#fax

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?

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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