• admissions,  economics

    you totally just asked your question twice i see you

    December 20, 2019

    Hey, how are you?

    I am a grade 11 student and I want to pursue law in the near future. I wanna do undergrad in econ, and I was looking but I couldn’t really figure out the cut off average that uft looks at when deciding on applicants. I have many extracurricular activities, so I’m not really worried about my supplementary application. But basically my three questions are:
    1. what average do I need to get in ENG4U to get accepted into Econ undergrad?
    2. What average do I need in grade 12 math courses?
    3. What average do I need overall?

    ——————————————

    hey, I am looking at Econ undergrad requirements, and I can’t figure out what is the cut off average to get admitted into this program. I know we have to take ENG4U and grade 12 math, but I can’t figure out what averages you need in these courses, and what average you need overall to be admitted into the econ undergrad program. Also, I would love some advice about this decision I may make, because I wanna pursue law later on.

    ——————————————

    hey there,

    are you… the same person? or two people with eerily similar questions? i don’t care, i’m just gonna write one post up. christmas is in five days and i have ten questions to get thru, some of which are very perplexing. plEASE LET ME take a BReaK 🙁

    all right. let’s see. it’s not easy to find anymore because the google search result for it brings up a 404, but if you go through the artsci website itself there is this chart with admissions averages for each program. econ falls into the social sciences admissions category, so whether you’re from ontario or another province  you’ll need an english grade in the low to mid 80s with an admissions average of about the same. i’m guessing you’re an ontario kiddo, though, given ENG4U.

    as for grade 12 math, i have a lil nugget of insider’s knowledge from the registrar’s office for ya. they’ve switched up the way they do admissions for this year– as long as you have your grade 12 math requirement, it doesn’t really matter if it’s super high. they’re not looking at it as rigorously for your batch of admissions. so don’t worry too much about blasting your grade into the sky. just get it done and under your belt, bud.

    dunno if you were hoping for law school advice as well, but given that you didn’t directly ask any questions, i’m assuming my job here is done today.

    be Boundless,

    aska

     

     

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  • admissions,  subject POST

    i also have major questions tbh

    December 12, 2019
    double major questions: do I need to take certain prerequisite courses for BOTH majors I want to take in my first year of uni? would I apply for both majors using ACORN after my first year? I’m struggling to figure out how the degree combinations work with the 4.0 credit requirements and all that. thank you in advance!
    ——————————————
    hey there,

    i’m not too sure what you mean by 4.0 credit requirements– does this refer to… a program requirement? a course requirement? i know i’ve registered in courses that were only available to students with 4.0 credits and above, which basically just means they’re not available to first years. or maybe what you mean is the 4.0 credits of overlap you’re permitted between two majors that each require 8.0 credits each? i’m wracking my brain here, man. i can’t figure out what you’re gettin at.

    to answer the questions i feel like i can answer, in general, yes, you do need to take certain prereqs in first year for whatever programs you’re considering. that’s true whether or not you’re taking a double major. they’ll be considered for admission to whatever programs you apply to at the end of your first year. you can find those prereq listings on the arts and science calendar— just search for the programs you’re interested in, or browse the alphabetical directory.

    i say in general because there are exceptions. for example, certain programs (usually type 1 programs) don’t have first year prereqs. you can register in english, forest biomaterials, or diaspora and transnational studies without any first year prerequisites, for example. although, i should note, if this applies to you it would certainly be helpful to take program courses in first year, even if they’re not necessarily considered prerequisites. doing so will help you get a feel for what that program is like, as well as allow you to start counting courses towards program requirements earlier on.

    check out this webpage to find out what program type your prospective majors would be. this one, meanwhile, is supposed to tell you what your application periods are– it hasn’t been updated yet, but i anticipate it should be soon. and yes, you will request/apply for programs on ACORN once those application periods open up.

    if you’d like help figuring out how your degree requirements work, feel free to send the specifics my way and i can try to help make sense of it! i’ve spent a lot of time doing that kinda stuff because my own programs are a little whack and require a heckin’ lot of forethought to be able to complete in 20.0 credits. otherwise:

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions

    look ma, i’m an insider

    December 12, 2019

    What are some pros and cons of going to UofT? I really want an insider’s perspective

    ——————————————

    wild. this is more open-ended than the essay prompts on my exams. what’s expected of me? i do not know. as with everything else in my life, i’ll probably overshoot, but, hey. i’m guessing you’re not here for ambivalence and mediocrity anyway.

    i feel like this is actually a really case-by-case thing. as in, what’s a pro for me may not be a pro for you. but i can give you my list and you can see how ya feel about it.

    off the top of my head, here are the definitive wins of being a student at this school, as far as i see it:

    • the downtown campus. it’s beautiful, especially in the fall, and has a lot of stories to tell.
    • heckin’ number of clubs (and libraries! some schools have 2, we raise you a whopping 44.)
    • academic diversity— there are a bunch of pretty niche programs here that i don’t believe are widely offered at the undergraduate level, like urban studies or bioethics. there are also some really cool courses— i believe the executive editor of the walrus taught a one-time-only course on #metoo and the media this year.
    • top-notch profs, doing some of the coolest research. i’ve had more phenomenal profs than i’ve had terrible or even mediocre ones, which i think really speaks to the caliber of people this school employs. this is obviously a very subjective assessment, but that’s been my experience thus far.
    • a lot of departments are very well-connected in terms of opportunities. the peace, conflict, and justice program, for example, places a lot of students with NGOs like amnesty international.
    • the innis cafe
    • lots of options for a sense of community, because as a large school there are so many different small communities on campus
    • plenty of coffee shops all over campus. i can’t find any comprehensive lists (maybe i should write one!?!?) but here’s a blog post that runs you down a few. suffice it to say that there is always one within a 5 minute’s walk of you, no matter where you are on campus.
    • some pretty cool places to study, like the OISE lounge with a view of the skyline or the gerstein journal stacks with the glass floors
    • i’ve met a lot of really cool peers, working on everything from chemistry research to podcasts to magazines. i was at a holiday art gallery last week, and there was a ton of impressive student art. this school has a lot of creative, driven, and friendly people, which can be intimidating but is mostly pretty inspiring.
    • because the student population is large, some pretty sick events happen on campus. we recently had the some of the raptors come give a mental health talk at one of the on-campus athletic centres, with a performance from jp saxe. it was free. hart house theatre also puts out some really quality shows.

    here are some unexpected, slightly questionable wins:

    • bigger school, more free food. if ya know where to go and have the time to make trips, you can snag some. first year, i remember scavenging multiple meals in a row, although it was admittedly a lil sketch at times. there are also pretty regular free snack events.  happy to do a detailed post on this if anyone’s interested.
    • also more free coffee.
    • more places to nap.
    • more places to exercise, if you’re into that. we have, like, three gyms?? and a lot of fitness programs.
    • the work-study program.
    • corncoming
    • i guess u of t is prestigious, so your parents can flex it if they care about those kinds of things.
    • apparently we get employed. this one better be true.

    some things i, and others, have mixed feelings about:

    • the city of toronto. i could probably write a whole post just on this. toronto can be a massive pro for some people and a massive con for others. it’s often considered one of u of t’s biggest draws, but i think if you’re not from around here the reality of living in downtown toronto can be a tad bit different than expected.
      • the cute: something’s always happening. it’s a real great city to be a young person in. just being out on the streets walking, you see a ton of really quirky, interesting, and fun things. no matter what you’re into, chances are you’ll find it here (unless you’re into the stars, i guess, or nature, or small-town things. you’ll need to leave downtown for that). there are also so many professional and learning opportunities in this city for you to take advantage of.
      • the not so cute: personally, i’ve felt unsafe in the city a few times. nothing’s ever happened to me, but i take precautions. the rental market is also less than ideal.
    • robarts
      • this article lists it as part of a ‘top 10 reasons to go to u of t’ kind of thing. i’m personally not a fan, but it does make for a decent overnight study space. i guess it’s a good example of brutalist architecture, if you’re into that. it seems like most students love to hate robarts. it’s one of the few things a student population this large gets to bond over. but at the end of the day, we all end up there anyway. while we’re on the subject, can anyone tell me what’s so special about the 12th floor, please?

    some less fun things, because really these are just inconveniences but i like to complain:

    • the ttc always seems to be late, but that’s not a u of t specific thing.
    • dunno how important the movie college experience is to you, but sports aren’t really that big here unless you’re in an athletic/intramurals community. as in, we don’t have any iconic games or anything that everyone goes to. i guess in general we’re a little starved for school spirit.
    • our grading system seems to differ a little bit from some of the other ones i’m aware of. it’s harder to get a 3.0 here than it is at mcgill or ubc, because the percentage threshold is a bit higher. granted, our cutoff for a 4.0 is 85 instead of 86, but i didn’t even know you could get a 4.33 at places like ubc, queens and ryerson until yesterday. we cap at 4.0 here, and those are relatively rare. i guess 4.33s aren’t that relevant when you consider that.
    • the food in robarts is subpar— i’ve heard the rice in the burritos isn’t fully cooked sometimes, and i wouldn’t doubt that?
    • queen’s park being under construction all the time makes me sad & makes the walk from victoria college to con hall feel so much longer. it also occasionally floods, which is annoying.
    • don’t walk across king’s college circle in the spring. also slightly flooded, and you might wipe out.
    • the snow and frostbite temperatures are not terribly enjoyable. my ideal lifestyle does not involve a daily trek through the snow, in temperatures so inhospitable that your nose hairs freeze.

    and the reasons that, despite actually quite enjoying this school, i have the occasional angry day of… anger, and think it kind of sucks:

    • the hustle culture and competitive nature of being a student here– this piece from the varsity gives you a better sense of perspective on this than i could. it’s not as impossible to do well as people make it sound, but you will definitely need to grind if you’re planning to take a full courseload and be involved in the community. with that said, there are supports in place to help you out when things get rough, like your registrars, embedded counsellors, and teaching staff. you can thrive and have a good experience here, but you need to be well-equipped and well-supported in order to do so.
    • the way things seem to pile up at the end of the semester. i guess this is true of university in general, but things don’t feel very well-paced to me— they’re slow until after reading week, at which point you don’t really breathe til finals are over. keep in mind this does vary widely by program, but we’re talking about the pros and cons here as i see them, so…
    • the bureaucracy. u of t has so many rules. the teaching staff and admin are expected to play by them, which means that quite often, you won’t be able to get an extension without some kind of doctor’s note or documented proof of exceptional circumstances. it can sometimes feel like there’s a lot of red tape to jump when you’re trying to get accommodations without being registered with accessibility services. i wouldn’t say i feel treated like ‘just a number’ in general, but i have seen the system be quite unsympathetic to certain circumstances.

    well, there ya have it. you asked for a simple, clean-cut pro-con list. i raised you an entire spectrum. enjoy, and feel free to ask follow-ups if anything gets too confusing.

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  english,  psychology,  subject POST

    you’re doing amazing!

    December 3, 2019

    Hello! I am applying for U of T soon and I was wondering about the degree combinations. If I complete two majors (I believe you pick your two programs/majors after the first year on ACORN? Please feel free to correct me) how long does it take? Is it the standard 4 years as a double major? I’m planning on taking English and Psychology, if that helps 🙂 Sorry if this is a dumb question! I’m a very confused high school student

    ——————————————

    hey friendo,

    it’s all right to be confused, and this isn’t a dumb question at all! some students get to this school not even knowing program selection after first year is a thing. trust me, you’re ahead of the curve on this one, and it’s super great that you’re taking this into account now.

    u of t basically only offers honours degrees. what this means is that to graduate with a bachelor’s here, you need to undertake one of the following program combinations:

    • a specialist
    • two majors
    • a major and two minors

    what you ultimately decide on, among these three options, won’t affect how long it’ll take you to graduate. u of t has set this system up so that all three can be completed within 20.0 credits. each course you take for a semester counts as half a credit, so if you take five courses in fall and five in winter, that adds up to four school years. in fact, you can even add a minor to a double major and still finish in four years, if there’s enough overlap between those programs. keep in mind that there is a limit of three programs total, though.

    tl:dr a double major in english and psychology is fully doable in 4 years, if that’s how long you’re planning to take to complete your undergrad! an english major is a type 1 program, which basically means anyone can enrol in it– a psych major is a type 2L, which indicates that there’s a specific grade threshold you need to meet in order to be considered for enrolment. type 2L programs have a cap on how many students they can accept, so it would be best to aim for a grade higher than that threshold to make your chances of getting in better. in fact, the department recommends that you come up with a backup program, just in case admission doesn’t work out for you.

    since you’re looking at two different program types, you should be aware of two different program enrolment periods. typically, you can begin requesting programs at the end of winter semester– the dates vary a lil every year. i’m linking you here to last year’s program request periods, just so you have an idea of what they might look like. this year’s have yet to be posted, but i’m sure if you check again later on, they should be up by february at the latest.

    best of luck with your application! you know where to find me if you have any other questions.

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  rotman

    if i pulled a hair out every time someone threw numbers at me i’d be bald

    November 18, 2019

    Hey! I’m currently in grade 12 and I was just wondering how Rotman looks at grade 11 marks. I would say it wasn’t my best year, my average was around 86-87%. But currently my average is around 90-92%. I have done tons of different volunteering, co-op, and been part of numerous clubs. I’m just wondering whether I should worry about my average as of now.

    ——————————————

    hey friend,

    i never wanna tell people they should worry about their average. this rotman webpage indicates that if you’re from ontario, you’ll need an average in the mid to high eighties. you can decide for yourself what that means for you. in terms of your extracurriculars, u of t generally doesn’t look at those, but if they’re asked for in your supplemental application (which rotman requires) then maybe they’ll affect your admissions decision?

    what i’ve been told before is that how much weight is placed on your grade 11 marks depends on what your academic progress at that point looks like. i don’t really know how to explain this, but in some situations grade 11 marks are almost entirely irrelevant for your uni applications– say a student took a few classes in summer school, putting them a grade ahead in some of their core courses. by the time they got to the eleventh grade, they ended up taking the courses universities would normally consider for admission (english 12, chemistry 12, whatever). in this case, because the most important courses for their university admissions had final marks by the time they applied for universities midway through their senior year, those grade 12-level courses taken during the eleventh grade would be the most heavily considered. their eleventh grade marks would have almost no bearing on admissions.

    this is because, apparently, eleventh grade marks are used primarily as a predictor of a student’s final grade 12 marks, which aren’t available at the time of university applications. so these 11th grade marks may be looked at if your core 12th grade courses are still in progress, as admissions officers have no concrete final 12th grade marks to go on yet. they may be overlooked if you already have things like english 12 in your pocket. i’ve also heard that large discrepancies between grade 11 and grade 12 marks may be taken into account.

    it would be good to note that this is based on something i was told in conversation with an admissions officer a solid number of years ago, and for a different program. i have no way to verify if it’s actually true. but that’s the beauty of being an aska as opposed to a journalist: i can offer up these lil nuggets of hearsay, with full disclosure that i haven’t checked this over with anyone official, and you get to decide how seriously you take them. for better! more concrete! verified! and straight from the source! info you should contact rotman’s admissions office directly. in fact, please do. in this case, i’m not confident in the information i’ve given you and think you can get better tips from them.

    i hope this made sense. we speakin’ from a caffeine-induced haze out here. i hate to perpetuate the stereotype that u of t is disproportionately difficult when i say that– i think most major universities have these kinds of weeks, and either way it depends on your program and the way you work. but yea. we goin’ thru a thing right now, and it won’t be over for a good couple weeks. sorry it took me a while to get to your question, that would be why.

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions

    #fax

    November 15, 2019

    I’m in grade 12 in Ontario and getting ready to apply to A&S.  I’m still undecided between Life Sciences and Humanities but am heavily l eaning towards Life Sciences.  UTM and SC are not good options for me, so I’m stuck having to choose between LS or Humanities at SG. I will have all the prerequisites for LS, but a likely average around 85. I know that the “official” cut-off is low-mid 80’s, but then I read gazillions of comments online about people getting rejected with averages in the low-mid 90’s. Occasionally there’s someone saying “don’t worry, my buddy got in with an 84.” I’m considering applying to Humanities because my chances are better and I can still take all of the first year Life Sciences courses (I know that LS
    will have priority for picking sections), but deep down I really just want to enter as a LS student; FLCs really appeal to me. What are the facts vs fiction when it comes to admission averages for Life
    Sciences?

    ——————————————

    hey there,

    maybe i’m just over-caffeinated and heckin’ tired, but that felt like a hectic read. felt like the inside of my head circa twelfth grade. i, too, spent hours combing reddit for admissions averages and i can tell ya i got nearly nothing constructive out of it. big sigh.

    at the time, i felt the same way you did– i wanted answers, and couldn’t figure out why there was so much variation between peoples’ experiences. now that i’ve been at this school for a while (haha cry) and know a lil more about its ins and outs, well… you asked for a facts-vs-fiction kinda thing. i dunno if there are any hard and universal facts here, other than the domestic admissions averages posted here and the international ones posted here. there are so many factors at play in any one admissions case; with just the numbers and results it’s not easy to figure out what’s going on.

    in terms of why it seems like there is no standard admissions average story, and some people with 90s are getting rejected while some with mid-80s are getting in, these are two of the behind-the-scenes reasons i’m aware of:

    • their admissions average might overall have been high, but their english or calculus mark may have been less than ideal, which may have affected their chances of admission
      • this year, as long as you have calc at all, you’re good. unlike previous years, it’s not being weighted as heavily for admission and if it’s relatively low, won’t affect your admissions average
    • admissions are rolling, so someone who applies earlier might be more likely to get in than someone who applies on the very last day

    the main reason i don’t feel like i have any facts to give you, though, is because what kind of averages result in acceptances will vary from year to year. this is because the caliber of students varies per year, and admissions will adjust accordingly. if that makes sense. it sounds like such a cop-out answer, but that’s really what i’ve been told over and over again so it’s all i can relay. and i’m relatively certain that’s how it works, anyway.

    in terms of entering the life sciences as a humanities student, the only thing you should be aware of other than priority enrolment is having the appropriate high school prerequisites for the courses you’ll be taking. i’m assuming that if your intention is to go into lifesci anyways you’ll have those, though. as for deciding whether to apply to lifesci or humanities, i’d suggest you speak with an academic counselor at your school, if you have one available, and see what they think about your situation.

    i am so sorry for the long wait with this answer, and i hope it had some semblance of coherence. ya friend has been drowning in midterms and will not be able to take another breath until… finals season begins.

    i hope this was still helpful though and best of luck with your application!

    be Boundless,

    aska

     

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  • admissions,  computer science

    u of t anagrammed is tofu just thought u should know

    October 22, 2019

    Hi aska! I hope you’re doing well. I am currently a grade 12 student hoping to get admission into UoFT for either the engineering or comsci programs. I read online the supplementary application for the engineering program was 2 video’s and one written but it did not specify anything about the comsci supplelementary. I was wondering if you knew what that application process entailed and if there were any ways we could prepare for the supplementary (like some typical questions). Thank you!

    ——————————————

    welcome welcome to my small but spicy (lol i wish) internet domain!

    hope you’re doing well too, and that uni application season is being kind to you. or as kind as it really can be.

    unfortunately, nothing’s been officially released yet regarding the compsci supplementary. this website promises more info will be released in winter 2020, which sounds kinda late to me, but hey.

    sorry i can’t be of more help, but until the department itself releases details it’s kinda hard to get wind of those.i’ve heard that this compsci supplementary is a new thing, so info from past years isn’t all that available for me to reach back for and hand to you.

    i have heard some very ambiguous things about it, though. as in, i really know! nothing! but have reason to believe there should be information released soon. so sit tight.

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  scholarships/bursaries

    A2 AS O what?

    August 15, 2019

    i am currently doing my A2 and want to join the enginnering science program at U of T. I gave my O levels and got 8A*s,above 90%,in all of them. I am also giving SAT currently and will get my AS results soon. I dont have many extra curricular activities but my father died when i was in grade 6 and since then I help my mother a lot.

    Now can i get into University of Toronto with little ECA and get a scholarship? What are some ways to get scholarships or financial grants.

    Thanks in advance

    ——————————————

    hello friend,

    thanks for waiting for this answer! i am super duper unfamiliar with your school system, but am assuming it’s some kind of UK/british commonwealth thing. guess it doesn’t matter too much, since i’m not an admissions officer anyway and can’t really deal with equivalents and conversions and … numbers. so i can’t really assess what your 90+ grades on your O levels really mean. however, i can point you to this lovely engsci website, which tells you that if you were an ontario student, you’d need low to high nineties. hopefully that gives you some sort of gauge. 

    i’m sorry to hear about your dad and all. i can understand why, with more family responsibilities, it would be more difficult to invest in extracurriculars and such. 

    you do happen to be in luck, though– u of t, generally speaking, does not give a crap what you do outside the classroom. not in a bad way. i see it as a good thing, especially for cases like yours. at least when i applied, all i had to do was plug my grades into some form and bada bing bada boom. more specialized programs like architecture and music definitely consider a bit more, but for the most part you will not need to worry about anything other than the numbers. hopefully that’s reassuring to you. 

    as for your SAT– don’t know that it’s gonna do you much good here. it’ll be useful to you if you’re seeking to apply to the states, but other than that… i know you can tell canadian schools what your score was if you took the test, but i’m not sure to what degree it affects things. it’s not required here and most people don’t take it. 

    in terms of scholarships, there are definitely avenues. if you are (as i assume) an international student, you’ll likely have different opportunities than a domestic one would. the most prominent international scholarship i know of is the good ol’ lester b, but you can probably try the scholarship sorter as well. 

    best of luck with it all!

    be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  UTSC

    is it gonna be (rev)ok(ed)

    June 25, 2019

    Hi! I was accepted to UTSC’s Psychological and Health Sciences program (so excited!). I was told I need to maintain at least a 75% average and at least a 70% in my prerequisite subjects. If my final average is a couple of marks under 75%, but I maintain above a 70% in my prerequisite subjects, will my offer of admission be revoked? This totally wasn’t the best year for me sigh 🙁

    Thanks 🙂

    ——————————————

    hello,

    congrats on your acceptance!

    for specific cases like this, i would encourage you to give the utsc office of admissions a call. as they’ll have access to your actual academic record, they’ll be able to better advise you on your circumstances. this is too consequential of a guesstimate for me to comfortably make, as someone who’s not particularly involved in the actual process of admissions.

    apparently if you’re really worried about it, you can take summer school and try to boost your marks to avoid getting your offer revoked. at least, that’s what this 3-year-old reddit thread suggests. i try not to use reddit too much as a source, because it can be wildly inaccurate, but the comment i’m referencing was apparently made by a utsc admissions staff member. i’d give the thread a look and check its info over with the office of admissions.

    good luck and be Boundless,

    aska

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  • admissions,  engineering,  wait list

    still wait-eng

    June 11, 2019

    Hi, I am on the waitlist for engineering at UofT, I was wondering of I could get an offer in late August (if enough people decline their offer). Thanks!

    ——————————————

    hey friend,

    according to the lovely engineering admissions office, august would be pretty late for an offer as typically programs are all filled up by then. they aren’t able to give a specific date/time frame as to when the latest offers are sent out, as they’re continually sent until programs are filled. so unfortunately i can’t give you any specifics.

    the only time offers might still be moving around in late august is for postsecondary transfer students undergoing transfer credit assessment, apparently. if you’re applying straight out of high school, seems like odds are low you’d be getting an offer that late in the summer. wouldn’t give you much time to plan, either, especially if you’re from out of town and will have to worry about housing. if you’d be a commuter not so much.

    hope this helped and sorry to be the bearer of non-ideal news. fingers crossed for you that an offer of admission comes sooner, but it may be best to start fleshing out backup plans and alternate routes in case that offer doesn’t come thru.

    over n out,

    aska

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  • admissions,  scholarships/bursaries

    we all need some money to lean on

    April 11, 2019

    Hi, I just received an admission from U of T. I didn’t receive a scholarship in my admission letter but I was wondering if it is possible to get one from the school or college at a later time. Thank you.

    ——————————————

    hi there!

    ah, answering admissions-related questions.

    …and that’s actually okay with me! real nice talking to people who haven’t had their souls sucked out of their bodies by overnight study at robarts yet (shoutout to the utsu for bringing snacks last night tho you the real ones).

    bless your soul, and congrats on your acceptance– exciting stuff.

    depending on which campus/faculty/program/college you’re in, there are definitely other scholarships you can apply for. the most centralized place is to check this database. don’t stop there, because it doesn’t list all the university’s scholarships, but it’s a good place to start. you can also check your college/program’s website, and see if further awards are available there.

    even if you don’t get any scholarships right now, there will always be other opportunities later. a lot of colleges will do in-course scholarships based on academic achievement, that you automatically get if you reach a certain GPA threshold. amounts (and thresholds, i think?) vary by college, ’cause u of t is a bureaucracy and that’s apparently how we do things here! errything is in several different places. you’ll get used to it if you accept your acceptance.

    if you choose to get involved on-campus, there will likely be awards available for you to apply for going out of your first year, as well. my registrar sent those out to me in an email. i’m not sure if all registrars do that, but that’s another way to find out about what’s out there.

    anyhow, best of luck! i mean, there are always external awards and stuff. i wrote a 1500 word essay in march of my senior year on the perks of orthodontics doing my best to offset some tuition, but they ended up giving the cash to someone else. big sigh. it be like that. my point is, there are opportunities if you’re willing to put the work in, you just gotta find them. and beat the hell out of everyone else going for the money, yay competition.

    not that relevant, but if you don’t hear a tune in your head when you read the title of this post… wyd man?

    cheers,

    aska

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  • admissions

    patience is (not) for wimps

    March 1, 2019

    What’s usually the last day for applications to get back to the students? Because I haven’t gotten mine yet and am getting worried.

    ——————————————

    hey!

    no need to be worried at all– it’s normal to not have heard from the university at this point in the year. i’m not sure what faculty you applied to, but this is what the artsci website indicates:

    if you’re from ontario, there are three rounds of offers sent out, in february, march, and may. the latest you should expect to hear back, then, should be the end of may.

    if you’re coming from outside of ontario, the rounds are early feb, late march, and late may. if you waited until the document deadline to submit your documents, you probably won’t be contacted until late may. not sure why, that’s just what the site says.

    couldn’t find anything from daniels, engineering, etc., so if you’re not a potential artsci kid i honestly don’t know what to tell you. hopefully it’s about the same, though.

    what i can tell you from personal experience is that you’ll get the earliest news through the website. make sure you’re logged into it and all, and then check that periodically. if you wait to get the email, it can take a little longer to get the news– i believe it was a week or two for me, between the time my letter was uploaded to the portal and the day i received the email. so like, not a significant delay. but it’s something.

    don’t stress too much over it, don’t abuse the reload button, etc etc. because the news will come when it comes. which like, i know it’s easy to say. but it’s out of your hands for now anyway, right? no amount of thinking bout it will speed things up, unfortunately.

    the doctor, as much as i adore him, is wrong on this one:

    best of luck. i hope when the news does come, it’s good.

    cheers,
    aska

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  • admissions,  applying for U of T,  art,  getting into U of T,  keeners,  Uncategorized

    let me in already

    February 12, 2019

    Hi oki so im in grade 12 and i applied for the art and art history course around a month ago, but all of my friends who applied to different colleges and universities are now getting acceptances, so like I guess my question is is how long does it take for the applications to be reviewed and to get a response? Cause all I have so far is a letter saying “thanks for applying” and a “pending review” so I’m kind of worried.

    ——————————————

    hey hey!

    i’m assuming you applied to UTM, yeah? or at least i can only find one art & art history program, which is a joint one with sheridan. two schools for the same buck. and they’re both sane campuses that close when the godforsaken floodgates of heaven decide to open and turn toronto into the depths of siberia.

    chelsea peretti wtf GIF by Brooklyn Nine-Nine

    mmmm, utsg can’t relate. i want a snow day that doesn’t begin in the late afternoon. but i digress.

    when you’ll hear back from u of t depends on where you’re attending school right now! if you’re from ontario, the UTM website indicates that there are three rounds of offers in february, march, and may.

    however, if you attend school elsewhere– whether that’s in canada or otherwise– admission looks a little different. officially the rounds are the same, but some decisions are released as early as january, which is before the february document deadline.  so for some reason if you wait til the deadline to send your documents in, they probably won’t consider you til the last round in may.

    if it’s not the UTM program you went for and you mean the st. george art history program, that falls under the faculty of arts and science so the timeline should be about the same.

    nothing to worry about, is the bottom line. it’s only halfway through february, so really the first round of admissions have only just begun. obviously i have no idea how long it’ll take the school to review your specific application. they’re sorting through piles of stuff right now, and i bet they wish they could get through it faster, too.

    man, i remember how long it could feel, waiting to hear back when it seemed everyone else was already getting news from their schools. hang in there. your time will come.

    over n out,

    aska

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