Okay so UBC has ALWAYS been my dream school. My sister went there and I fell in love with her description of it. The thing is, even my sister had a super hard time convincing my mom to let her go there (we live in New Jersey so BC is over 2,000 miles away) my mom wanted her to go to U of T.
I want to study psychology and I need help figuring out which is the better school…which is cheaper in the long run, which is easier to make friends at, night life, etc.
Thanks 
Are you a Canadian or duel citizen? Otherwise international; tuition if high at both schools. Both school are primarily commuter schools.
I can’t speak to UBC - but to say U of T is primarily a commuter school is misleading. There are over 6000 students in residence at the St George campus. There are thousands more students who live within walking distance to the campus which is in downtown Toronto. There is a vibrant night life and social life both on and off campus. It’s very easy to make friends. If you are from New Jersey or anywhere outside the GTA, I wouldn’t consider the other 2 campuses, Mississauga and Scarborough.
Both Toronto and Vancouver are expensive cities to live in. The costs of room and board, texts and other expenses will be similar. Tuition will not be similar for international students. At U of T, they’ve just published the international tuition for 2017 entry: $46000 CAD (roughly $35000 USD). It’s 30000 CAD at UBC this year, probably around 32000 (roughly $25000 USD) next year. Those figures are for arts and science students.
It’s a one day drive between Toronto and New Jersey. It’s a 6 hour flight between Vancouver and New Jersey. The two cities will have a different “vibe”. Both universities are excellent. You should visit both.
@bouders But with 46,000 full time students at St. George there is still a commuter majority.
I have dual citizenship… USA and Canada
@EmmaFeds Then you will pay domestic rates which are much less expensive and are a bargain compared to US universities. Have you ever lived in Canada? If so, you’ll be eligible for provincial funding. Need based aid is handled by the provinces, not the federal government.
@TomSrOfBoston That’s only if you count students who walk to campus as commuters.
Yes, it is silly to consider U of T a commuter school, or to worry about that. Yes, the majority of students do not live in residence, but thousands DO! Tens of thousands more live within walking distance, so if that’s commuting, then sure, but most colleges have students living off-campus. I don’t know why some people make this such a big deal. If it’s important to a student to live in residence, then they have that option, for all four years as long as there are no academic issues. Most students are happy to move into an apartment after a year or two or three to experience more independent living. This does not affect the ‘vibe’ of the campus at all.