Top Universities of Canada

Top  Universities of Canada

Canada, also known as The True North, contains some of the top universities in the world, according to the Times Higher Education’s World University Rankings 2020. These academic institutions offer exceptional opportunities for higher learning. If you’re an international student hoping to study abroad, Canadian universities offer many different programs and degrees for you to choose from.

Obtaining a Canadian Study Permit will get you one step closer to studying at one of Canada’s world-class research institutions and learning in either English or French. Not sure which school is right for you?

Many of Canada’s universities are renowned for promoting a global outlook by recruiting international students and faculty and encouraging international collaborations, so you can expect a cosmopolitan atmosphere on campus.

According to the Canadian Bureau for International Education’s International Student Survey, more than 90 percent of students questioned were satisfied or very satisfied with their studies in Canada, and 95 percent would recommend Canada as a study destination.

Top Universities for Studies are Listed Below:

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is among the world’s most prestigious universities. Founded in 1827, it offers over 700 undergraduate degrees and 200 postgraduate degree programmers to a cohort of almost 60,000 students.

With a longstanding reputation for innovation and research, the University of Toronto was the birthplace of such ground-breaking scientific moments as the discovery of insulin and stem cell research, and the invention of the electron microscope.

The university also cites teaching as strength in disciplines spanning medicine, business, engineering, humanities, education, and more. With a reputation for producing leaders, it counts five Canadian prime ministers among its former students and associations with 10 Nobel laureates. Other notable alumni include the actor Donald Sutherland and the writers Margaret Atwood and Michael Ondaatje.

It is a multi-campus university, with its St George campus in downtown Toronto likened to Oxford and Cambridge on account of its mix of green space and historical architecture. The university’s Mississauga campus, on the banks of the Credit River to the west of the city, includes 225 acres of protected green belt, while its Scarborough campus is home to a new aquatics center.

The university attracts many sports fans and boasts a fearsome reputation in both football and ice-hockey. Other campus attractions include more than 1,000 student organizations in addition to a recreational center and student facilities that include an art gallery, theatre, and concert hall.

Toronto itself is one of the most dynamic, vibrant cities in the world, one which places a high priority on arts and culture, and diversity and tolerance.

University of British Columbia

The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a global center for teaching, learning, and research, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world and recently recognized as North America’s most international university.

Since 1915, our motto, Tuum Est. (It is yours), has been a declaration of our commitment to attracting and supporting those who have the drive to shape a better world. As a result, UBC students, faculty, and staff continue to embrace innovation and challenge the status quo, placing us at the forefront of discovery, learning, and engagement. UBC encourages bold thinking, curiosity, and initiative, so you can realize your greatest potential.

As one of the world’s top research universities, the University of British Columbia has created positive change at home and abroad for more than a century. Today our two major campuses in Vancouver and the Okanagan—attract, nurture and transform more than 65,000 students from Canada and 140+ countries around the world.

McGill University

McGill is the oldest university in Montreal and one of just three English-language universities in Quebec. It is a public research institution that takes its name from the Glaswegian merchant, James McGill, whose bequest in 1813 led to the formation of McGill College. In 1829 it was established as the nation’s first faculty of medicine.

The university is made up of 11 faculties, with 11 schools, all housed in 300 buildings. It caters to roughly 40,000 students, 24% of whom come from over 150 countries.  This makes it the most internationally diverse medical-doctoral university in Canada. It offers degrees and diplomas in over 300 areas of study.

McGill has an alumni network of roughly 250,000 living in over 180 countries. These include singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, actor William Shatter and astronaut Dave Williams. It also boasts 12 Nobel Prize winners and 140 Rhodes Scholars, more than any other university in the country.

Eureka moments associated with McGill include the discovery that atoms can be divided, the first map of the brain’s motor cortex, and the invention of Plexiglas. McGill also lays claim to the invention of modern American football, hockey, and basketball. The university library is made up of 13 smaller branches and holds over six million items in total.

McMaster University

McMaster University is located in Hamilton, Ontario with the main campus situated on 121 hectares of land near Hamilton’s Royal Botanical Gardens.

The university is named after William McMaster, a prominent Canadian senator and banker who donated C$900,000 to found the institution.

McMaster’s medical school is world-renowned and there are also faculties of engineering, business, humanities, social sciences, and science. The university places a strong emphasis on research working to target some of the most urgent needs in society, particularly in the field of health sciences. This includes research from the Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute, which turned bits of human skin into blood cells, which could help to alleviate the shortage of blood donors.

Students and faculty come from more than 90 countries and the university holds some 70 international exchange agreements with universities around the world.

University of Montreal

The only Francophone University in the top five, the University of Montreal is the second-largest university in the country in terms of student numbers, with more than 37,000 students enrolled. A quarter of all students are international.

The University of Montreal’s main campus is on the slopes of Mount Royal. The distinctive central building was built in an Art Deco style. Seventy-four percent of the student body is enrolled on an undergraduate degree. A students’ union represents undergraduate and postgraduate students and it has three affiliated fraternities and sororities.

University sport is popular – the teams are known as the Carrabin and compete in badminton, Canadian football, and hockey, among other sports. Many renowned business leaders are graduates of the university, including Louis R. Chênevert, chief executive officer of the United Technologies Corporation. Other graduates are noted for their contributions to scientific research, including innovations in nuclear power, visual perception, and quantum cryptography.

University of Waterloo

In 1957, innovation and entrepreneurship brought the University of Waterloo into being, as a group of business leaders imagined a new university built to tackle some of the world’s most daunting challenges.

It was the age of the Cold War and the space race when a single computer filled a room. Discoveries in science, medicine, and engineering were coming fast and furious. Industry leaders in Kitchener-Waterloo knew moving forward meant more than just training people in the technology of the day.

The best and brightest are drawn to the University of Waterloo for our renowned academic programs, world-leading co-operative education, and teaching and research excellence. We embrace the opportunity to collaborate with and be elevated by, a world-class peer group.

Western University

The initial aspirations of Bishop Hellmuth carry through to the internationally known research of our top scholars today. These leaders of vision, courage, and imagination have always looked to the future in shaping Western University.

Founded on March 7, 1878, by Bishop Isaac Hellmuth (1817–1901) ‘The Western University of London Ontario’ opened its doors to students for the first time in 1881. Four faculties – Arts, Divinity, Law, and Medicine were there at Western's inception.

In 1916, the current campus was purchased from the Kings mill family, and in 1923 the university was renamed The University of Western Ontario.

Since that first class graduated in 1883, the university has become a vibrant center of learning. Through 12 faculties and three affiliated university colleges, Western today offers its 36,000-plus students more than 400 specializations, majors, and minors.

Queen's University

Queen’s University is highly-ranked in Canada for student experience, taking an inclusive approach and offering learning beyond the classroom; this experience includes the most clubs per capita of any Canadian University as well as a robust international exchange program with more than 220 partners.

Queen’s research-intensive environment and interdisciplinary program offerings provide students with the comprehensive and nimble skills required in today’s competitive and evolving workforce with 91% of Queen’s grads employed within six months after graduation.

Bolstered by the outstanding reputations of its scholars and researchers -- including 2015 Nobel Prize winner Arthur B. McDonald -- a Queen’s education can provide unparalleled access to careers and personal development opportunities around the world. With particular academic strengths in physics, cancer research, geo-engineering, data analytics, and social sciences like surveillance studies and mental health, the university sets graduates up for excellence across disciplines.

Home to more than 24,000 students, Queen’s boasts an undergraduate graduation rate of 93%, diverse learning opportunities, a broad range of students services and supports, unmistakable school spirit, and a tight-knit global network of 159,000 alumni in 153 countries. Ultimately, to graduate from Queen’s University is to join an international community of lifelong learners and accomplished leaders.