Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport - Student aid program: recognition of a foreign educational institution

A woman studying in the United States was attending an educational institution that the Ministère de l’Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport (MELS) refused to recognize for the purposes of granting loans and bursaries.

The woman’s complaint concerned:

• The fact that the American authorities recognized the institution she was attending as a post-secondary educational institution and that the MELS should therefore, in her opinion, also recognize it.

The Québec Ombudsman’s investigation revealed that:

• The Politique ministérielle de reconnaissance des établissements d'enseignement situés hors Québec et de leurs programmes d'études (government policy recognizing educational institutions located outside of Québec and their study programs) stipulates specifically that students attending post-secondary educational institutions outside of Canada are eligible for loans and bursaries if the institutions they are attending are recognized in the other country;
• The National New York State Board of Regents and the Commissioner of Education recognized the institution attended by the woman;
• The U.S. Department of Education recognized the institution’s accreditation authorities;
• Although the woman proved the institution’s recognition in the review following the MELS’s initial refusal, the Department upheld its refusal;
• The MELS should have recognized the institution in question.

Following the Québec Ombudsman’s intervention, the MELS:

• Made the necessary verifications based on the law and updated its list of accrediting authorities in the United States;
• Reviewed its decision and accepted the woman’s request for recognition.