Church Match Bursary

At Columbia, we hope that churches support their students attending Bible College and we want to give these churches the opportunity to contribute to the student's educational costs. By choosing to participate in the Church Match Bursary program, a church can double its contribution to an eligible student; Columbia will match the church's contribution up to $500/semester ($1000/year).

Eligibility

To receive a Church Match Bursary, the student must:
 1. Be a full-time student (12 credits +) each semester
 2. Have a minimum GPA of 2.0 each semester
 3. Submit an online application and have their church submit an agreement form.

Details

• Bursaries are given out to eligible students on a first-come, first-served basis
• Columbia will match the church's contribution up to $500/semester ($1000/year) 
           - Contributions will be matched in increments of $250 (i.e., $250, $500, $750, or $1000)
           - Columbia's match will be rounded down to the nearest $250 increment (i.e., if the church contributes $400, Columbia will give a match of $250)
• Applications can be submitted for the whole year or each semester individually. Please note that is is ideal for the student and church to apply for the whole year as bursaries are given out on a first-come, first-served basis and there is the risk of funds not being available for Winter semester applications.
• Application dates are:
            - May 1: applications open
            - October 15: deadline for Full Year and Fall-semester-only applications
            - February 15: deadline for Winter-semester-only applications 

Application Process 

• Student submits Student Application Form
• Church submits Church Agreement Form *Note: the Church Agreement Form should be completed by a member of the church staff (pastor or secretary) or leadership/elder council and must NOT be completed by a member of the student's family.  
• If the application package is approved, the Director of Financial Aid will notify the student and contact the church with payment details
• The church sends their contribution directly to the school. Please note that the money must come directly to the school to be applied to the student's account. Money sent directly to the student will not be considered for the Church Match Bursary program.
• Once the church's contribution has arrived, Columbia will apply their match to the student's account.
• Columbia will be responsible for issuing a T4A to the student for Columbia's portion of the bursary if the amount exceeds $500. The church is responsible to issue a T4A for their portion of the bursary if their contribution exceeds $500.