University of Quebec at Trois-Rivieres

The Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) (English: University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières), also known as "l'université du peuple", established in 1969 and mainly located in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada, is a public university within the Université du Québec network. As of April 2016, the university had 14,500 students in 9 different campuses, including the main one in Trois-Rivières. About 788 of them come from overseas, from 50 countries. The university has given more than 88,000 diplomas since its founding. The Trois-Rivières campus also holds a large library with about 400,000 documents.

UQTR was created in 1969 with the merger of the "Centre d'Études universitaires de Trois-Rivières" and "L'école normale d'État Maurice Duplessis" (named after Maurice Duplessis). The first major campus, Ringuet, was opened in 1973 and is located in the vicinity of Des Forges and Des Récollets boulevards near downtown Trois-Rivières. Over the following years, UQTR has expanded outside of the city into several towns in the Centre-du-Québec, Montérégie, Lanaudière, Quebec and Chaudière-Appalaches regions. Over the 1973-2009 time period the university has enjoyed a period of long term growth punctuated by several periods of short term fluctuation.

Admission requirements

International students who wish to register in one of the university's post-graduate programs must have either a bachelor's degree, professional qualifications based on the completion of an advanced study program of at least five years or a diploma recognized as the equivalent of a bachelor's degree from the University.

The University may at any time impose additional courses upon students whose previous training does not meet its standards for equivalency. An official French translation, validated by the Canadian embassy of the student's native country, must accompany each document that is not written in either French or English.

Documents indicating all the prerequisites of admission to the various programs are available for students at the registrar's office. They may be requested in writing or by E-mail.

The Quebec University System

In the province of Quebec, the academic year is divided into three terms - autumn, winter and summer - each of which lasts 15 weeks.

To obtain a degree, a student must pass each course of his or her chosen program. There is a "one-course-at-a-time progression" policy. That is, should a student fail a particular course, he or she is obliged to repeat this course only and not the entire term.

University programs consist of study at the undergraduate, master's and doctoral levels (premier, deuxième et troisième cycles). The undergraduate level leads to the obtaining of various certificates and bachelors' degrees or to a first-cycle doctorate at the end of a program of at least five years of university training.

The master's program includes 45 credits and lasts at least three terms. The master's degree with a thesis (type B) involves the writing of a thesis and helps students develop and refine their research skills. The master's degree without a thesis, or the professional master's (type A), aims to develop practical skills. It includes various learning activities and requires the student to submit a report concerning his or her research studies and tutorial work. International students who wish to register in a master's program must have their undergraduate degree recognized as the equivalent of a UQTR bachelor's degree.

The doctorate consists of 90 credits and lasts at least six terms. Its purpose is to train researchers by providing them with an in-depth understanding of a particular subject or of a broader field of research. The doctorate includes 70 to 90 research credits. In addition, a student must present a thesis that adds new knowledge to his or her chosen field and paves the way for new applications.

The university is represented in Canadian Interuniversity Sport by the UQTR Patriotes which has teams in swimming, golf, hockey, soccer, cheerleading, and volleyball.