Do night school, summer school and online courses count for university admission?
Almost universally yes, with one condition that does the real work: the school has to be inspected and approved by the Ontario Ministry of Education. Universities do not discount a credit for being earned at night, in summer, online or at a private school — they discount it for coming from a school the Ministry does not recognise. The real risk is not the credit, it is the calendar: several universities require the mark to reach them before a summer cut-off, and a course that finishes too late cannot clear the conditions of a September offer even when the university accepts it happily.
Waterloo has updated this since
The guide's Waterloo entry warns that summer school “could negatively affect a student's application to some programs”. Waterloo's current page for September 2027 entry does not repeat that warning — it lists day school, summer school, night school, online and private school as accepted, and says it will not penalise you for taking courses outside your regular day school, while still recommending you take required courses during the school year.
Waterloo’s own page, checked 16 August 2026.
Every answer below is what the university tells Ontario guidance counsellors, quoted from the OUAC guide for September 2026 entry. It isn’t published on their student pages. Rules like this change rarely; dates don’t — check any date here with the university. Where this comes from.
What each of the 23 universities says
We grant equal standing to all courses recognized by the Ministry of Education.
We treat all Ministry-approved high school courses equally.
If the home school does not submit the course via the OUAC according to established timelines, the student must email the Admissions Office (futurestudent@brocku.ca) to provide proof of registration in the course.
It is the student's responsibility to ensure we receive their midterm and final grades.
Space is not guaranteed in all programs.
We treat all Ministry-approved high school courses equally.
We accept all Ministry-approved courses regardless of the mode of instruction.
Students must supply transcripts for courses outside of their regular school program. Students must submit summer school courses by August 15, 2026.
We accept all Ministry-approved 4U/M courses.
We accept all Ministry-inspected and -approved courses.
Students may not use summer school courses taken in 2026 to meet the conditions of an offer of admission for September 2026 because the coursework is completed after the June 30, 2026, deadline.
We accept all courses completed at Ministry-inspected and -approved schools.
Schools must send midterm and/or final grades for these courses to the OUAC by April 24, 2026, to be included in the regular admission decision timelines.
Schools should submit summer school grades by August 15, 2026.
Provided that the course is completed at a Ministryinspected and -approved institution, we will accept Grade 12 U/M courses regardless of how or where students take them. Final official documents are due in July or August each year.
We will accept credits from all accredited institutions. www.ontariotechu.ca/upgrading
We will use the highest 4U/M (or equivalent) grade(s) for admission.
Students accepted into one of our competitive programs, who do not meet the grade cut-off, will not be able to upgrade their grades in summer school.
Summer school courses taken immediately prior to the start of the September term to upgrade grades are not included in grade calculation for awards.
We accept all courses completed at Ministry-inspected and -approved schools.
We accept all Ministry-approved courses.
Case-by-case evaluation.
We accept all courses completed at public and Ministry-inspected, registered private schools that are authorized to grant credits toward the Ontario Secondary School Diploma.
Courses completed after June 30 in the Grade 12 year (e.g., regular or condensed summer school courses) require authorization and may not be considered. www.torontomu.ca/admissions/undergraduate/ after-applying/summer-school-extensions
We will accept credits from any institution that is accredited by the Ontario Ministry of Education.
Students who are completing courses outside of their regular day school must notify the Admissions Office using the Intention to Upgrade Form on their myTrent portal.
We consider all Ministry-inspected and -approved high school courses equally.
We will consider U/M courses taken at a Ministry-inspected and -approved school, regardless of format.
We treat all courses taken through a Ministry-inspected and approved institution as equal for the purpose of calculating an admission average.
We accept all Ministry-inspected and -approved courses.
We are unable to accept grades unless the school submits them to us through the OUAC.
We accept all approved courses through schools accredited by the Ministry of Education.
Once students have applied, we may ask them to identify courses they have taken or are taking outside of regular day school and to explain why. Taking required courses in summer school could negatively affect a student's application to some programs. www.uwaterloo.ca/future/repeated-courses
We accept all Ministry-inspected and approved courses.
We will accept online, summer, night and private school courses as long as the school is accredited through the Ontario Ministry of Education and offers the same rigorous curriculum and level of instruction that they would receive from their day school.
When students take courses outside of a regular day school, it is their responsibility to ensure that all in-progress and final grades are uploaded to their OUAC Undergraduate application by the appropriate deadlines.
We will accept Grade 12 U/M courses, provided the school or institution is accredited by the Ministry of Education.
Ontario high school students must submit the Summer School Registration Form if they intend to take summer school courses to meet the conditions of their offer. Final grades for summer courses must be submitted by August 12, 2026, to maintain an offer. If we receive documents after August 12, we may consider the student for an alternative offer or rescind the offer. Dates are subject to change, but we will inform applicants if they do.
We accept all Ministry-inspected and -approved courses.
Prior to registering for courses at a private school, students should ensure it is approved by the Ministry of Education.
Other things students ask
- Do Grade 11 marks matter for Ontario university admission?
- If you repeat a course, which mark do universities use?
- Does the order you rank programs on OUAC matter?
- What happens if you don't get into your first-choice program?
- Which Ontario universities require a supplementary application?
- Which Ontario universities give automatic entrance scholarships?
Policies decide whether a mark counts. Your average decides where it gets you.