3 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.

	Carleton Cognitive Science – Non-Honours (3 years) OUAC CGG Remove	Western Science OUAC ES Remove	Carleton Cognitive Science – Honours (4 years) OUAC CGS Remove
Your average, their wayrequired courses forced in
Published rangetheir exact wording	75%	80–87%“Low to mid 80s”	75%
Required coursesforced into your top 6 — options are the row below	ENG4U	ENG4U MCV4U	ENG4U
Choose one ofany of these satisfies it	—	two of ICS4U, MDM4U, MHF4U, SBI4U, SES4U, SPH4U	—
Prerequisitesas published	English (ENG4U) 5 best 4U/M courses Alternative Offers Find more information about alternative offers .	English, ENG4U Calculus and Vectors MCV4U Two of: Advanced Functions, MHF4U Biology, SBI4U +7 more on the program page	English (ENG4U) 5 best 4U/M courses Alternative Offers Find more information about alternative offers .
More than marks?supplementary application	Marks only	Yes Unless otherwise noted, required courses must be completed with a minimum average of 70%. Western Integrated Science applicants must submit a supplementary application. More information Usually closes before January 15	Marks only
Co-op	No	Available	Available
Degree	—	—	—
First-year intakewhere published	—	550	—
What you study	Biological Sciences Computer Science Linguistics Philosophy	Animal Science Astronomy Biological Sciences Chemistry	Biological Sciences Computer Science Linguistics Philosophy
What it is	Cognitive science studies how the mind works by combining insights from psychology, biology, computer science, linguistics, and philosophy. This non-honours version gives you a broader survey of these fields rather than the deeper specialization of an honours degree, so you spend less time on advanced research methods and theory. It suits students curious about how thinking, language, and brain function connect, who want flexibility to explore multiple disciplines without committing to one.	This is a broad science degree where you choose from fields like biology, chemistry, physics, computer science, geology, and others. You take foundational science courses in first year, then specialize by selecting which science subjects to focus on. Co-op is available, letting you do paid work terms at science-related employers alongside your studies.	This program combines psychology, biology, computer science, linguistics, and philosophy to study how the mind works and how we think, learn, and use language. Unlike a straight psychology or computer science degree, cognitive science integrates all these viewpoints to understand cognition from multiple angles. It suits people curious about the science of thinking itself, who want breadth across disciplines rather than depth in just one.
The door tomajors you reach through it	Applied to directly	biology chemistry earth science environmental science life sciences mathematics physics statistics	Applied to directly
Entrance awardsat this campus, by average	16 published, 9 with no applicationfrom 75%See them	6 published, 5 with no applicationfrom 85%See them	16 published, 9 with no applicationfrom 75%See them
Source	Carleton University on OUInfo	Western University on OUInfo	Carleton University on OUInfo

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Same subject area and a similar published range, at a campus you have not got in the table yet.

Ranges are what each university publishes, not guaranteed cutoffs, and limited-enrolment programs often admit above them. Confirm anything you are about to act on with the university; each column links to its source.