4 programs, side by side

Rows marked with a dot are where these differ. Everything is each university’s own published wording; the “your average” row is yours, calculated the way each program does it.

Full	Carleton Industrial Design OUAC CD Remove	OCAD Visual and Critical Studies (Art History) OUAC HVC Remove	Lakehead Arts One (Thunder Bay) OUAC AB Remove	Ontario Tech Communication and Digital Media Studies OUAC DDC Remove
Your average, their wayrequired courses forced in
Published rangetheir exact wording	75–77%“75-77% (regular and co-op)”	Not published“N/A”	70%	70–73%“Low 70s”
Required coursesforced into your top 6 — options are the row below	MHF4U SPH4U	ENG4U	ENG4U	ENG4U
Choose one ofany of these satisfies it	—	—	—	—
Prerequisitesas published	Advanced Functions (MHF4U) Physics (SPH4U) 4 best 4U/M courses	OSSD with an overall academic average of at least 70% in six 4U/M courses, including English 4U with a minimum final grade of 70%	ENG4U Alternative Offers If you do not meet the admission requirements for your program of choice but do meet Lakehead University's general admission requirements, you will automatically be considered for an alternate program.	Current Ontario secondary school students must complete the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) with six 4U or 4M courses, including English (ENG4U). Alternative Offers If you do not meet the admission requirements, or we cannot accommodate your application, you may receive an offer to another closely related program.
More than marks?supplementary application	Yes Application deadline March 1. Portfolio deadline March 5. Alternative Offers Find more information about alternative offers Usually closes before January 15	Yes In addition to meeting the academic requirements, you are required to submit the following to be considered for admission: A 1-page Statement of Intent (300 words maximum) on why you would like to study art history in a studio setting. An original essay of 500 words on an annually assigned topic. Usually closes before January 15	Marks only	Marks only
Co-op	Available	No	No	Available
Degree	—	—	—	—
First-year intakewhere published	60	—	—	500
What you study	Business Studies Design Others in Business & Administrative Studies Production & Manufacturing Engineering	Creative Writing Design English Studies Fine Art	Anthropology Economics English Studies Fine Art	Business Studies Creative Writing Economics Interdisciplinary Studies
What it is	Industrial Design teaches you how to plan and shape physical products — from phones to furniture to medical devices — so they work well, look good, and can actually be made. You'll combine design thinking with engineering and manufacturing knowledge to understand both the creative and practical sides of bringing products to life. The co-op term lets you work in industry while you study, so you apply what you learn to real projects.	You study the history of visual art and design, learning to analyze images, objects, and cultural movements across time periods and societies. This differs from a studio art program because you focus on understanding and interpreting art rather than creating it yourself. It suits people who want to think critically about visual culture and understand how art reflects and shapes society.	Arts One is a broad first-year program that lets you explore multiple humanities and social science subjects — including anthropology, history, English, economics, and geography — before deciding on a major. Unlike applying directly to a single program, this approach gives you time to sample different disciplines and find the right fit before committing. It suits students who are curious about ideas and society but aren't yet certain which direction they want to specialize in.	You study how people communicate through digital platforms, traditional media, and written content, combining journalism, creative writing, and media analysis with business and economics foundations. Unlike a pure journalism program, this combines multiple communication disciplines and requires hands-on digital media production alongside theory. It suits people who want to work in digital marketing, publishing, broadcasting, or content creation and value gaining real workplace experience during their degree.
The door tomajors you reach through it	Applied to directly	Applied to directly	Applied to directly	communications
Entrance awardsat this campus, by average	16 published, 9 with no applicationfrom 75%See them	None published by average	6 published, 5 with no applicationfrom 80%See them	3 published, 3 with no applicationfrom 85%See them
Source	Carleton University on OUInfo	OCAD University on OUInfo	Lakehead University on OUInfo	Ontario Tech University on OUInfo

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