Education in Canada is governed by the Provincial and Territorial governments and hence is not an integrated national system. In line with its commitment to the education sector, Canada’s public education is free up to and including the level of secondary school in all provinces. Post secondary education is offered by Community Colleges and Universities.

Education here may be public or private funded. However as the government aided education is provincially governed, there are fundamental differences in the education systems of the different Provinces. The standards of education are maintained by the Ministry of Education of each Province.

The following are the types of Educational Institute in Canada:

Universities

University Colleges

Community Colleges

Language Schools

Following are the brief details about general admission requirements:-

Bachelor

A minimum of 70% 12th grade; for Business and Computers program, Math’s in 11th and 12th is compulsory.

Masters

Bachelors in the same field that you wish to pursue Masters. It should be 4 years duration. A minimum of 70% in your undergraduate or Bachelors level of study. GRE and references (2-3) required only for some fields and for some institutions.

Ph.D

A master’s degree with a good academic record; GRE and references in some cases; previous research work, papers published etc.

The total cost on an average is CDN$ 10,000 as tuition fee and CDN$10,000 as living expense per year which varies for different provinces and courses. There is no ranking of any of the institutes recognized by Govt. of Canada.

For More Details Please Click On The Following Link: The Council of Ministers of Education, Canada

Canada is a country blessed with unimaginable physical beauty. The Canadians are proud of their land and respect their natural environment. Stress is given on maintaining the incredible surroundings. Students coming to study here will not be disappointed with the beauty that surrounds them.

Geographically though, Canada is diverse. It is endowed with mountains such as the famous Rockies, the largest coastline on earth, the Great Lakes and several natural forests that have been developed into National Parks. Canada’s cities are safe, modern, of a cosmopolitan culture and are unbelievable close to their natural habitat. Almost 25% of the world’s fresh water is in Canada.

There are 4 seasons; they being more distinct in the regions close to the US border. Temperatures vary from as low as -deg C in winters to as high as 35 deg C at the height of summer. Spring and fall are more moderate.

Culturally too, Canada is a vibrant country. There is much to see and do in the form of public festivals and events that are held by the local government as well as the local communities.

World-class theater, music, restaurants, cultural and sporting events (including cricket) can be enjoyed here year-round. Being a bilingual country where the English and French languages are equally used, Canada has a uniqueness all its own.

Canada was ranked for nine consecutive years by the United Nations to be among the top 3 countries in the world in which to live and study out of 174 countries. Also, the Human Development Index survey consistently ranked Canada number one for a variety of reasons including its excellent education systems, high quality health care, low incidence of crime and clean environment.

The basic steps for applying abroad are:

Identifying universities and the course of your interest

Request universities for application forms

Taking various required tests

Arranging and preparing essays and recommendation letters

Completing and sending application forms along with required documents

Applying for VISA after obtaining I-20 from the college

Selecting University

While selecting the right course and University keep in mind the following points –

Your academic grades (including achievements)

Test scores (GRE/GMAT/SAT/TOEFL/IELTS)

Your financial capacity

Major (Specialization) subjects that you are interested in

Term of entry (Fall/Summer/Spring)

The rank and reputation of the University

The student to faculty ratio of the college

The location of the school (Big city/Small town/Rural setup)

The climatic conditions (not to be stressed, unless you have health constraints)

Pre-application

A pre-application is a tentative list of schools that you would like to apply to. On the basis of your academic profile, your probable test scores and financial ability compile a list of universities to which you must send a letter requesting further information. At this stage, you can write to the selected 25-30 universities. You can directly request application materials from the universities. There are three ways to get application forms.

Requesting Application Forms via email

Requesting Application Forms via Air Mail

Downloading from the university website

Documents Required For Admission

Completed Application form

Essay/s or writing sample

Statement of Purpose required for graduates and optional for undergraduates

Resume for MBA Students

Letter from Bank stating – funds available for study

Affidavit of Financial Support i.e. letter signed from sponsor or parent

Transcripts and Mark sheets from College or University

Certificates of Extracurricular Activities

Recommendation Letters

Letter of reference or recommendation letter plays a very important role in the admission process especially for Master’s and Doctoral courses. A recommendation letter is a signed statement from a person who knows you well professionally or has taught you in a subject that is related to the course you are applying to. It should list your positive and negative qualities, strengths and weaknesses, your character and integrity and other such information.

The author or teacher must indicate his position, how long he/she has known the applicant and in what capacity. He/she should briefly discuss the need, importance and usefulness of the study the applicant proposes to undertake. Authors are usually asked to rank applicants in their letters of recommendation, which helps admission officers to interpret the academic credentials of foreign students. Students should obtain letters of recommendation (often on the prescribed forms sent by the institutions) from teachers who know them as a person as well as a student. You may like to request your author to give concrete examples that may show your qualities and help your case.

Essays / Statement of Purpose

The personal essays, and/or statement of purpose, also play a very important role in the process of evaluating your application for both admission as well as financial aid because it gives the faculty, assessing your application, information about you as an individual. For MBA candidates this is probably the most important criterion. In the statement of purpose, which must be concise, the student must define his or her academic goals, and/or research plans. It should include justification for choosing the academic program and specialization, and for selecting the particular college as well as the advantages and benefit of studying that particular course.

The first step to be able to study at a recognized Canadian education Institution is to be accepted by that institution – this is usually in the form of a Offer Letter.

Once a student has determined what course to study and at which universities, s/he must contact the registrar’s office at each of these universities and obtain an application form for a Bachelor’s or Professional degree. For; Post Graduate Studies (aka Graduate Studies), s/he must contact the dean of graduate studies at the universities that interest her/him. It is important to apply early.

When to apply:

Many universities have deadlines for application submission and this must be kept in mind while applying. In general, though, an international students would be required to apply around 8-9 or even 12 months before the start of classes (intake). Semesters typically start in September (fall or autumn) and in January (winter). However, some institutions have May intakes or even ‘rolling admissions’ (especially for higher education such as PhD) when students are admitted throughout the year depending on availability of the advisor or guide.

Calendars with course descriptions, admission requirements and procedures, costs and scholarships are available from the registrar at each university.

Engineering, optometry, medicine, veterinary medicine, law, and dentistry are fields where the first professional degree is considered an undergraduate program. Limited seats are available contingent on your academic merit. International students must have obtained very high percentage of marks for such courses, and some would even require the student to have completed at least two years of undergraduate study in specific subjects before embarking on the professional course. Entrance exams specific to the professional courses (such as DAT for Dentistry) too may be required to be given by the student.

This listing provides a general outline of requirements for students interested in applying to a university undergraduate program in Canada. There are a wide variety of programs to choose from at this level.

Please note that specific requirements for institutions will vary and students are encouraged to check directly with the institution(s) they are interested in for specific admissions requirements.

Successful completion of the equivalent of a Canadian secondary school academic program with strong marks.

Proof of strong proficiency in English (or French if studies in French). Students may be required to provide proof of language proficiency by way of a language proficiency test (For example TOEFL, IELTS).

Generally, Francophone universities require international students to complete their own test of French proficiency.

Some institutions have other forms of English or French language assessment; they may offer their own language proficiency test or, may admit students to academic programs on the basis of having successfully completed that institution’s language program.

This listing provides a general outline of requirements for students interested in applying to a university graduate program in Canada. There are a wide variety of programs to choose from at this level.

Please note that specific requirements for institutions will vary and students are encouraged to check directly with the institution(s) they are interested in for specific admissions requirements.

Completion of an acceptable undergraduate degree from an accredited/recognized university

High level of academic achievement in previous studies

Strong reference letters

Written Statements

Standardized tests such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT)

This listing provides a general outline of admissions requirements for students interested in applying to an engineering program in Canada. Program length for engineering is typically four years of full-time study.

Acedemic

Successful completion of the equivalent of a Canadian secondary school academic program with strong marks.Although some institutions may request above 70% or B average for their academic admission requirement, many engineering programs are highly competitive thus making the standard for entry requirements quite high, above 80% or A average at some institutions. Admission officers are looking for students with exceptionally strong marks in mathematics, chemistry and English.

Language

Strong proficiency in English (or French if studies in French). A TOEFL (iBT) is required for most institutions, minimum score required is 90. Many institutions accept equivalent tests such as IELTS.