University of Ottawa to cover full tuition fees for Algonquin Anishinàbeg Nation students

The University of Ottawa is offering to cover full tuition fees for Indigenous students who are members of the Algonquin community.

On Thursday, the university announced a full tuition waiver for Indigenous students from the Algonquin Anishinàbeg Nation starting in the fall of 2025, as part of its “ongoing Indigenization efforts.”

The University of Ottawa launched its Indigenous Action Plan in 2020, saying it “serves as the framework for institutional efforts towards decolonial Indigenization and meaningful engagement.”

“Grounded in the teachings of the wiigwaam—an Anishinaabeg dwelling—the Plan is organized around four central ‘hoops’ to structure the University’s approach to transformation: institutional change, academic innovation, spatial inclusion, and community engagement,” uOttawa said.

The tuition offer will cover current and incoming students who are members of the Algonquin community, according to the university.

“This tuition waiver is another important stride in the university’s Indigenization efforts,” Jacques Frémont, president and vice-chancellor at the University of Ottawa, said in a statement. “It is one more step in our work to embed Indigenous priorities into uOttawa’s governance, infrastructure, pedagogy, and decision-making.”

The University of Ottawa has five faculty academic programs with an Indigenous focus, a dedicated admission process for Indigenous students in the faculties of Law, Medicine and Education, and an Institute for Indigenous Research and Studies.

“I hope such efforts will contribute to a university where Indigenous students, faculty, and staff feel supported, and where reconciliation is reflected not only in words but in measurable outcomes,” Frémont said.