The Ontario government is funding 40,000 new post-secondary seats at publicly assisted colleges and universities as part of a $1.7 billion investment to create more than 70,000 additional seats in programs aimed at preparing students for in-demand careers.
The funding will assist programs focused on areas including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), health care, education and trades.
The new seats are expected to be available to students beginning as early as fall 2026.
Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security Nolan Quinn spoke with PTBOToday about this announcement.
The province announced the first 30,000 seats in May of this year and subsequently asked colleges and universities to submit proposals for the remaining seats. Institutions worked with local industries and communities to identify programs based on regional labour needs, institutional capacity and student demand, according to the government.
Across the province, the full expansion includes 40,200 STEM seats, 16,100 health-care seats, 7,900 education seats, 3,800 trades seats and 3,000 seats in other labour-market-focused programs.
Further funding announcements for other institutions are expected in the coming weeks.
