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Evidence: Observational / pre–post Top 39% 71/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice
Ontario funds full tuition for 12,700+ nursing, paramedic and lab-tech students (C$171 M+) who commit to working in their study region in Northern, Eastern or Southwestern Ontario, directly linking publicly-funded training to local healthcare retention.
Ontario's healthcare system faces persistent workforce shortages in smaller cities and rural areas, particularly in Northern, Eastern and Southwestern Ontario. The Ontario Learn and Stay Grant (OLSG), launched in the 2023–24 academic year by the Ministry of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security, funds 100% of tuition, books and direct education costs for students enrolling in nursing, paramedicine and medical laboratory technology programmes at colleges and universities in these shortage regions.
The grant aims to create an enforceable link between publicly-funded healthcare training and local retention, addressing shortages in underserved regions.
Recipients commit to working at least 180 days per year in the region where they studied for each year of funded study; participating institutions include Lakehead University, Northern College, Sault College, St. Clair College, Mohawk College and others.
By March 2026, more than 12,700 learners had been supported with over C$171 million in funding, including C$53 million+ for Northern Ontario training 3,850+ healthcare workers; by early 2026, 260 recipients in Eastern Ontario and 200 in Northern Ontario had completed or were actively completing their regional service commitments. The 2025 provincial budget added C$261.7 million in new funding.
No post-graduation longitudinal retention study has yet been published; the early service-commitment completions represent an initial proof-of-concept rather than definitive evidence that the grant increases long-term regional healthcare retention.
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