial student loan provider to discover your next steps.

Paying tuition with your student loan

The information below does not apply to loans Northwest Territories and Quebec. If you’re funded through either province, you will need to pay your tuition prior to the tuition deadline for your program’s start date – review payment options to find our approved online payment methods.

If you've applied and are approved for a student loan through your province online before the tuition payment deadline, SAIT will electronically confirm your full-time enrolment and request that payment is sent directly to us. This means that your tuition payment deadline will be deferred until your loan disbursement date.

  • We can only request funds if your loan is approved.
  • You will need to pay your tuition if your loan is still being processed by your program's tuition deadline.
  • We’re unable to confirm your enrolment if you’re enrolled in less than 60% of a full course load – consider applying for a part-time student loan through your province.
  • Log in to mySAIT to find the amount we will receive – this is called the Remit to School Amount.
  • If the remit to school amount is less than your total tuition balance, you must pay the remainder by your tuition deadline.

Tuition overpayments

If you've paid SAIT more money than you owe, a credit balance will appear on your account.

  • All credits resulting from an overpayment will not be refunded.
  • This will be applied to tuition for your future terms.
  • If you’ve been approved for a student loan, we recommend waiting to make payments until after we confirm your loan – this will happen just before your tuition payment deadline.

Additional key contacts

For more information on your Alberta or Canada student loan or if you are having difficulty making payments to your loan(s), please get in touch with the corresponding service center immediately to find your options for help.

National Student Loan Service Centre (NSLSC)

1.888.815.4514
NSLSC Toolbox

Alberta Student Aid

1.855.606.2096
Alberta Student Aid Repayment Guide

For students with out-of-province loans, please refer to your province's student aid website for more information.

Tuition and Financial Aid