Welcome to Indigenous Futures in Engineering, Queen's University

Academic Requirements

Getting into any university program requires a lot of hard work and dedication while you are in high school.

In more general programs of study like English, history or psychology, universities establish a minimum entrance requirement. If you meet the requirements, your chances of being accepted are pretty good.

In more specialized, professional programs, like medicine, business, education, law and engineering, the minimum entrance requirement is usually combined with something called limited enrolment. In faculties and programs with limited enrolments, your application is compared with all the other applications for that year, so the better your marks are, the better your chances of being admitted.

The following information should help you plan your path from high school to engineering.

What to Study in High School

To get into engineering you need to have a high school diploma or equivalent. You have to study sciences:

  • math (algebra, trigonometry, functions, geometry, linear algebra and calculus),
  • physics (mechanics, electricity and magnetism, modern physics),
  • chemistry (inorganic and possibly organic), and
  • biology.

If you can take advanced courses in these subjects - even better.

Computer skills are not necessarily a requirement, but knowing how to use a computer would be really helpful.

In addition, you have to do well in your other classes, especially English or French. Engineers are scientists, but they also work with people, so language skills and the ability to communicate are an essential requirement for university admission (in any program).

Engineering Entrance Requirements

Want to get an idea of what kind of marks are required for entrance into engineering programs in each province?

Click on the province of the university for which you want more information. In all cases, the entrance requirements listed are the minimum for the province. For more specific information regarding entrance to specific universities and programs, please contact the admissions office at that university. View the list of universities by province.

Qualifying/Transition Year Programs

If you've been out of school for a while, you need to improve your understanding of math and science before entering an engineering program.

A number of Canadian universities offer qualifying/ transition year programs or other access-type programs to help you upgrade your skills.

Most of transition year programs will add an extra year to the time required to complete a degree. Not all of these programs are specific to Indigenous Students.

Institutions with Transfer Agreements

Finally, some universities work with local community colleges, so you can take upgrading courses, or sometimes the first one or two years of engineering courses at a community college closer to home before transferring to university.

Institutions which have transfer agreements with engineering faculties include:

Queen's University
Kingston, Ontario, K7L 3N6, Canada

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