I wanted to know what my chances are of getting into UBC, Queens, and UofT with a 3.6 weighted GPA, but a 2.7 unweighted GPA. I did not do well my sophomore year which is why my unweighted GPA is low, however, I know that by the end of the year my unweighted will be a 3.0 because I am retaking the courses I failed and because I am doing much better this year. Also, is it true Canadian universities only recognize junior and senior year grades for admission? For example, if I apply in January and turn in my first semester grades and they are all straight As does it improve my chances regardless if I did poorly my 10th grade year?
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Canadian universities only look at junior and senior grades. January is late for an application, especially for U.S student. I recommend that you submit it by early December. Canadian universities are very strict on their course requirements, so, for example, if you are retaking 11th grade English because you failed it last year, that’s not going to fly. The difficulty of admission will depend on which program you are applying for.
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What is your unweighted GPA for each year by itself?
The people who I know who have been accepted to universities in Canada (including both daughters and me) were accepted based on their grades from sophomore and junior years of high school, and got their acceptance quite early. There is one exception (a sibling) who was accepted as a transfer student.
However, I have heard that some people get accepted based on their grades during their junior and senior years of high school. The downside here is that in some cases you might get the acceptance quite late. I have heard of cases of people needing to put down their deposit at a different university, and then getting their acceptance to a top Canadian university and switching to the Canadian university. This is sort of analogous to getting in somewhere off of a wait list, which is of course something that universities deal with every year.
The three universities that you mentioned are three of the four or five toughest universities in Canada to get accepted to. They are also three of the toughest universities to graduate from. However, the Canadian university system is consistently very good. If you want to study in Canada, then I think that you should consider other universities as well. There are a lot of them to choose from.
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I am only retaking courses online, so for example I retook Algebra 2 honors because I failed it in 10th grade but now it’s been forgiven to a B because that is what I got on the online course. I do not know if applying early is a good idea for me though because I probably would not get in. I am applying for a science program so most of the ranges are 80s-90s and an unweighted 2.7 is a B-
My freshman year unweighted GPA was 3.5, but I am not sure for the other two years so I have to ask my counselor. I am fine with applying late if It means I can submit my 12th grade 1st semester grades, because my grades are remarkably way better. I know they are very difficult to get into and honestly there are better applicants than me but I’m still hopeful-- I did poorly my 10th grade year not because I am stupid but because I was dealing with a death in the family. I know that Canadian Universities are not holistic though so they won’t really care lol
Canadian universities admit differently than U.S. universities. They will usually wait to see your first semester grades and often your second mid-semester grades before they admit you. There may be a supplemental application that is sent to you after you submit your university application. The supplemental application is often due in February.
Double check the course requirements for the programs you are applying for. Some science programs require calculus.
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Thank you and yes I am taking/already took the required courses like AP Chem, Honors Pre Calc, and Honors Calc
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Meet all the deadlines. You can apply early and still submit your first semester or quarter grades when they are available. I have seen cases where they will ask you for your first semester grades.
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So, if I apply early can I just submit my first-quarter grades, or do I still need to send in my full transcript?
If you apply early you can only send them what you have at the time.
I would be inclined to ask them whether they will want additional information when it is available. They know that you are still in classes.
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Canadian 80-90s are A’s, not B’s - the grading scale is tougher.
For science, these universities would expect A/A- in all science classes, including physics, chemistry, precalc, and calc.
Meet the deadlines: there’s no “soft” deadline with waitlist and summer melt considerations.
You have a shot at Dalhousie, Bishop’s, Concordia, New Brunswick, Lethbridge, Moncton, Mount Allison, UNBC, Vancouver Island, Victoria.
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In my high school in Canada there was only one single student who had an average over 90. The second highest student in the class had an 89.9 average and went on to MIT. Where we live now in the US an 89.9 would not put you in the top 10%, and might not even be top 20%.
Comparing grades internationally is a risky task. It is probably better to think about how your grades compare with others in your high school. Universities in the US will understand Canadian grade scales, and universities in Canada will understand US grade scales.
I am not familiar with Vancouver Island. Moncton is a French language university. One daughter took a five week French immersion class there and liked it a lot. They spoke nothing but French for five weeks (after first explaining the rules in English). At the end she could sit down and have a simple conversation with me entirely in French.
The other universities on this list are all very good. We toured Dalhousie, Bishop’s, Concordia, and Mount Allison and liked all of them. There are at least as many again that would also be worth considering. All of these would be easier for admissions compared to Toronto, Queens, and UBC, but would still offer a very good education.
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My impression is that OP thought a Canadian university asking for grades in the 80s matches his 2.7-3.0 GPA, “I am applying for a science program so most of the ranges are 80s-90s and an unweighted 2.7 is a B-”… which it doesn’t. That’s why I indicated this, hoping OP would recalibrate their list.
(That GPA, even removing the 9-10th grade results, wouldn’t indicate a student prepared for UBC or UoT. As you said, not only are they hard to get into, they’re also hard to graduate from.)
Shoot wrt Moncton, I thought they had bilingual campus (French speaking but also English speaking) kinda like Ottawa.
Vancouver Island U is easy to get into, 7,000 full time students, offers co-ops for some of its programs (business, fisheries, hotel management, tourism…) and scholarships to attract students. A better shot than UBC for this student.
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I had never heard of Vancouver Island University, and I used to live on Vancouver island. Turns out that it is what was formerly known as Malaspina college, a large’ish CC perched halfway up the mountain in Nanaimo, home of the Nanaimo bar and Bathtub races.
I would agree that UBC, Queens, and U of T would be a reach for the OP. As the rep of many Canadian Uni’s, especially compared to US ones, is that they are easier to get in to, but harder to stay in, I would encourage the OP to look at the lesser ranked, but still vg schools Canada has to offer. Simon Fraser in Vancouver is good, and vg when it comes to CS. Carleton, U of Ottawa, and Concordia are good schools. Western and McMaster might be a reach, but York might be a go, or Ryerson. Laurier and especially Guelph, are hidden gems, IMO.
It would help if the OP gave more details as to his course rigour, and expected course of study in college. It is very tough to get into Western’s Commerce program, McMaster’s BioMed/pre Med, Waterloo’s Engineering, etc…
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He said “science” and science programs tend to be among the most selective (except at Western). 
Yup VIU would be a safety 
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in 10th grade I took 4 ap classes, 11th grade I took 5 ap classes, and this year I’m taking 4 ap classes. I also take honor classes. My expected course of study is psychology.
isn’t Ryerson harder to get into?
you need colleges within universities where students are admitted with Canadian grades in the 70s (Bs in the US).
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TBH, I haven’t kept up with them. It used to be a less academically selective, but very practical(in a good way) technical college, but I’ll have to plead ignorance as to how selective the admissions are right now.
but what if my grades this year are As? my gpa last year was around a 3.0 unweighted