The Advancing Futures office is open to the public by appointment only. Young adults can schedule a meeting with their practitioner. The Advancing Futures team will also continue to support young adults in person at institutions, in the community or remotely.
Contact us to schedule a meeting or if you have any questions.
Important dates
Next application deadline
The deadline to apply for funding for the spring 2024 semester has passed.
The Advancing Futures program is now receiving applications for fall 2024/25, the deadline to apply is June 1, 2024.
Due to technical difficulties, no applications or prospective student inquiries were received March 6 to 25, 2024. All young adults who submitted applications during this time will need to re-submit their application.
If you submitted a prospective student inquiry, please re-submit your question and a Practitioner will connect with you. .
About the program
General information
Advancing Futures is a transitional support program for young adults aged 18 to 24 who were formerly in government care. The program provides social and emotional supports and funding to eligible young adults while they pursue post-secondary studies.
Young adults are invited to apply if they are interested in:
- academic upgrading if it is a requirement for entry into a post-secondary program
- earning a license or certificate
- learning a trade
- earning a diploma or degree from a post-secondary school
In addition to providing funding, Advancing Futures helps young adults succeed by supporting them while transitioning into adulthood, learning life skills, and becoming successful in school. The program recognizes the potential of young adults to reach their educational goals and overcome the challenges they may face.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants
Applicants must:
- be between 18 and 24 years old at the time they apply
- be full- or part-time students enrolled at an approved institution, and
- have been a youth in government care as a result of an Alberta-based agreement or order
They must also have:
- had a Permanent Guardianship Order (PGO) or Permanent Guardianship Agreement between the time they were 13 and 18 years old, or
- been in the care or custody of Children and Family Services for at least 546 days (18 months) between the time they were 13 and 24 years old – the following intervention services are included in the calculation of these 546 days:
- apprehension order
- custody agreement with guardian
- custody agreement with youth
- custody order
- emergency apprehension
- enhancement agreement with youth
- interim custody order
- order to extend custody or temporary guardianship order to 3 years
- previous Child Intervention post 18 supports and services
- TAP agreement
- temporary guardianship order
To confirm eligibility for Advancing Futures, contact us.
Young adults who received Supports for Permanency for more than 546 days between the ages of 13 and 18 years old should contact us to discuss requesting an exception to the above eligibility criteria.
Approved institutions
This program is open to full- or part-time students enrolled in one of over 400 approved schools, colleges and universities. These include:
- on-campus post-secondary programs in Alberta or Canada
- publicly funded institutions
- private career training institutions
- trade schools
- First Nations colleges
- faith-based institutions
- specialized high schools*
- academic upgrading programs or a General Equivalency Diploma (GED) at an adult learning institution if it's a requirement for entrance to a post-secondary program
Young adults can use the School and Program Eligibility Search to see if the post-secondary institution they plan to attend is an approved school. to see if the post-secondary institution they plan to attend is an approved school. *Specialized high schools are not listed in the eligibility tool. Young adults can contact Advancing Futures to confirm the educational institution is approved.
Advancing Futures does not fund Masters degrees or Doctoral programs.
Benefits
Funding
Advancing Futures funds education programs in a wide variety of career areas, including digital media design, teaching and plumbing. The program covers funding for:
- up to $40,000 in education costs, including:
- required tuition
- mandatory fees
- required books
- mandatory supplies
- approved technology
- living allowance
- transportation funds
- full parent portion of subsidized child care
- health benefit plan
- damage deposit
Living allowance rates
| Status | Full-time | Part-time |
|---|---|---|
| Single student | $1128 | $564 |
| Parent with one child | $1991 | $995.50 |
| Parent with 2 children | $2583 | $1291.50 |
| Parent with 3 children | $3175 | $1587.50 |
| Parent with 4 children | $3767 | $1883.50 |
| Each additional child | $592 | $296 |
Supports
Advancing Futures can also provide young adults with transition supports, including:
- assisting in career investigation
- discussing specific job requirements
- helping clarify career goals
- identifying different education paths to help young adults achieve their education and career goals
Application deadlines
There are 3 annual application deadlines:
- apply by June 1 – to begin studies anytime during the upcoming academic year (September to August)
- apply by October 1 – to begin studies anytime between January and August of the following year
- apply by February 1 – to begin studies anytime between May and August of the same year
Applications that are received after any of the above deadlines will be deferred to the next application period.
Extended deadlines
Young adults, who have not received funding through Advancing Futures before, and who plan to attend a specialized high school, are offered extended deadlines:
- apply by October 1 – to begin studies in Fall Term (of the same year)
- apply by February 1 – to begin studies in Winter Term (of the same year)
- apply by May 1 – to begin studies in Spring/Summer Term (of the same year)
Year-round applications
Applications are accepted year-round from young adults who are registered as an apprentice and are pursuing technical training for their trade. Applications must be received at least 8 to 10 weeks before training begins.
How to apply
Step 1. Confirm eligibility
Review Advancing Futures' eligibility criteria. Contact us to confirm eligibility, if clarification is required.
Step 2. Apply to a program
Young adults must have applied for their program of study before applying to Advancing Futures. Young adults do not need to have been accepted into their program of study to apply for Advancing Futures. Proof of application to or enrolment in the intended program of study must be submitted when applying to Advancing Futures. For more information, see approved institutions.
Step 3. Complete application form
Complete the Advancing Futures application form.
Next steps
Waiting times
It can take up to 30 days after the application deadline for applications to be reviewed. Requesting updates sooner than this will not result in faster processing.
It takes 8 to 10 weeks after the application deadline for applications to be fully processed.
Contact method
Advancing Futures uses email as its main contact method. It is important that young adults check their email for updates regularly. At times, Advancing Futures may contact a young adult by phone or mail.
Updating information
Young adults are responsible for providing Advancing Futures with their current contact information, including:
- email address
- phone number, and
- mailing address
If contact information changes, young adults must email their updated information to [email protected].
Intake and conditional approval
After a young adult applies, their application will be reviewed to determine eligibility and for completeness. Following this, Practitioners will contact young adults with information about next steps.
Young adults who meet the program requirements will be required to complete an intake form. The intake form will be reviewed and the young adult will be conditionally approved. An email will be sent to the young adult with a deadline to complete any tasks required for approval of their funding.
Payment of expenses
Tuition and mandatory school fees
Once funding has been approved, a sponsorship agreement will be established with the school. The agreement states that Advancing Futures will cover tuition and mandatory school fees for the academic term(s). The institution will invoice Advancing Futures directly.
Mandatory books and supplies
All young adults will have their own account created at the school's bookstore to cover the cost of mandatory books and supplies. All young adults are required to submit a book and supply list at the start of each semester to Advancing Futures.
Young adults are provided with funding to buy basic school supplies at the start of each semester, to a maximum of:
- $50 per year for part-time students
- $100 per year for full-time students
Living expenses
Monthly living allowance payments are deposited into young adults’ bank accounts 5 to 7 days before the first day of each month. The living allowance payment provided at the end of each month is for the next month of study.