Physics programs in Ontario

58 programs across 19 campuses, with published admission ranges starting at 70%. Sorted by the range each one publishes, lowest first, so you can see where you land.

Programs

Campuses

Lowest range

70%

What this leads to

The picture for physics as of 2026-08-17, not a description of this particular program.

Physics graduates work as researchers in universities and government labs, or move into applied roles like firmware engineers, medical physicists, or data scientists in industry. Most bachelor's holders don't stay in pure physics—they transition into fields that value their analytical and computational skills.

In its favour

Strong starting salary: physics graduates average $77,839 per year in Canada, with 25th percentile earning $51,346. This is solid for a bachelor's degree.
Growing demand in AI and tech: employers actively hire physicists for machine learning roles, AI research, and automation systems where physics knowledge matters.
Broad job options: there are 800+ listed physics jobs in Canada right now, across research, engineering, materials science, game development, and data science.
Useful for grad school: if you want to do research later, a physics degree opens doors to master's and PhD programs in physics, engineering, computer science, and applied fields.

Worth knowing

Research jobs require a PhD: if you want to do academic or research physics, a bachelor's degree alone won't cut it. You'll need to commit to grad school.
High barrier to industry without extra skills: most bachelor's holders end up needing to learn coding or data science skills on the job. The physics degree alone doesn't get you hired; the math and problem-solving mindset does.
Saturated entry level: many physics positions posted target people with 2+ years experience or master's degrees. Entry-level spots are competitive.
Automation of routine research tasks: AI is already automating lab work, data processing, and experimental analysis. Pure experimental physics roles are shrinking.

How AI is changing this work

AI is changing physics work in two directions at once. Routine lab tasks—data collection, screening experiments, simulations—are being automated by AI systems and self-driving labs. But at the same time, there's new demand for physicists who can work with AI: evaluating AI models for scientific accuracy, designing physics-informed machine learning, and building AI systems that understand physical systems. The National Research Council and University of Toronto are funding major projects in this space. If you're thinking research, know that traditional experimental physics roles are shrinking while hybrid roles (physics + AI/ML) are growing. For the next four years, your degree will be in high demand for AI work, but pure physics research paths are getting narrower.

Where this came from (6 sources)