Select a link to jump to an article.

Important for Year 12 | Update Naviance

Students must update their Naviance account indicating all of the universities they are applying to and the outcome of their applications (accepted, deferred, waitlisted, denied). If you have already decided which university you are attending, please indicate that in Naviance under: College that I'm attending. For our office to best support students, it is important that we know decision outcomes, especially now that offers from the most selective U.S. and Canadian university programs will begin to roll out.

Important for Year 12 | Accepting offers from Ontario universities

Many Year 12 students are beginning to receive conditional offers of admission from universities. They may have some choices to make—which is exciting. The University Counselling Office is happy to help students evaluate their choices. Students should know that the dates on which universities make offers vary by university and by program. Highly selective programs, for example, tend to be the last to make offers.

In the case of Ontario universities, students must respond to an offer of admission online through the OUAC website. Accepting an offer of admission from one university does not cancel the candidate’s application to other universities. However, an applicant may have only one acceptance of an offer from an Ontario university on file at any given time.

If students accept an offer of admission from one university, they may change their minds if they get a later offer from one that they would prefer to attend. They simply cancel the previously accepted offer and indicate their revised choice. 

In April, we once again send updates of student grades to OUAC. These grades will be transmitted to Ontario universities (and to out-of-province universities that subscribe to the OUAC database). As a result of these grades, some students will receive conditional offers of admission in April or May.

Important for Year 12 | Accepting offers from Canadian (non-Ontario) universities

Canadian universities vary in their deadlines for accepting offers of admission and may have earlier deadlines. All Ontario universities to which students have applied must respond to applicants by May 27 with either an offer of admission, a refusal, or a deferral pending receipt of additional information. For Ontario universities, June 1 is the earliest date by which universities may require a response from students. 

Out-of-province universities have no common deadline by which they require a response to offers of admission, so it is critical that students check the information sent to them by the individual schools from which they have received a conditional offer. Some of these schools (e.g. McGill, Sauder School of Business at UBC) may have a May 1 response deadline. If these deadlines occur before students have heard from all of their choices, they can ask the university for a deadline extension (which they sometimes grant). The only risk in doing so is that they may miss out on the opportunity for a space in residence.

Standardized tests | SAT and ACT

Are standardized tests (SAT/ACT) about to make a comeback? Are you and your students ready?

Following the challenges posed by the Covid pandemic, high school students faced difficulties in taking the SAT and ACT exams. Consequently, numerous American colleges abandoned their mandatory testing requirements for applicants. Originally considered a temporary measure, the majority of these institutions have continued to adopt a test-optional policy. This shift not only responds to the pandemic's impact but also aligns with a broader trend of skepticism toward standardized tests, predating the pandemic. Many applaud this change as a step towards greater fairness in higher education.

Nevertheless, an increasing number of experts and university administrators are beginning to question the wisdom of this transition. Recent research indicates that standardized test scores provide valuable insights, aiding in the prediction of college performance, graduation likelihood, and success post-graduation. Notably, test scores are viewed as more reliable indicators than high school grades, partly due to the prevalence of grade inflation in recent years.

Last week, Dartmouth announced that they will be reinstating the requirement of either the ACT/SAT for domestic applicants applying for admission in 2025. M.I.T and Georgetown made similar announcements in 2022. 

There are basically three approaches colleges and universities adopt when it comes to standardized test requirements — test free, test optional or test required.

Now that Dartmouth, Georgetown and MIT require all applicants to submit standardized test scores, who will follow? In the short term, we are going to continue seeing the majority of colleges in the US continue with the test optional approach. Unfortunately, this choice causes a lot of consternation among applicants. What does “optional” really mean? If I don’t submit, am I at a disadvantage? Will they consider me equally if I do not submit test scores? These are all good questions that exacerbate the anxiety fueled mania around college admissions. 

In a perfect admissions landscape, it would be ideal for colleges and universities to come out and simply declare their preference and avoid this vague middle ground. Unfortunately, this is not the case. 

So what to do?

First of all, speak to your counsellor. They  can help you identify colleges in the US that would be good fits that may be test free. If you are considering schools that are test-optional, you are likely to be advised to take the test.

How and when to prepare for standardized tests:

Your perfect test date comes down to scheduling and planning. Consider how much time you’ll need to prep, how packed your schedule is, and how many times you plan to take the test.

ACT test dates

Every year, there are 7 ACT dates: September, October, December, February, April, June and July. Some take the ACT the spring of their junior year because the content of the math test includes topics some curricula do not cover before then. However, these topics appear in only a handful of questions, and many Year 11s can take their first ACT in the fall or winter.

SAT test sates

SAT is given 7 times a year: March, May, June, August, October, November and December. Although you may take the SAT any time starting Year 9, most students take it for the first time in the spring of their Year 11 and possibly retake it in the fall of their Year 12.

Every school in the country regards the SAT and the ACT as equals and receives them interchangeably. The tests themselves are different. Whereas the ACT is a subject-based test designed to measure what you have learned in the classroom, the SAT is a deductive reasoning test. Try one of each. Which one suits you best? Focus on preparing for and taking that test. You own the results and can control where they are sent.

Choosing your best test dates

Consider your own schedule and plan ahead when picking your test dates. Do you act in the spring musical or are busy with spring sports? Have you been dreaming of applying early? We recommend taking your first SAT or ACT test as early as your schedule allows. If you plan to take both tests, plan to take them in consecutive months for the most efficient prep. Comprehensive prep courses can start as many as 8 to 10 weeks before the test.

How many times should you take the ACT and/or SAT?

For security reasons, ACT will not let you take the exam more than twelve times, and technically the SAT is unlimited. We recommend that you plan to take the ACT and/or SAT 1–3 times. Once you get the score you want, there’s no reason to take it again. Taking standardized tests is not an extracurricular activity!

ACT’s and SAT’s serve as competitive credentials—the bigger the scores the better. The following are a few tips to consider as you factor testing and test prep into your plans for applying to U.S. colleges. Students can “super-score” test results by compiling the best combination of subscores from the tests (ACT or SAT) you have taken. For example, if you have taken the SAT several times, they will match your best evidence-based reading and writing score (that might have come on your third test) with your best math result (that might have come on your second test). You must therefore disclose all attempts to the colleges for them to find the best subscores.

Colleges are fond of reporting high scores for their entering classes. The further your “scores” fall below the mid-point of the reported range of scores at a college, the less likely you will be admitted at that college. Target places, then, where your scores are in the top half, if not the top quartile, of the distribution of scores for admitted students in the past year.

Both testing agencies (SAT and ACT) concede that the tests can be “coached.” As a result, test prep may be a viable option for you. In considering test prep, be discriminating about the provider. Make sure you are comfortable with the style of instruction and, frankly, the instructor. A bad match can negate the potential good that can come from the exercise. Time your test prep so the instruction ends no more than two weeks prior to the test you plan to take. Proven—and less expensive—test prep alternatives include reviewing practice tests (available in bookstores) and personal reading in various genres.

Finally, don’t obsess on it. Although test results can be pivotal in many objective selection processes (where “numbers” carry the day), they are merely one part of the selection processes at other places that are more holistic in their assessments. Finding the best college “fit,” then, is vital to your eventual success. Places that value you for what you have to offer will be more inclined to look beyond your test results out of respect for what they might gain by admitting you

Oxford undergraduate international recruitment

Webinar for students and parents

Both students and their parents are welcome to attend this information session offered by Oxford University.

Session Title: Applying to Oxford: the support available and where to find it

Date: Wednesday, February 28 2024

Start Time 10:00 (GMT)

Click here to register (AM)

Start Time 16:00 (GMT)

Click here to register (PM)

Year 9 to 12 | University of Toronto Medicine Youth Summer Program

Med YSP offers students the opportunity to learn about science/medicine and conduct life science labs. Join students from across Canada and the world to explore various diseases, the next generation of treatments, and what it takes to become a health professional. Learn more about the summer offerings here.

Held at the University of Toronto, St. George Campus In-person for students in Years 10 to 12 (2023–24 academic year). Year 9 students are eligible for Module 2: Microbiology.

Academic Modules

Module 1: Human Physiology - Discover How The Body Works

Monday, July 8 to Friday, July 12, 2024

Module 2: Microbiology - Learn To Appreciate The Little Things in Life

Monday, July 15 to Friday, July 19, 2024

Module 3: Molecular Biology and Genetics - Applications in Forensics & Medicine

Monday, July 22 to Friday, July 26, 2024

Module 4: Pharmacology & Toxicology - Medications, Drugs & The Body

Monday, July 29 to Friday, August 2, 2024

SIGN UP | Canadian universities open house and campus tours

U.K. university visits in March

• University of Dundee 

     February 29 @ 1:30 p.m.

     In the UCO

• Queen's University Belfast 

March 4 @ 1:30 p.m.

Room 128

• University of Bristol

March 4 @ 1:30 p.m.

In the UCO

• University of Birmingham

March 7 @ 1:30 p.m.

Room 138 A