University Applications Continue to Rise

The numbers are in, and more and more teens are applying for university in Canada.

The Council of Ontario Universities (COU) recently released numbers that show a continuation of a 11-year growth trend in university applications.

This year, the January 11th deadline saw 90,373 first-year applicants, a 2.2 per cent increase from last year. The number of applications they made rose by 2.4 per cent to 392,742, according to statistics collected from the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre.

“The continuous growth in the number of applications shows that students in Ontario place a strong emphasis on university education as a critical foundation for a successful future,” said Alastair Summerlee, Chair of COU and President of the University of Guelph.

“They expect their degrees to prepare them for successful careers, and statistics show that students who complete their undergraduate programs at Ontario universities do, indeed, experience high employment and earning rates.”

The numbers also indicate a 3.2% increase in university applications from non-secondary school applicants.

“Ontario’s youth represent the future of our province, and universities are giving them the critical thinking skills that prepare them for the jobs of today and those of tomorrow,” said Bonnie M. Patterson, COU President and CEO.