Canada is a country known for its hockey, maple syrup, and brutally cold weather. But guess what it’s also famous for? Education. Hosting more than 100 universities that grant degrees that are renowned worldwide and among them having 5 universities among the top 100 universities in the world! With an amazing quality of education but a limited number of universities compared to the US, comes a very competitive race that you ought to run and finish smartly. We’re pretty sure if you are here reading this article, you might want to know what all these universities in Canada look for in a profile to grant admission. In that case, hold on to your seats and buckle up.
For the past 3 years, Canada has been among the top 3 countries for education after considering some factors like no. of international students going to Canada, quality of education, job prospects, research facilities, etc. Now, let’s discuss what are the important factors in an applicant’s profile which the Canadian Universities seek.
Academic GPA
GPA is something that shows your graph of performance during your undergrad education. Your GPA speaks a lot about yourself, so the Canadian Universities focus more on the core subjects when you have opted to do your Masters in the same field. On the other hand, if you want to shift your stream into a different one after your undergrad, the University Department checks that particular subject’s GPA (if there). Canadian Universities emphasize GPA more than many countries because they don’t even consider any common exams like GRE. There are very few universities that recommend GRE but no university requires it as such.
So, if you want to get into some of the top universities your GPA must be competitive. Many applicants apply to these universities and as there are no other “academic criteria” Canadian Universities focus on GPA more.
English Proficiency Tests
Canadian Universities accept the IELTS (International English Language Examination Testing System), MELAB (Michigan English Language Assessment Battery), Canadian Academic English Language Assessment (CAEL), Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE) and Test of English Language as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exams as the official exams for English Proficiency. English Proficiency Tests are one of the most important criteria to be considered for admission. When considering IELTS, unlike the USA, Canada focuses more on individual band scores. The maximum band an IELTS exam-taker can achieve is 9.0. By individual band score, we mean there are four sections in the IELTS exam, Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. All the individual band scores should cross the threshold that the University has set.
For instance, some courses in the University of Waterloo have an IELTS requirement for Masters as 7.0 overall band score and no band less than 6.0 (i.e. individual minimum band score of 6.0) whereas University of Alberta has an IELTS requirement of 6.5 overall band score and no band less than 5.5 for masters. For TOEFL, almost all universities that accept TOEFL have an individual requirement of 21+ scores.
Research Papers, Internships, and Projects
Research Papers, Internships, and Projects are pretty much important in every university all around the world for higher education. It shows your interest in a particular stream. For example, if an applicant wants to go in the research line the applicant’s profile is evaluated with regards to research papers. If an applicant wants to go into the industrial sector and hence has opted for coursework or non-thesis stream, the projects or internships are given emphasis.
Essays, SOP and LOR
SOP and Essays allow you to prove your capabilities in a particular course and why you want to pursue higher education in that course. Moreover, it gives the University Officials answers to many questions like why did you choose this stream, why have you selected this university? etc. LOR is an aspect which shows your ability and connection with the recommender. A LOR can make your profile look stronger because if some person is recommending you, who has worked with you or taught you in the same line, it shows your competence, confidence and learning ability.
These are some of the criteria that are considered by almost all Canadian Universities. To create a really strong and consolidated profile, you need to furnish all of these aspects in your application, if you are targeting Canada as your international destination for education.
So, if you are not ready with your application yet, Now is the time to build your profile and see yourself flying to Canada for higher education.