2 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.

	Ottawa Mechanical Engineering and Computing Technology (5-year double degree) OUAC OBC Remove	Waterloo Computer Science (Regular/Co-op) OUAC WCS Remove
Your average, their wayrequired courses forced in
Published rangetheir exact wording	85%	90–97%“Low to Mid-90s”
Required coursesforced into your top 6 — options are the row below	MCV4U MHF4U SCH4U SPH4U	ENG4U MCV4U MHF4U
Choose one ofany of these satisfies it	one of ENG4U, FRA4U	—
Prerequisitesas published	ENG4U or FRA4U MHF4U MCV4U SPH4U SCH4U +2 more on the program page	Any Grade 12 U English Advanced Functions Calculus and Vectors One other Grade 12 U course
More than marks?supplementary application	Marks only	Yes An Admission Information Form (AIF) is required. We will send you instructions when we acknowledge your application. You are strongly encouraged to write the Euclid Mathematics Contest and the Canadian Senior Mathematics Contest. Individual selection may vary. Usually closes before January 15
Co-op	Available	Available
Degree	Bachelor of Applied Science, BASc, Bachelor of Engineering (Co-op), BEng (Co-op), Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Applied Science, BSc/BASc	Bachelor of Computer Science, BCS, Bachelor of Mathematics, BMath
First-year intakewhere published	30	360
What you study	Computer Science General or Integrated Engineering Interdisciplinary Studies Mechanical Engineering	Artificial Intelligence Computer Games Computer Science Health Informatics
What it is	You study both mechanical engineering and computer science together over five years, learning to design machines and systems while also programming and working with software and hardware integration. Unlike doing these as separate degrees, you graduate with credentials in both fields and understand how they work together in modern engineering. This suits students who want to bridge mechanical design with computing, or who are drawn to robotics, automation, and intelligent systems.	You study the design, development, and theory behind computer software and systems. In the co-op stream, you alternate between classroom terms and paid work terms at tech companies, giving you practical experience alongside your degree. This program suits people who want to build real-world coding skills early and explore whether they prefer software development, artificial intelligence, games, or other computing specializations while earning money.
The door tomajors you reach through it	Applied to directly	computer science
Entrance awardsat this campus, by average	22 published, 5 with no applicationfrom 75%See them	4 published, 3 with no applicationfrom 80%See them
Source	University of Ottawa on OUInfo	University of Waterloo on OUInfo

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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.