Path to Your Future. Things to Consider.

There really is – or should be - no big mystery about submitting a competitive application to your favorite Ontario Universities. A careful reading of a university handbook or website, or a chat with an admissions advisor should make your application process very clear.

You could also browse eINFO for a wealth of information – including admission criteria - for any of the province’s 21 universities.

You also should be realistic about your chances of receiving an offer from your top choices. What kind of grades will typically make students eligible for admission consideration? You might want to check whether alternative offers will be automatically generated if for some reason you are not admitted to your program of choice.

Remember you can apply to up to three Universities, or three programs at the same university, on the initial application, so please take care with all your choices – it’s wise to ensure that you give yourself more than one option.

When deciding on programs, you could do worse than to heed the advice of Shakespeare, who wrote, over 400 years ago:

“No profit grows where is no pleasure taken;. . . . . . study what you most affect (enjoy)”

To learn more about Western’s application process, including admission criteria, just click here.

At Western, we understand how difficult the post-secondary application process can seem. To help you get accepted to your favorite programs at your top school, we have prepared these top 10 suggestions.

1. Make sure you have – or will have – all appropriate high school prerequisites for the program to which you are applying.

2. Find out if having a “recommended” course or courses makes a difference to your admissibility – in other words, will preference be given to an applicant who has any recommended courses?

3. Watch deadlines very carefully – however great your marks might be, if there’s a deadline to be met for any part of your application, and you don’t meet it, your application may not be considered.

4. Make sure you investigate any additional criteria – does your program require written submissions, essays, interviews, portfolios or auditions?

5. Will your university be sending you a “Supplemental Information Request Form ” of some kind, in which you can outline details of your extracurricular involvements (Clubs, Sports, Volunteer Work etc)? Are such forms mandatory, or optional?

6. If you face specific challenges in your schoolwork, or in your life, will those be taken into account in the admission process? How do you let your universities know about your specific circumstances, especially if your grades may have suffered as a result?

7. There’s nothing to prevent you from applying to any program you want, at any university, but be selective, and realistic – if the program that interests you generally has an entering average in the mid-80s, and your marks are usually in the mid-70s, you may want to reconsider!

8. Choose your programs and universities wisely. Do your research BEFORE you apply, and narrow down your choices, as application costs can add up quickly.

9. You can track the progress of your application and communication from institutions electronically in many cases. Make sure you are aware of how institutions will communicate with you once they receive your application. Pay attention to instructions about electronic access and ensure that the email address you submit on your application is the one you are actually using.

10. Read everything carefully – you don’t want any last-minute surprises to creep upon you.

To find out more about what Western University can do to help you through the admissions process, visit us online or request more information. Good Luck!