Education System in Canada
Educational system of Canada is very much like the one in the USA, but there are certain differences.
Canadian UNIs in comparison with the USA ones
Firstly, in Canada, education is the responsibility of each province and territory. Provincial governments provide the majority of funding to their public post-secondary institutions, with the remainder of funding coming from tuition fees, the federal government, and research grants. Also in each province there are different rules. Quebec is standing out of a list of Canadian provinces. For example, school and universities studies last there longer for year or two, education is compulsory for everyone until 18 (in other provinces until 16) etc.
If you want to enter any Canadian university, you should firstly contact provincial and territorial government ministries responsible for education:
Alberta — Alberta Innovation and Advanced Education
British Columbia—Ministry of Advanced Education
Manitoba—Advanced Education
New Brunswick—Ministry of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour
Newfoundland and Labrador—Department of Advanced Education and Skills
Northwest Territories—Ministry of Education, Culture and Employment
Nova Scotia—Department of Education
Nunavut—Department of Education
Ontario—Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities
Prince Edward Island—Department of Innovation and Advanced Learning
Quebec— Ministère de l'Éducation, de l'Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche
Saskatchewan—Ministry of Advanced Education
Yukon—Department of Education
Secondly, unlike the United States, there is no «accreditation body» that oversees the universities in Canada. Universities in Canada have degree-granting authority via an Act or Ministerial Consent from the Ministry of Education of the particular province.
Many Canadians remain polarized on the issue of permitting private universities into the Canadian market. On the one hand, Canada’s top universities find it difficult to compete with the private American powerhouses because of funding, but on the other hand, the fact that the price of private universities tends to exclude those who cannot pay that much for their education could prevent a significant portion of Canada’s population from being able to attend these schools.
Getting a degree in law, medicine, dentistry or engineering usually takes 3—4 years of studying. University tuition fees vary among different provinces. All provinces also have public non-university institutions. They are regional colleges, institutes of technology, institutes of applied arts, colleges of agricultural technology and others. Criteria for admission to these institutions are less strict.
Some fee statistics:
Average living costs: 11000 (Canadian Dollar)
Home students tuition fees: Minimum: 1800−17000 (Canadian Dollar)
Foreign students tuition fees: Minimum: 5000−45000 (Canadian Dollar)
For higher education, there are several options.
College in Canada
If you are preparing for higher education or you do want to get an undergraduate degree (BA), you should apply to college. In Canada, the term college usually refers to a community college or a technical, applied arts, or applied science school.
University in Canada
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. You should apply to UNI for undergraduate and graduate degrees (BA, MA).
Graduate school in Canada
A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees (i.e graduate, postgraduate degrees — MA, PhD)
The most reputed, popular colleges and universities in Canada, are:
McGill University, Montreal.
University of Toronto, Toronto.
The University of British Columbia, Vancouver.
University of Alberta, Edmonton.
Queen's University, Kingston.
Universite de Montreal, Montreal (Quebec).
University of Waterloo, Waterloo.
University of Calgary, Calgary.
University of Western Ontario, London (Ontario).
McMaster University, Hamilton (Ontario)
Julia Linnik