Finding the best university in Canada is a matter of personal taste and preference. How do I know I’m going to the best university in Canada? What IS the best university in Canada? As you’ll soon see, the answer to these questions must take into account a lot of different criteria. First and foremost, it goes without saying that universities in Canada vary significantly across the country and across educational specialities.
Unofficially, university ranking in Canada doesn’t really mean much unless you take into account the size and focus of the school. For example, in general, Canadian universities can be divided into small, mid-size, and large university lists. Usually (but not always) the smaller universities may only offer undergraduate programs or specialize in the undergraduate degrees primarily. Mid-size universities may have some strong graduate programs, internships or specialized work placement programs, or college relationships as well. Large universities tend to have a strong undergraduate program with an even stronger emphasis on various streams of graduate schools and degrees. As you can see size is more than the physical layout of the campus.
So the top 10 university in Canada list may differ radically if you’re in the market for a Bachelor of Arts degree instead of say the best MBA business school in Canada. It’s also worth noting another newer class of ‘university’ which is really just a specialized college that has been granted certain degree granting status. For these “university-colleges”, you’ll only be able to obtain certain Bachelor degrees, NOT graduate degrees like a Master’s or a Doctorate.
Top Ten University in Canada and Good Universities in Canada
To find the best (top 100 universities in Canada), you will have to establish your criteria. Factor should include, international reputation, specific degree program specialization/reputation, campus life, library and research resources, tuition fees, class sizes (or students to professor ratios), job market hiring practises and preferences, word of mouth, historical richness/tradition, school location, average starting salary upon graduation, average entering grades/GPA, strength of graduate degree programs, etc.
I’ve only named a few factors to consider. Once you have an idea of what you’re looking for, I suggest consulting Maclean’s Magazine university rankings. Every year, this Canadian publication ranks all degree granting institutions across Canada based on their own formulas and criteria. This is an excellent starting point and good resource to consult, but don’t make the mistake of relying too strongly on the Macleans rankings. In fact, their ranking of universities in Canada is highly controversial and doesn’t take all factors into account. So always consider all your options and check out the actual schools themselves before making a firm decision.
