Studying Communications in Ontario

Western University

Apply to Media and Communication Studies (EI)

You choose communications After finishing first year in MACS, you apply into one of the specific modules — Media, Information & Technoculture (MIT), Media & the Public Interest (MPI), or Creative Arts & Production (CAP) — based on how well you did in first year..

Western has no OUAC code called "Communications" on its own — the program used to be called Media, Information & Technoculture (MIT) but the whole area was renamed Media and Communication Studies (MACS), OUAC code EI, low to mid-80s average, with ENG4U required. This is a Faculty of Information & Media Studies (FIMS) program, not Arts & Humanities or Social Science, which trips people up. You're admitted broadly into EI/MACS first; getting into your preferred specific module (MIT, MPI, or CAP) after first year depends on your first-year grades, so it isn't guaranteed just because you got into MACS.

Queen's University

Apply to Arts (QA)

You choose communications At the end of first year. You must take FILM 110 (or FILM 111/112/113/114) in first year, and automatic entry into the Film and Media Specialization or Major requires a B or better in that course plus a cGPA of 2.6 or higher..

Queen's does not have a program actually called "Communications" with its own OUAC code. The closest match is Film and Media, a plan inside the Faculty of Arts and Science that explicitly covers "today's systems of mass communication, information and entertainment." There is also a Media Studies Certificate, but that's an add-on, not a stand-alone major, so it can't be your main degree. To get into Film and Media you apply through the general Arts (QA) route, not through any "media" or "communications"-named code, and your admission to the plan itself depends on your first-year grade in the required FILM course plus your cumulative GPA, not on your high-school average alone.

McMaster University

Apply to Humanities I (MH)

You choose communications At the end of first year. Students in Humanities I apply into the Communication Studies major (and the combined Communication & Multimedia Studies option) through Level II Program Selection on Mosaic, which happens in mid-March..

This is a trap: "Communications" sounds like a Social Sciences subject, but McMaster's Department of Communication Studies & Media Arts sits inside the Faculty of Humanities, not Social Sciences. So the Grade 12 OUAC application should be to Humanities I (MH), not to Social Sciences I (ML). There's no direct-entry OUAC code straight into Communication Studies — you spend year one in the Humanities I gateway, take the required first-year courses, then rank Communication Studies as your Level II choice in March. Watch for the very similarly named "iArts (Integrated Arts)" (MHI) on the list — that's a different, separate direct-entry-style Humanities program, not the route into Communication Studies.

University of Toronto — St. George

Apply to Humanities (TAH)

You choose communications You choose your specific major, including Book and Media Studies, when you enrol in your Programs of Study (POSt) after first year at the Faculty of Arts & Science — you don't pick it on the OUAC application itself..

U of T St. George does not have a program literally called "Communications." The closest match is the Book and Media Studies program (based at St. Michael's College), which covers media, communication, publishing and digital/mass media topics. Sources confirm students must apply to the Humanities admission category (TAH) on the St. George campus to eventually reach this program — not Social Sciences (TAX), even though "communications" sounds more social-science-flavoured. Note that UTM (Mississauga campus, not St. George) has a dedicated Communication, Culture, Information and Technology program — that's a different campus and not part of this list, so don't confuse the two if the student is flexible on campus.

University of Toronto — Scarborough

Apply to Visual & Performing Arts, Arts Management and Media (TUC)

You choose communications UTSC's own Media and Communication Studies page tells Grade 12 applicants to apply through OUAC under "Visual and Performing Arts, Arts Management & Media" (TUC) and pick 'Media' in the 'Subject of Major Interest' drop-down when applying. Once enrolled at UTSC, you then formally declare your specific program/stream (e.g. Media and Communication Studies, or the Journalism/Media stream) on ACORN..

There is no separate OUAC code just for "Communications" at UTSC — it's called "Media and Communication Studies" (part of the Media, Journalism and Digital Cultures area) and it sits inside the TUC (Visual & Performing Arts, Arts Management and Media) admission category, not under Social Sciences. On the OUAC application you must select 'Media' from the Subject of Major Interest drop-down under TUC — picking a different subject of interest in that same TUC category won't guarantee you land in the communications stream, since the actual major/stream choice happens after you arrive, via ACORN declaration.

University of Waterloo

Apply to Honours Arts (WA)

You choose communications At the end of first year (before the end of your 1B term), using the "Declare your Major" form once your final grades are posted..

Communications at Waterloo isn't its own OUAC code — it's the "Communication Studies" major (or the related "Communication Arts and Design Practice" major), which you pick after starting in Honours Arts (WA) or Honours Arts and Business (WAB). Both routes work, but plain Honours Arts (WA) is the direct match from this list; WAB adds a business component. Don't search OUAC for a "Communications" code — you apply to WA (or WAB) and declare the Communication Studies major at the end of 1st year.

University of Guelph

Apply to Bachelor of Arts (BA) Honours (GK)

You choose communications on the OUAC application itself. Guelph's Honours BA majors all share code GK, and you name your major when you apply.

Guelph has no programme called Communications. The closest major is Culture and Technology Studies, a BA under GK, and there is a Media and Cinema Studies minor. Guelph's Honours BA is one OUAC code (GK) covering 26 majors, all published at 75-80%. You name the major on the application. Psychology and Criminal Justice are the exceptions — they have their own codes and higher ranges.

Wilfrid Laurier University — Waterloo

Apply to Honours Bachelor of Arts (UZ)

You choose communications on the OUAC application, from a mandatory drop-down of 'Subjects of Major Interest' inside the Honours BA (UZ). If you are not sure, Laurier has a formal temporary designation that lets you take first-year courses in one or two areas and declare at the end of first year.

The major is Communication Studies, a BA Subject of Major Interest under UZ, with co-op available. Laurier's Honours BA is one OUAC code, UZ, published at mid-70s. You pick the major from a drop-down on the application — Laurier's own description is a 'mandatory drop-down picklist' of Subjects of Major Interest. Unusually, it also offers a temporary undeclared designation, so you can enter the BA without committing and declare at the end of first year.

Laurentian University

Apply to English Literature, Media, and Writing (LEI)

You choose communications on the application — communications sits inside English Literature, Media, and Writing.

Laurentian has no communications code. English Literature, Media, and Writing (LEI, 70%) is the nearest programme and covers media as a stream.

Nipissing University

Apply to Bachelor of Arts (PA)

You choose communications on the application or after — the Bachelor of Arts (PA, 70% minimum) is a genuinely undeclared door, and you choose a major from the twenty inside it.

Nipissing has no communications major. English Studies, chosen inside the Bachelor of Arts, is the nearest. Nipissing admits to the Bachelor of Arts as one OUAC code, PA, at a 70% minimum, and nearly every arts major is chosen inside it rather than applied to separately. Only Criminal Justice (PAJ) and History with Orientation to a Master's (PAH, 80%, limited enrolment) have their own codes. Nipissing's own concurrent-education listings describe the BA entry as 'Undeclared'.

Algoma University

Apply to not offered at Algoma

Algoma has no communications or media programme. English (JAH/JBB) is the nearest.