Want opinion on a Canadian university for an engineering programme

@Rajul kaushik,

The U of A certainly didn't have any requirements for Grade 13 when I went there, since High School in Alberta only goes to Grade 12, but then the rules for foreign students are likely different (and yes, that is unfair). Remember too that these schools are vastly oversubscribed, so they can afford to be choosy.

As for saving time, I would STRONGLY urge you NOT to consider transferring from one University to another (at least at the undergrad level). At least two things drive my thinking on this:

1. In engineering, your son will start in a "first year" (unspecialized) program. All the Engineering Schools at all the Universities I am familiar with are set up that way. Of course, the different schools will teach similar/common materials in their various first-year programs. However, EACH university organizes their courses differently. When you transfer, credit is assigned on a COURSE basis (not year basis). So, if your son went to UWindsor and then tried to transfer to, say, Waterloo, Waterloo wouldn't necessarily give him credit for all his courses because they aren't organized the same. This would put your son BEHIND going into second year (probably his specialization year), having to try to pick up extra courses. Most second year courses have first year courses as prerequisites, so he would be out of step. Scheduling becomes nearly impossible, without adding semesters. It is the same thing that happens to first year students that fail a first year course. By the way, even within the same Engineering School, each department will have different requirements, making transfer from one department to another difficult - it requires students to take more courses even if they have already taken a similar course.

2. Nearly all "top" engineering schools here have a quota system going into the specializations (e.g. from the general first year to Mechanical, Civil, Chemical etc.). It is a competition as to which specialization you get into, based on grades. Transferring from another University would almost undoubtedly put your son at the bottom of the quota list (is a 3.8 GPA from Windsor going to mean as much to Waterloo as getting a 3.8 FROM WATERLOO?). And Mechanical Engineering is a very popular choice, so the competition to get into that specialization is fierce.

I already expressed my biases in my last post, but I would strongly vote Carleton, and STAYING THERE until he finishes his Bachelors degree. If you like Windsor better, then your son should plan on staying there until done, too.

Note that only applies for the undergrad programs. Graduate school is a whole other discussion! Best of luck to you and your son.

Best Regards, Georgetta