The Merit Award Bursary Program is a 3-star charity. It has an A- results reporting score, which is above average. Its overhead costs are outside Ci’s reasonable range for overhead spending. For every dollar donated, 61 cents are available for the cause.

Founded in 1996, the Merit Award Bursary Program (Merit) awards bursaries to grade 11 and 12 students in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). The bursaries help students pursue higher education and contribute to their communities. Merit believes that all GTA students should have equal access to post-secondary education. 50% of bursary recipients are from families with an annual income under $40k. 75% of recipients are visible minorities. 80% are first- or second-generation Canadians. Students from 96 schools in the GTA apply for Merit bursaries.

In the fiscal year ended April 2023 (F2023), Merit awarded 315 bursaries worth a total of $326,500. 56 grade 11 students received $500 bursaries. 181 grade 12 students received $1,000 bursaries. 39 grade 12 students received $2,000 bursaries and 3 received $5,000 bursaries. Merit also awarded 36 computers to grade 12 students. In F2024, Merit aims to award over 325 bursaries.

Bursary recipients participate in workshops and networking events. In F2023, Merit hosted three workshops on careers, self-defence, and networking. It also hosted five career fireside chats. The chat topics were Medicine, Law, Engineering, Computer Science, and Education.

The Merit Award Bursary Program is a small charity in terms of donations. In F2023, it received $469k (94% of total revenue) in Canadian donations. Merit also raised $17.5k through a wine raffle (4% of total revenue). Administrative costs were 37% of total revenue (excluding investment income) and fundraising costs were 2% of donations. Overhead spending is 39%, which is outside Ci’s reasonable range. For every dollar donated, 61 cents are available for the cause. In F2023, Merit spent $327k on its programs (66% of total revenue).

In F2023, Merit had a deficit of $24k and reported no spending on capital expenditures.

At the end of F2023, Merit has $298k in reserve funds, which can cover 91% or 11 months of its annual program costs.

Merit reports no paid employees. It spent $4k on professional fees in F2023. Its website indicates that volunteers review applications and select recipients, organize events, mentor recipients, and conduct outreach.

This charity report is an update that was sent to the Merit Award Bursary Program for review. Changes and edits may be forthcoming.

Profile created on June 6, 2024 by Thea Clark.