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Canada is popular among students with its wild beauty, scenic landscape and good education system. Canada’s universities are mostly publicly funded. Therefore, fees are lower than US.  There are somewhat opportunities for scholarships but less compared to US colleges.  Most scholarships are at master/doctorate level.  Overall, tuition costs are more affordable compared to many countries.  

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There is a limited place for undergraduate education in Canada, therefore the competition for admission is intense. In this case, the two most basic criteria are the successful completion of high school with a high degree and competency in one of the two official languages (English in most of Canada, and either English or French in Quebec and New Brunswick). French can be a good bonus for international students in admission.

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Students can apply for various programs, depending on their interests. They can choose amongst Arts, Science, and Business, with many themes and numerous subcategories and majors. Students can apply without having to declare their specialization, and be considered “undeclared” for a time.

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Generally for graduate admissions, a previous undergraduate degree is required for admission, although there are exceptions. Since graduate degrees involve (in most cases) independent research and little course work, students must have the fundamental theoretical knowledge to carry out their independent studies. There is usually a supervisor attempted to each student.

If the graduate student has the ability to financially support themselves during their graduate degree (either through a scholarship or fellowship, or by the supervisor offering financial support from their own grant monies) they have a greater chance of gaining admission to a graduate program. In fact, most graduate schools won’t admit students unless they see the financial situation and the clearance on that.

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For almost all international students applying for either undergraduate or graduate admission, an essay, statement of intent or personal statement of experience must be submitted directly to the program applied. Additionally, letters of reference, examples of extracurricular involvement, community service, athletic participation, and scholarships won may all be required for acceptance to some programs, although these extracurriculars are not impacting the admission as much as US school admission.

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Mature students (those older than 25, and out of school for at least 2 years) can also apply for post-secondary schooling. The normal entry requirements applied to younger students are generally not applied to mature applicants. If they do not meet the usual admission requirements already, but demonstrate intellectual maturity through the pursuit of interests, employment, or have overcome a significant hardship, then they are usually admitted.

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”Traditional” continuing education is usually open to anyone, and is intended for people who want to pursue higher education. This can either be through credit courses (applicable towards a degree) or non-credit courses (usually for personal enjoyment). Generally the only obstacle to admission is the ability to pay for the individual courses and programs since it is usually self-paid, they do not offer scholarships.

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Professional continuing education is generally the issuing of a certificate to students who already hold a previous degree in the professional field. Licensing bodies (such as the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers or Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada) urge continuing education requirements on members who hold licenses to practice within a particular profession. 

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