<p>Professor Bill Anderson is in charge of admissions at the University of Waterloo Engineering faculty. This faculty is probably the most selective in all of Canada. He writes a blog that details the admissions process and answers commonly asked questions. If you have a specific question, you can ask him through the blog. But first, I highly recommend that you read this blog post <a href="http://profbillanderson.wordpress.com/2014/10/06/admissions-2015-how-its-going-to-work/#more-712">http://profbillanderson.wordpress.com/2014/10/06/admissions-2015-how-its-going-to-work/#more-712</a> which details the admissions process for the department. The vast majority is applicable to other Canadian universities as well. </p>
<p>Important points -</p>
<ol>
<li><p>They reserve the right to ask for TOEFL scores for any candidates. If your schooling has been in a country that does not have English as a first language, or if English is not your first language, you may be required to submit the score. (Students studying in English language schools in countries that don't have English as an official language, take note) Your TOEFL score can disqualify you even if your other scores are stellar. </p></li>
<li><p>There are no recommendations. In Canada, your scores (GPA and SAT/ACT) trump everything. </p></li>
<li><p>Waterloo has an AIF (additional information form). Not all universities will have one. Note that your extracurriculars might only add about 5% to your average. </p></li>
<li><p>When you apply to Canadian universities, you apply to a program, school or faculty within the university. For engineering, you will specify which major in engineering you want (software, mechanical etc). Each program will have a different grade cutoff. Waterloo Engineering allows you specify three programs. Other faculties might allow you to choose just one program. Research the admissions average for the program you are interested in. I This information can usually be found on the university's website. Unlike US universities, Canadian universities will report a minimum average that you should have. If you really want to get into a certain school, but don't have tippy top grades, you might want to reconsider applying to software engineering.</p></li>
<li><p>If you repeat a course, they will take 5% off the course grade. </p></li>
<li><p>Canadian universities do not do need based aid. Merit aid is scarce. If you are not a Canadian citizen, your cost of attendance will be in the CAD$40-$50K range .</p></li>
</ol>