Hi aska,im a student going to gr.12 and i want to audition for the BMus program for piano. I have already been preparing for my audition and i looked at the requirements but i was wondering if you know what the audition process is like. What should i expect going into the audition, what will my schedule look like, and how many people on average get accepted? Are there any tips for a successful audition? UofT is my ideal school.Thanks!sincerely,i’m scared out of my mind

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hey there scared out of my mind*,

don’t be scared! as with any other program or stream at uoft, i can’t tell you how many people will or have gotten in during?previous years. however, i’ll refer you to this document, which tells you the total number of students enrolled in each program in 2010.

unfortunately i can’t give you insider details about the audition process. aska’s words are music to (most) people’s ears, but other than that, i’m pretty melodically limited.

fortunately, the Faculty of Music’s charmingly 90s-looking website has?this page, which?explains everything you’ll be expected to do before and at the audition. also, i called the undergraduate administrator at the faculty of music and she is more than willing to take any more specific questions at?undegrad ( . ) music ( at ) utoronto ( . ) ca.

she also recommended that you attend their information sessions on fall campus day, which is a good idea no matter what program you’re interested in. fall campus day is super helpful, AND lots of colleges/faculties/programs offer free food, so it’s a good trip out no matter what.

cheers,

aska

*sorry, sorry. this is how i picture all high school students. but a large part of that is probably because that’s how i looked?in high school, so i may be biased.

I just finished gr 12 english in the summer with a 96 is this good enough for humanities???

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hey there,

okay, disclaimer that aska is not a member of admissions, everything is dependent on how good your peers do?AND, most importantly, admissions depends not just on one mark, but on your average in your top 6 4U/M courses (including prerequisites), but…

yes. yes, that mark is a good mark.

cheers,

aska

Is the deadline to apply to university still January if you’re not a high school student?

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hey there,

if you’re not a high school student, you apply using the OUAC 105 form. the deadlines may change a little every year, but you can go here to take a look at the general timeline. as you see, it’s pretty similar to the 101 (i.e. high school) application.

cheers,

aska

I absolutely bombed high school and never made it to university. Say I go back, and take the required 6 U/M courses and let’s say I get a 99% average to my name, and I’m applying to the Life Sciences program. Is there any reason why UofT still wouldn’t accept me?

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hey dude,

from the horse’s mouth: “[t]he Faculty of Arts & Science does not recommend that students repeat courses and reserves the right to give preference for admission and scholarship consideration to students whose marks are the result of a single attempt at each course.”

that’s uoft’s way of saying that they definitely take note of the fact that a course is repeated, and it does harm your chances, but it doesn’t rule you out completely.

plus, there is an opportunity to explain any less-than-stellar grades on your application, if there are any specific circumstances that may have?affected them.

obviously aska can’t guarantee anything, but, as with everything in life, sometimes you just have to dive head-first into the pool of crocodiles and pray you can swim fast enough. unless it is actually a pool of crocodiles. then you just need to get the heck out of florida already.

if you really want to do it, then go ahead and apply, is what i’m trying to say.

cheers,

aska

EDIT: if you have been away from school for some time, academic bridging could also be an alternative to going back to high school. just make sure you meet all the admission req’s before applying.

I’m getting like 83 in english Is that good enough for humanities IM STRESSING BRUH

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hey there,

dudes, i can’t tell you that.?i’m not some clairvoyant who can make admissions decisions based on very small bits of information about your academic history.

lemme tell you all the things that make this question hard to answer:

1. is this grade 11 english or grade 12 english?

2. how are your other courses??if english is your lowest mark, that’s a very different situation to if it’s your highest. one mark?doesn’t dictate the admission decision.

3. even if i knew all your marks in every course, i have NO IDEA if it’s good enough. it all boils down to how good your competition is. maybe your marks will easily soar above everyone else’s, and maybe they’ll plummet far below. it all depends on how everyone else is doing and how you’re doing in all your other courses.

here’s the anticipated grade average of incoming students in Fall 2014 – you can compare your own average to that to see how you’re shaping up, and hopefully that can alleviate some of your stress (aska hates it when y’all stress). but remember, like my opinion, it’s only a guideline. ultimately, the people who know for sure are admissions, and they keep screening my phone calls.*

cheers,

aska

*for some reason, they?don’t?appreciate me calling their office and leaving voice-mail messages in the early hours of the morning demanding to be admitted into their secret, cool club of elite uoft staff. admissions won’t admit me; irony of the century, amirite?**

**this is a joke. admissions and i are on great terms. learn about sarcasm, jeez.

Will I know which marks are submitted for first year!??? Also do they tell you if grade 11 marks are submitted!? AHHHH

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hey there,

i really hope that there’s just one person who’s asking me this question, and you get progressively more and more panicked and impatient each time you ask it. sorry to make you wait, frantic one, but aska’s got important things to do, y’know? i’ve got my paragliding to keep up with, gotta spend some quality time with my proboscis monkeys (maria’s getting particularly antsy) …lots of stuff.

come to think of it, you’re probably impatient just reading that preamble, so why don’t we get right to the question?

OUAC will send your high school transcripts. your?grade 11 marks may be considered?for an?early offer of admission or a conditional offer, along with any in-progress grade 12 marks you may have at the time.

if you get a conditional offer,?that’s the university offering you a spot based on your grade 11/in-progress grade-12 marks, on the condition that?you?do well?in in your top six 4U/M classes including prerequisites.

cheers,

aska

In response to the other anon I have a question about the top 6 too. Can they use some marks from grade 11 in your top 6?

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hey there,

as always, the answer to your question isn’t really yes or no, but is floating around somewhere in the middle, in the land of bureaucratic details, where big institutions like universities are built (gotta love ’em for that).

the top six specifically are your top six 4U/M marks including prerequisites, not your grade 11 marks. however, when you apply, you probably won’t have finished all your grade 12?classes yet. so the university may look at individual grade 11 marks and your grade 11 average in order to make a conditional offer.

the conditional offer?(as the name implies) will be finalized?if?you do well enough in your top 6 4U/M courses.

SO they DO?look at your grade 11 courses, but they’re?NOT part of your top six. geddit?

cheers,

aska

Two out of my six grade 12 courses are math… I’m applying to humanities and I’m worried its going to drastically affect my entrance. I usually get high 70’s in math or 80 right on. Also. Are you annoyed with all the same questions? I notice you get a ton LOL

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hey there,

well, mi amigo, it is now the 15th anniversary of askastudent and – as always – aska is reliably peeved, aggravated, and generally down-trodden about panicked high school students asking for some kind of black market judgement about whether they’re going to get into uoft.

but aska will?still answer your question, because this website is nothing if not uncensored.

the anticipated average of students entering into the humanities for fall 2014 is the?low 80s. i STILL DON’T KNOW if you’ll get in. i don’t know you. i don’t know all your grades in all your courses.* i don’t know the colour of your mom’s hair, and if it’s dyed or natural. there are so many things i don’t know. but most of all: i don’t know if you’ll get into this university.

you don’t not have a chance if you’re somewhere in or above that anticipated grade range. and if you have just two courses in the high 70s/low 80s, you probably will be somewhere in that range. but other than that, you just gotta let it?play out and see what happens.

for now, let’s all go out and enjoy the sun, huh? frolic in the great outdoors like the children of yore used to do.

cheers,

aska

*that is NOT an invitation for?y’all to send in your grades. please don’t. it’s not gonna help anything.

If I’m worried about my high school average being lower than what I need to keep my acceptance, is there anything I can do to still keep it?

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hey there,

ummm, work harder at school?

the final admission offer is based on?meeting the conditions of admission as specified by the university. there’s no way to wiggle out of that. but don’t panic if your average drops one or two percent: it’s only an issue if there’s a drastic grade drop, like you go down a letter grade.

cheers,

aska

SOMEONE TOLD ME THAT I NEED A 90 AVERAGE FOR U OF T ST GEORGE HUMANITIES IS THIS TRUE!? I HAVE 83 RIGHT NOW SOS

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hey there,

is that ‘sos’ like SOS on a boat?? are you at sea and need assistance?? was your last, dying, all-capitals request a desperate inquiry to aska about high school averages?????

that’s hardcore, man. that’s super hardcore.

anyway, i don’t know who you were talking to, but that’s not true. there’s no mark you ‘need’ because?there is no exact, cut-off mark, ever. every year, the mark you need to get in depends on your competition, i.e. the other people applying.

there is an ‘anticipated grade range‘ for incoming students, and for Fall 2014, that range?is “low 80s” for the humanities. now, i’m no mathematician, but if my calculations are correct, an 83% average is…wait, just gimme a second…yes! it’s in the low 80s.

that’s not to say that you’re guaranteed an offer. like i said, it all depends on how well your peers do and a lot of other factors only admissions know about. however, you’re not out of the running. so you can drop the capitals now. breathe. whew. feels good, right?

cheers,

aska