<p>Hey everyone,</p>
<p>I'm a high school student who'll be applying this fall to Canada, as a Canadian citizen who lives abroad. Uhh I've been aiming at one of the ''top schools'' i.e., McGill, UBC and UoT so I have some questions:</p>
<p>-Which is the best for a dual degree in Arts and Sciences? The McGill website clearly states they offer a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences, and UoT and UBC offer "double majors". I want to do a life science and maybe Literature or History.
And can I apply undecided or do I apply to a specific faculty?
-How difficult is admission? My SAT results arent out, but in my PSAT I got a 75 (writing) 76 (reading) and 64 (yikes! in math) for a total of 215. My average in 10th grade was 95%, although in 11th it dropped to almost 80% ... :/ but I'm hoping that'll def. pick up this year. And my school doesn't rank.
So with those marks, should I be even looking at these really good universities or should my aim be a bit lower?
-How important are extra-curriculars/ social work?
-How important are references?</p>
<p>And generally, what else should I base my college selection on? And what else do admissions officers base THEIR selections on?</p>
<p>50 views and no answer? :(</p>
<p>I’ll address a few of your questions. Generally, you apply to Canadian universities in a particular faculty but that could be arts and sciences in some schools, so there is latitude. Most Canadian schools don’t look at ECs, community service or references, as far as I can tell, but some look at them when awarding entrance scholarships which are the equivalent in the US of merit aid. In general, the schools look only at grades for Canadian students and SATs or ACTs for US students.</p>
<p>Okay…so what are the admissions averages for some of these universities? They have the ‘minimum requirement’ on their websites, but I was just wondering what the real admittance standard is - how good do you have to be?</p>
<p>In terms of getting a double major or whatever, usually you’d sort that out come second or third year in most cases. It’s really not that big of a deal. At UBC I know you start in general first year and specialize in your second (but you can change your specialization in your third or fourth year if you meet requirements). </p>
<p>If you exceed their minimum requirements on the website a little you should be golden unless they have a limit in that specific program or limited spots for international students (which they should say). I mean, they’re listing what minimum marks got in previous years, so a minimum mark is potentially viable.</p>
<p>You won’t need reference letters for admission.
You may need to list EC’s depending on the selectivity of your program.</p>
<p>For UBC anyway, you apply to UBC Arts or UBC Sciences. (the other can be the alternate admission choice). It’s all on their respective admission websites. Good luck</p>
<p>Does UBC have a double major in both Arts and Sciences though? Different faculties… 
I couldnt find it on their website.</p>
<p>^ Yes</p>
<p>[Majors</a>, Honours and Minors | Faculty of Science, University of British Columbia, UBC, Science Degrees](<a href=“http://www.science.ubc.ca/students/degree/types]Majors”>Degree Types: Majors, Minors, and More | UBC Science - Faculty of Science at the University of British Columbia)</p>
<p>They use broad based admissions so your extra-curriculars will count.</p>
<p>Ah okay that clears it up a bit.
Thanks :)</p>