The Canadian education system: an overview

By | July 22, 2013

educationCanadian education system has been established and developed in such a manner that it offers international students a wide range of options and first-rate education. Canada is perhaps one of the best places in the world to study. Canadians have always given education the utmost importance and this is the reason that today every year over 1 million international students enroll into Canadian universities and institute for higher studies. Canadian Schools and Colleges have been successful in maintaining a high standard of education be it at the kindergarten level or PhD research level. It is a fact that be it a Canadian degree or diploma it is recognized worldwide.

Today Canada is rightfully, one of the best academically performing countries in Higher Education placed along with USA, UK, Germany and Netherlands. This is largely due to the fact that Canada spends a very large percentage of it Gross National Product on Educational Development. Canadian degrees are highly respected all over the world and are commended for the quality of education. However this is not the only reason for its recognition; Canada is also known to offer considerably cheaper education than other nations. The tuition fee cost of living and travelling in Canada is a lot lesser than its neighbor USA and also UK.

The Federal Government controls and administers all levels of education in Canada however the funding is governed by the government of the province. The former is solely responsible for setting up the educational standards in the province. This is the reason education systems differ considerably among the different provinces in Canada. Schooling in most of the provinces is mandatory till the age of 16 or 18 in some provinces. Canadian academic calendar begins in September and ends in June. At university level the session is usually divided into two semesters with about two months of vacations in Christmas, Easter and summer. Most of the schools are non religious however religious based schools do exist in some of the provinces.  Since Canada has two official languages English and French, schools are present where instructions are given in French however English is still prevalent in most of the provinces.

The Canadian Education System comprises of about a few levels. The first is the Pre-School which is for children below five years of age. Then there is the Elementary School which is for students from grade 1 to grade 6 after which there is Junior high school till grade 8 which is followed by High school. High school typically runs from grade 9 to 12. Once completing that the student enters the university where a Bachelors’ degree is earned followed by Masters or a Doctorate degree. The universities in Canada provide students with refined knowledge and highly valued skills in a worldwide economy.  You can dedicate yourself to in one particular area or combine interests in programs ranging from liberal arts, social science, health sciences, engineering and computer technology to business, nursing, fine arts and media studies.

It is essential for a foreign student who wishes to enroll for Higher education in a Canadian university that he must fulfill some requirements for admission. Equivalent degrees, a valid passport, Visa, proficiency in English or French are a few of them. In order to attain immigration to Canada the foreign students also need to fulfill certain immigration requirements.

The environment of Canada is friendly and secure which welcomes the foreign students. They will witness a multicultural society within Canada which is interested in learning about other cultures. Almost all of the world’s ethnic groups are present in Canada living in harmony and peacefully. There’s no doubt that Canada is the perfect place, for brilliant and bright students from all over the world place to pursue their education and dreams.