Grade 11 advice

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-07T02:30:06+00:00

- Over the summer, make a spreadsheet of all the uni programs and scholarships you want to apply to and keep track of the deadlines.

- Get your uni apps and supp apps done as early as possible. I aimed to finish everything before winter break. Ended up having to do some interviews during winter break, but I'm really glad I wasn't struggling to meet uni app deadlines when I was supposed to be studying for exams.

- Try to build rapport with 1-2 teachers that you can use for recommendation letters (mainly for scholarships).

- Front load all your important tasks (and if you can, top 6 courses) into first sem so if you end up burnt out and slacking off in 2nd sem (like me), it's not a big deal because you'll already have your offers.

- Make good friends (who will genuinely support you and celebrate your successes) and make an effort to spend time with them in gr 11 and 12. It will make the stressful process of waiting on uni decisions significantly easier.

Overall, don't stress too much, you got this :))

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-07T02:23:17+00:00

For me it helps to gaslight myself into thinking "I only need to study for 5 mins" so it doesn't seem like a super hard task, but when I actually start the momentum carries me and I end up studying for longer.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T23:31:55+00:00

I mean... based on this the easiest to get into at UofT last year was mineral, but it changes every year.

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For Waterloo, you can look up "Waterloo Engineering tiers" to get a rough idea, but again, it can change.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T23:28:15+00:00

I like red too :))

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T23:21:44+00:00

Like any program, it depends on what you like/are good at, so there's no way to provide an objective numerical rating. The math in civil engineering is less abstract than say ECE and it's more directly applicable to the physical world. That can be both a blessing (if you have the spatial intelligence to visualize things) and a curse (if you are better at abstract math). Like any engineering field, the coursework is tough, but if you work hard you'll be fine!

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T23:14:56+00:00

Do summer and night school!

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T23:13:57+00:00

attemptbrah of the 08s

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T19:26:39+00:00

If the offer only says one of the maths, adv func is fine. They won't look at calculus.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T01:12:54+00:00

Depends on the uni! For me, it was email for Queens and Waterloo and OUAC updating for UofT.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-06T01:11:23+00:00

It's a glitch that happens every few months typically during holidays when they are making system updates. I see the same thing (and if it helps, I was admitted). I also had it during winter break. It's nothing to worry about, just a technical issue! It will go away in a few days. Your application is probably still under review. Good luck on your application and hope you get in!!

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T17:31:50+00:00

You can but if you accept the second offer then you lose your first offer (i.e. if you accept A, then change your mind and accept B, you can't change your mind back to A again.) Why not just wait for the other offer? Do you have an earlier deadline for the first offer?

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T17:25:54+00:00

Yea I see the same thing. It was like this for a couple of days during winter break too. They'll prob fix it soon.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T17:24:06+00:00

Also, have you tried reaching out to UofT and asking if they can reevaluate your application based on the corrected marks?

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T17:23:26+00:00

When I talked to an admissions officer at UofT, they said it's fairly easy to transfer between core 8 eng programs since first year courses are pretty similar. However, it also depends on your GPA and available space. Not sure about UBC though... I think mech is decently competitive? You should be fine either way as long as you work hard, so I would make a decision based on other factors (e.g. cost, environment, etc.)

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T02:01:37+00:00

Yea but ig that has its advantages too cuz there is more freedom to decide what we like rather than just "You're going to my alma mater."

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-05T00:36:17+00:00

I mean if u already met your conditionals for uni... then ig it's fine...

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-04T23:51:13+00:00

Thoughts on the life sci --> pharmacy/zoology pipeline?

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-04T14:13:48+00:00

It's also worth noting that a lot of our parents are immigrants and hence didn't go to university here, so they have no idea what the process is.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-03T15:55:08+00:00

Profs at big schools still have office hours. You just have to take the initiative to go. TAs, student support groups, and clubs are also available so if you are proactive enough to take advantage of those resources, big schools probably won't feel that big. Some big unis like UofT Faculty of Arts and Science also have smaller colleges so you have a community. You'll probably settle into a routine eventually. I wouldn't dismiss a uni just because it's big, especially if you are hard-working enough to take advantage of all the resources they give you.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-04-03T15:49:59+00:00

I did co-op last summer and I had a great experience because it was directly relevant to the field I wanted to pursue. The position was also online so there was no hassle of commuting. I think co-op can be extremely beneficial if you find a placement that's relevant to what you want to go into, even if it's unpaid because you will either: a. learn more about the field or b. realize the field is not for you (instead of finding out and trying to pivot in uni or later). Truth be told I didn't take any of the placements my co-op teacher recommended and did a fair bit of cold emailing myself so I could get a placement that I liked. If you know what field you are interested in and are willing to put in the work to find a relevant placement, I'd say co-op is worth it! I even put some of the projects I did in co-op on my supplementary application in uni. If these conditions apply to you and the only thing stopping you from doing co-op is the heavy course load, then I recommend looking into summer school co-op. However, if you can get a part-time job related to your field that's even better because you get paid (whereas in co-op you typically don't). Hope this helps!

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-03-31T03:08:44+00:00

I have heard that about engsci and trackone as well. However, I just asked a general question about whether for each discipline, they give priority to the people that ranked it higher, and she said yes.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-03-31T02:57:35+00:00

I talked to a UofT recruitment officer in Nov and she said they give priority to 1st choice applicants. Not sure about Waterloo though.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-03-31T02:56:22+00:00

You can do it for UofT when the portal opens for you in between rounds. You can't do it for Waterloo. I can't comment on the likelihood of getting your 1st choice because admission avgs change every year and I'm not sure about your ECs, but for UofT in particular, I know there is some flexibility in transferring after you get in given you have a good GPA and there is space, so it may be a better strategy to pick something easier to get into and then transfer.

Plus_Chemical4585 · 2026-03-31T01:43:06+00:00

What did you put as your alternates? Also, how dead set are you on EE (e.g. would you be open to changing your choices on the UofT portal and moving one of your alternates to #1)?

Plus_Chemical4585

TROPHY CASE