BEFORE APPLYING:
What types of disabilities are considered?
In alignment with the Accessible Canada Act, a disability means any impairment, including a physical, mental, intellectual, cognitive, learning, communication or sensory impairment — or a functional limitation that, in interaction with a barrier, hinders a person’s full and equal participation in society, including areas such as education and employment.
Types of eligible disabilities considered under the NEADS Financial Assistance Programs include, but are not limited to:
- A seeing disability: A seeing disability affects vision, including total blindness, partial sight, and visual distortion.
- A hearing disability: A hearing disability affects ability to hear, including being hard of hearing, deafness or acoustic distortion.
- A speech disability: A speech disability affects ability to talk, including total speech loss, partial speech and speech distortion.
- A mobility disability: A mobility disability affects ability to move your body, including the required use of a wheelchair or a cane, or other issues impacting your mobility.
- Challenges with flexibility or dexterity: Challenges with flexibility or dexterity affects ability to move joints or perform motor tasks, especially with your hands.
- A mental health disability: A mental health disability affects psychology or behaviour, such as anxiety, depression or social / compulsive disorder or phobia or psychiatric illness.
- A sensory or environmental disability: A sensory or environmental disability affects sensitivity to light, sounds or other distractions, as well as allergens and other environmental sensitivities.
- A chronic health condition or pain: A chronic health condition or pain affects ability to function on a regular or episodic basis due to migraines, Crohn’s disease, colitis, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, and other disabilities or health conditions.
- A cognitive disability: A cognitive disability affects ability to carry out tasks involving executive functioning, such as planning and organization, learning information, communication and memory, including autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and learning disabilities.
- An intellectual disability: An intellectual disability affects ability to learn and to adapt behaviour to different situations.
Do I have to provide disability documentation to apply?
We do not require proof of disability at the time of application. You will only be required to provide proof of disability documentation if selected for an award. Accepted forms of disability documentation include one of the following:
- A letter from your student accommodations/accessibility centre saying you receive services and have fulfilled their documentation requirements.
- Documentation from a medical professional (e.g. hearing test results).
- Proof of disability support benefits (e.g. Provincial Disability Support Program monthly summary).
- Proof of federal/provincial financial assistance for students with disabilities (e.g. a copy of your Canada Grant for Students with Permanent Disabilities funding summary).
Can I submit my application and/or documents in French?
Applicants are invited to submit their application in the official language of their choice (English or French).
How do I apply for a specific scholarship (e.g. Accessible Media Inc. Robert Pearson Memorial Scholarship)?
For the Canada Post scholarship, please answer the Canada Post specific application questions to be considered for this scholarship.
Select yes next to the name of each scholarship you wish to apply for, within the “Scholarships” panel of the application form, and answer any relevant short answer questions where applicable.
How do I identify my disability type, to be considered for the (insert Year’s name) Memorial Scholarship for the Visually Impaired?
You will need to identify that you are blind/visually impaired/deaf blind through the disability type question on the self-declaration panel of the application form.
Can I apply for a specific grant or scholarship type?
Yes you can select ONE grant type and any number of scholarships to apply to on the application form.
If I won a NEADS Student Awards Program scholarship previously, can I apply to the NEADS Financial Assistance Program?
No.
If I won a NEADS Accessibility Resilience Program grant previously, can I apply to the NEADS Financial Assistance Program?
Yes, you may apply, and your application will be assessed based on demonstrated financial need.
I am currently on medical leave from my studies; can I still apply?
Applicants must be currently registered in post-secondary education at a college, university or CÉGEP at the time of application. Students on leave are not eligible to apply.
DURING THE APPLICATION PROCESS:
Who are accepted professionals to fill out the Good Academic Standing Verification Form?
Acceptable professionals include: guidance counsellors, principals, registrar department staff, program coordinators, academic advisors, learning strategists, disability advisors.
Who should I use as my reference? (Scholarships only)
Your reference can be either an academic or a community reference. Your reference should be able to speak to your academic performance, volunteerism, extra-curricular activities or employment history. For example, a professor/instructor, a work supervisor, or a leader of an organization you volunteer with. This individual cannot be a family member, friend, spouse or colleague. If your reference’s responses state that they are a family member/friend/spouse/colleague, your application will be disqualified.
When and how will my reference be contacted? (Scholarships only)
Your reference form/response must be received before the deadline. Please allow your reference time to respond before the application deadline.
When you click submit at the end of your application, your reference will be sent an automated email containing a reference form. It is the responsibility of the applicant to follow up with their reference to ensure they received the automated form. If it appears that the form was not received, have your reference check their spam or junk folder. If a copy of the form was not received, email us at etes@neads.ca to have another copy sent.
What format do the supporting documentation files I upload during the application process have to be in?
Electronic files are accepted in the following formats: Microsoft Word (DOC), (DOCX) and Adobe Acrobat (PDF).
AFTER APPLYING:
Once I have submitted my application, can I make changes to it?
Once submitted, application forms are final and may not be modified.
How can I confirm that my application was successfully submitted?
Once you finish your application a receipt of completion will be sent to your email.
How will those selected to receive a grant or scholarship be contacted?
All recipients will be contacted by email. Due to the volume of applications received, only those selected as award recipients will be contacted. Students will be given 2 weeks to acknowledge their congratulatory email and submit required documentation. If no response is received from the student, NEADS staff will follow up once via phone. If a response is still not received for a period of 1 week following the phone call, the grant or scholarship will be offered to another student.
When approximately will recipients be contacted?
Recipients will be notified in the latter half of the semester in which they apply.
My phone number or email address has changed. How can I update my file?
Should your contact information change, please inform our Financial Assistance Program Team by email at etes@neads.ca.