8 minsCanada has always been one of the most sought-after destinations for international students, be it for higher studies or jobs. Pandemic or not, the number of Indian students interested in studying in Canada is always on the rise.
We don’t have to tell you about Canada’s general reputation as a country with peace-loving people. This fact is validated by their very low crime rates. The Canadian government and its people embrace diversity and are multicultural. All these factors along with the scenic beauty of Canada makes it a preferred destination for studies, jobs and migration. Let’s check out some of the top universities in Canada. If you are interested in pursuing your higher studies at any institution in Canada, you can reach out to our counsellors for professional guidance.
Which are the top-ranking universities in Canada?
28 universities from Canada made their way into the QS World University Rankings 2022. Of these, three universities namely the University of Toronto, McGill University and the University of British Columbia made it to the top 50.
30 Canadian universities found their place in the Times Higher Education top universities 2021 list that was released on 3 September 2020. Once again, the University of Toronto, the University of British Columbia and McGill University made it to the top 50 in this list too. What makes these universities special? What courses do they have that most Indian students are looking for? Find your answers here.
The University of Toronto
The University of Toronto receives funding from the government and hence is a public university. One of the best universities in Canada, the University of Toronto is also the largest university in the country with three campuses – one each in Downtown Toronto, Mississauga, and Scarborough. The university is known for its research activities spanning over decades.
Did you know that insulin was discovered at the University of Toronto?
The University of Toronto Rankings
The University bagged the 26th place in the QS World University Rankings 2022. The metrics considered for the rankings include academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, the number of citations per faculty, international faculty ratios and international student ratios. They scored an overall of 85.3. They scored above 98 (out of 100) for their academic reputation and international faculty ratio. The university also has a high score for international student ratio.
This is a promising factor as it means that U of T is a preferred institution for a lot of students interested in studying abroad. International students account for around 25 per cent of the total student population at the university and it has a higher number of female students than male students.
The University of Toronto has retained its 18th position in the THE World University Rankings 2021. The THE World University Rankings evaluate five key areas which mostly have more than one factor affecting the score. The five areas are teaching, research, citations, international outlook and industry income. The university scored an overall mark of 86 and scored above 90 in the categories of research and citations. The University of Toronto is indeed a research-oriented university.
Popular courses at the University of Toronto
This top university in Canada offers over 700 undergraduate and 200 graduate programmes spread across subject areas including:
- Anthropology
- Accounting
- Applied statistics
- Astronomical sciences
- Bioinformatics
- Engineering
- English
- Biotechnology
- Environmental studies and many more.
The postgraduate courses popular amongst international students are master’s degrees in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and computer science.
The undergraduate courses that draw students in include a bachelor’s degree in computer science with honours, a Bachelor of Computer Science and a Bachelor of Business Administration.
If you are interested in applying to the University of Toronto, make sure that you score a minimum of 7.0 in IELTS for a postgraduate course and a minimum of 6.5 for an undergraduate course.
The University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia offers around 500 bachelor’s and master’s degrees. They are famous for their world-class laboratories, modern facilities and their huge research library. It is interesting to know that UBC has produced several Nobel laureates.
In the QS World University Rankings 2022, the University of British Columbia bagged the 46th position with an overall score of 77.1. They scored the highest in having a high academic reputation and employer reputation.
The University of British Columbia had an overall score of 74.8 which got them 45th place in the THE World University Rankings 2021. Their academic reputation score is 97.1 and has more than 15,000 international students on their campus. These reasons are enough to conclude that the University of British Columbia is one of the top universities in Canada.
Popular courses at the University of British Columbia
The subjects taught at UBC are varied and include arts and humanities, physical sciences, psychology, law, life sciences, engineering and technology.
MSc in Computer Science is quite popular at showed a consistent increase in the last three years. Other postgraduate courses preferred by Indian students at the University of British Columbia are the Master of Data Science and Master of Food Science.
Want to know which are the popular undergraduate courses?
Engineering courses like civil engineering and electrical engineering are still popular too. The preference for mechanical engineering is often on the rise.
Bachelor of Applied Science (Engineering), Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Bachelor of Arts in Psychology are the top three courses amongst Indian students looking to study undergraduate courses at the University of British Columbia.
You’ll need a minimum IELTS score of 6.5 for both postgraduate and undergraduate courses.
McGill University
McGill University is a public research institution. The university t boasts an employer reputation score, evaluated by the QS World University Rankings, of 94.1. As per the data by QS, 81 per cent of arts graduates, 95 per cent of Engineering graduates, 91 per cent of medicine graduates, and 84 per cent of science graduates find employment in less than two years after graduation.
The university is situated in the city of Montreal, which is ranked as one of the most student-friendly cities in the world. McGill secured the 27th position in the QS World University Rankings 2022.
The university scored 96.3 for the proportion of international students at the university. This indicates that the university has been successful in attracting students from across the globe. 29 per cent of their students come from countries other than Canada.
When picking the top universities in Canada, you cannot ignore McGill University. McGill has an overall score of 75.1 and they ranked 40th in the THE World University Rankings. McGill scored 91.3 in the ‘International Outlook’ criteria and can lay claim to the best student to staff ratio, with 13:1. If you are interested in finding the best courses you can join at McGill, reach out to our counsellors and they’ll be able to guide you.
Popular courses at McGill University
Interestingly, the postgraduate courses preferred by Indian students at McGill are Masters in food science and agriculture, as well as the Master of Science (Applied) in Biotechnology. Masters in Mechanical Engineering is also quite popular.
The university is more preferred for postgraduate courses than undergraduate courses. Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Engineering and Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science are some of the preferred undergraduate courses at the university.
To apply for postgraduate or undergraduate courses at McGill University, you should have a minimum IELTS score of 6.5.
If your favourite subjects are not available at these universities, worry not. These might be the top three, but these are not the only best universities in Canada. Canada has 100 plus universities, of which more than 25 universities made it to the list of top institutions in the world.
Let’s introduce some more Canadian universities that are popular among your peers.
Top universities in Canada, popular among your peers
Conestoga College
Conestoga College offers career-based guidance, preparing students for the job market. They offer around 200 programmes, of which the diploma programmes are most preferred by your peers. Diploma in Business and Diploma in General Arts are two of the courses popular at this institution.
For Diploma courses, you should have an IELTS score of 6.0 with no band less than 5.5. For degree programmes, an IELTS score of 6.5 with no band less than 6.0 is expected from the applicants.
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is the 7th best in Canada as per the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2021. Imagine studying in an institution that teaches 42,000 students from 155 different countries! The kind of exposure and experience will be immeasurable. Canada’s largest law school is at the University of Ottawa.
Popular masters courses at the University of Ottawa include Masters of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering, Masters of Engineering in Civil Engineering and Masters of Engineering in Chemical Engineering.
Some of the undergraduate courses preferred by Indian students include Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biology, Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Mathematics and Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (Honours).
Indian students who have completed their last three years in an institution with English as the medium of instruction, needn’t submit English proficiency test scores. If you had 75% marks in your English exam, you may not have to prove your language proficiency otherwise. Do check with our counsellors for more up to date information regarding this.
St. Clair College
St. Clair has 3 different campuses within Canada. It is located in the southern part of Canada and is blessed with scenic beauty all around the campuses. The college also offers career advice and guidance through their Career Centers that are located in the Windsor and Chatham campuses.
Mostly, diploma courses are preferred by your peers at St.Clair College. The popular ones include Ontario College Diploma in Business, Diploma in Office Administration, Diploma in Construction and Diploma in Social Service.
The University of Winnipeg
Winnipeg offers courses in Business, Computer Science, Law, Humanities, Creative arts and more. They have more than a thousand international students enrolled with them. You are sure to find peers from India! The class sizes at the University of Winnipeg are comparatively small which is an advantage.
At the University of Winnipeg, Bachelor of Business Administration, Diploma in Supply Chain Management and Bachelor of Science in Biology are some of the popular undergraduate courses.
Trending postgraduate courses include Marketing Management Diploma, Diploma in Network Security, Web Development Diploma and Diploma in Project Management.
George Brown College
Toronto is one of the largest cities in Canada and this is where George Brown College is located. This is beneficial for the students in helping them find work opportunities during and after their studies.
Master of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering, Master of Business Administration, Master of Computer Science and Master of Applied Computer Science are some of the current popular post-graduate courses at George Brown College.
Ontario College Diploma in Business, Ontario College Diploma in Computer Programming, Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Diploma in Business Management are some of the popular courses.
Lambton College
Located in Sarnia, Lambton College is known for helping students be work-ready by the time they graduate. Lambton is one of the best universities in Canada. The safe environment and friendly community are just some of the factors that attract students to Lambton College.
Lambton College offers courses in interesting topics such as Artificial Intelligence, eLearning Design, Big Data Analytics etc.
Graduate Certificate in Cyber Infrastructure is one of the popular postgraduate courses at Lambton College.
Undergraduate courses preferred by Indian students include Ontario College Diploma in Recreational Therapy, Ontario College Diploma in Business and Ontario College Diploma in Tourism – operations.
Fanshawe College
Fanshawe College is located in London. Yeah, you got that right. It is located in London, Ontario, Canada. London is famous for its greenery while also being a cultural hub. If you’d be interested in knowing – Niagara Falls is just a couple of hours drive away from Fanshawe College. More than 6000 international students study at this institution. Your peers here might agree that it is one of the top colleges in Canada.
Graduate Certificate in Business Management, Graduate Certificate in Operations Management and Graduate Certificate in Agri-Business Management are some of the courses popularly opted by Indian students at Fanshawe College.
Some of the popular undergraduate courses include Ontario College Diploma in Early Childhood Education, Ontario College Diploma in Culinary Management and Ontario College Diploma in Business Management.
Canadore College of Applied Arts and Technology
Canadore College is located in Ontario. They offer varied courses in aviation technology, Engineering, Arts and Science and more.
This college is preferred for the undergraduate courses offered. Ontario College Diploma in Business, Ontario College Diploma in Computer Systems, Ontario College Diploma in Mechanical Engineering, Ontario College Diploma in Culinary Management and Ontario College Diploma in Early Childhood Education are some of the trending undergraduate courses for the year 2021/2022.
There are more universities and courses in Canada that you can apply to. Speak to our counsellors for more information and guidance. You can also try out our Course Matcher tool to find the right institution and course for you.
Editor's note: This article was originally published in September 2020. We have included up-to-date information and made it comprehensive.
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