Post Graduation Debt Repayment Assistance Program

Overview

U of T's Post-Graduation Debt Repayment Assistance Program (PDRAP) was the first program of its kind in Canada and is only one of two such programs currently offered in the country.

Its purpose is to provide law school loan repayment assistance for eligible JD graduates for up to 10 years after graduation. The goal is to ensure that UofT JD graduates can make career choices based on their interests rather than debt-induced financial pressure.

PDRAP loans assist graduates with repaying eligible academic student debt after graduation. The assistance provided to participants comes in the form of loans from the Faculty of Law. The PDRAP loan covers the annual amount that participants are required to pay on their law school debt (e.g., the monthly minimum payment for government student loans and Faculty of Law authorized Lines of Credit).

Participants can enter, leave, and re-enter the program at any time within 10 years of their graduation. Graduates may be eligible based on the nature of their employment, health or disability-related issues, staying at home to care for dependents, and/or continuing as full-time students after law school.

At the end of each year, a percentage of the outstanding loan is forgiven. PDRAP’s loan forgiveness schedule is designed to provide the most forgiveness to those participants who remain in lower-paying careers for the longest time. If a participant stays in the program for 10 years, the entire PDRAP loan is forgiven.

If a participant's income increases and they become ineligible for PDRAP, they must begin repaying the remaining balance of their PDRAP loan (i.e., the amount not forgiven). This non-interest-bearing loan must be repaid by the end of the participant's 10-year eligibility period

ALLOCATION OF PDRAP FUNDS

The Financial Aid Office will allocate PDRAP funds among eligible participants for each application year. Eligible participants will receive PDRAP benefits that are prorated based on the number of participants receiving assistance and funds available for disbursement in any given year. This means that a participant's benefit that is calculated using the allocation formula may not be available in a given year.

APPLY HERE FOR PDRAP

The following videos provide additional information about the program and the application process. The process differs for applicants who graduated in 2024 and applicants who graduated earlier. 

Understanding Your PDRAP Application for alumni graduated in 2024

Understanding Your PDRAP Application for alumni graduated in 2015-2023