<p>Hi guys, I’m currently a rising senior in a high school in virginia in US. So my parents said apply to Canada because it is cheaper and I’m a permanent resident there. I’m still applying to colleges in VA with early action, so I would hear back from the colleges by January and can decide by May 1st. But the Canadian colleges send out admission letters mid-May. So if I choose not to go into the VA colleges and I end up not getting into the Canadian one, I won’t have a college to go to. So my question is, do Canadian colleges have different deadlines for American applicants and do they have early action of something similar to that? Also, to anyone who has gone to college in Canada from America, what has your experience been like(academic and social life included)</p>
<p>While I have not studied in Canada, I will help as much as I can. Where specifically in Canada do you hope to apply? From what info I can find, colleges in Ontario, for example, will make offers after 2/1 and the decision must be made by 5/1. I also recommend contacting individual schools and asking about their policies for American students in terms of deadlines, requirements, etc.</p>
<p>Right now the colleges I’m applying to in canada are university of Waterloo, university of Calgary, university of McGill and university of Ontario. I was thinking about calling the colleges individually too. So I’ll do that and see where it takes me! Thanks sw0206! </p>
<p>Don’t worry, Canadian schools are relatively easy to get into. University of British Columbia is a great choice – it has a beautiful campus (beaches, ocean, parks). From what I hear from my classmates, apps are usually due by the end of January.</p>
<p>Have you looked at each schools’ website? Dates for US applicants differ from those for Canadian applicants. Are you a dual US/Canadian citizen? </p>
<p>Here are the dates for McGill:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.mcgill.ca/applying/admissionsguide/2014-15/usa”>http://www.mcgill.ca/applying/admissionsguide/2014-15/usa</a></p>
<p>Admission is based solely on UW GPA and SAT/ACT test scores and there are published minima.</p>
<p>I couldn’t really find information that was separated for American students…it was all jumbled together. I’m a permanent resident in canada only. I’m not a citizen in canada or the US. Thanks for the link, I’ll check it out. </p>
<p>Do you mean that the better my GPA and scores are the sooner I’ll get an acceptance letter or do you mean that the applications are very number based? </p>
<p>If you do not meet all the minimum requirements, it is an automatic rejection. </p>
<p>Admissions are based on a combination of classes taken + GPA + SAT scores (including subject tests, sometimes). EC’s don’t count. You apply for a specific program so at the time of application you need to know what you want to major in, and the criteria vary depending on college within the university or sometimes even depending on the major itself. So if you’re well-above the minimum published, you should be fine, and if you’re above the minima your odds are pretty good. Many universities will allow you to apply to several programs and recommend one of them be a nonselective program (ie., if you meet the published minima for both the university and the major, you’re in.)
Look into the first year special programs/cohorts/LLC’s, since these universities tend to be HUGE and very impersonal: these special programs make the university feel less so.
Since you apply directly to your major, you can infer that there’s less/little general education.
There’s less hand holding than in US universities, you have to be independent and figure things out on your own. There’s a fairly high rate of failure even at the highest-ranked universities (unlike in the US, where the highest ranked universities make sure virtually everyone graduates.)
Check out McLean’s university rankings. There are three categories - apply to at least one university from each list. Dalhousie, Concordia, and Mount Alison are good schools, and someone already mentioned UBC. If you speak French, Sherbrooke has excellent quality of life/environment. Also, if you speak French, UOttawa is promoting bilingualism and gives students a half tuition scholarship for taking 3 courses in French. </p>
<p>I hear Canada is moving to a holistic application - I know UBC now has a personal profile (it started in the past few years because they didn’t have one when I went there…) so ECs are an important part of the app at least in some Canadian unis.</p>
<p>I think they mostly do admissions on a rolling basis: the earlier you apply, the earlier you hear back. And I suspect they prioritize US apps because of the May 1 deadline… but I could be wrong.</p>