Ontario University Fair in Toronto This Weekend

The Ontario University Fair will be held this weekend at the Metro Toronto Convention. I highly recommend attending if you’re in Grade 11 or 12.

It’s a great opportunity to communicate with and get information from a number of universities in one location. This will also help you to narrow your choices. I caution you, however, don’t make decisions based on the personality (or lack thereof) of the representative you speak to.

Here’s how to get the best out of the fair:

1.   Know which universities will participate

2. Do your preliminary research of each university from their website

3. Make a list of each university and your questions that weren’t answered on the website or you need further clarification. Yes, you should bring a small note pad and pen with you.

4. Get a new email address that both student and parent will have access to. This allows the parents and kids to receive and read emails from the universities.

5. Dress comfortably, you may be there longer than you anticipate

6. Metro Toronto Centre is quite large, once you enter review the floor plan and start your trek around the room

7. If current students or alumni are available, do make a point to ask about their experience. But the reality is – their experience was positive that’s why they are there. So try to ask more specific questions, for example, “what other universities they applied to and why they chose this one?” or “if they could change one thing what would that be?” or “what’s their personal highlight?” Also, ask the university representatives if there is anyone there specifically from the program you wish to apply to.

8. Make a note of the answers to your questions (you’ll forget or get confused later on at home)

9. Get the business card of any university representative you meet. Send them a quick note to thank them for their help a day or two later. This contact can be invaluable in the coming months.

10. Use your new email address to sign up to get further information from your short list of universities.

Good luck!

Keeping Universities Honest

Early January is always an interesting time of year. High schools students are returning to school and are either finishing their university applications or anxiously waiting for results of university applications already submitted.

As a mother of a first year university student, I had some precious days with my son. I was able to ask, once again, about some of the details we were advised of during our research. Two features impressed us and played in significant part in him ultimately choosing that university and program. 

In our discussions with the program’s professors and administrators we learned that there are many on-campus volunteer opportunities that are very relevant to the courses he will be taking. Furthermore, many outside organizations frequently ask the program for volunteers to work in areas related to their studies.

Well it turns out that there are no specific on campus volunteer opportunities. The faculty members and administrators may have been referring to another program. Also, there were only three emails in three months from organizations requesting volunteers and all were 3-4 hours away from the university. This is a disappointing realization. But you can learn from our experience. Although we spoke to current students we didn’t ask about them about these ‘facts’.

I’m even more convinced now that the best way to keep universities honest is to verify ALL information with current students. I recently found a website where you can read reviews from current students. It’s a US site, but many Canadian universities are reviewed.

The site is called unigo and here’s the link: www.unigo.com. You also have the opportunity, for USD$50, to speak to students. It may seem expensive but it’s worth it as this is the best way to get the information that you need.

Good luck!

Canada's Top Universities

As the school year ends, you should be finalizing and prioritizing your university applications. Here is a new, updated list of Canada’s top universities to help you make your final choices. You’ll be able to compare the November 2011 Maclean’s rankings (overall ranking, plus the best medical doctoral, comprehensive and primarily undergraduate universities), the October 2011 Globe and Mail report (letter grade of overall student satisfaction), Times Higher Education Global ranking and QS Global ranking.

University	Maclean's Best Overall Canadian University	Maclean's Medical Doctoral Canadian University	Maclean's Comprehensive Canadian University	Maclean's Primarily Undergraduate Canadian University	Globe & Mail Overall Student Satisfaction	Times Higher Education Global Top 200 Universities	QS Global Top 300 Universities
University of Waterloo	1		3		B+		160
McGill University	2	1			B	28	17
University of Toronto	3	2			B-	19	23
University of British Columbia	4	3			B+	22	51
University of Alberta	5	5			B	100	100
McMaster University	6	6			B+	65	159
Queen's University	7	4			A	173	144
Simon Fraser University	8		1		B		260
Universite de Sherbrooke	9	14			A-
University of Western Ontario	10	9			A-		157
University of Saskatchewan	11	10			B
University of Guelph	12		4		A-
University of Victoria	13		2		B+	177	292
Ryerson University	14		13		B
Memorial University of Newfoundland	15		5		B
Dalhousie University	16	6			B+		234
Universite de Montreal	17	12			NA	104	137
Universite Laval	18	12			NA
St. Francis Xavier	19			6	A-
University of Calgary	20	8			B-		218
Mount Allison University	21			1	A-
Acadia University	22			2	A
University of Winnipeg	23			10	B
Wilfrid Laurier University	24		11		B+
Concordia University	25		12		B
University of Ottawa	26	10			B-	185	256
University of Regina	27		10		B-
University of Manitoba	28	15			B-
University of Lethbridge	29			4	B+
York University	30		9		C+
University of New Brunswick	31	6			B
Saint Mary's University	32			9	B
University of Ontario Institute of Technology	33			11	B
Carleton University	34		7		B
University of Prince Edward Island	35			4	B+
Bishop's University	36			8	NA
University of Northern British Columbia	37			3	B+
Brock University	38		15		B
Universite du Quebec a Montreal	39		13		NA
Trent University	40			7	B+
St. Thomas University	41			14	A-
University of Windsor	42		8		B-
Universite de Moncton	43			15	NA
Brandon University	44			15	B+
Laurentian University	45			11	B-
Mount Saint Vincent University	46			17	B
Lakehead University	47			11	B-
Nipissing University	48			19	B+
Cape Breton University	49			18	B