University of Guelph
Programs
50
Range spans
65–86
With co-op
29
The University of Guelph (U of G or Guelph) is a comprehensive public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald Institute (1903), and the Ontario Veterinary College (1922), and has since grown to an institution of over 30,000 students from more than 140 countries (including those at the Humber campus, Ridgetown campus, off-campus degree enrolments, diploma enrolments, and part-time students) and employs 823 full-time faculty (academic staff) as of 2025. It offers 94 undergraduate degrees, 48 graduate programs, and 6 associate degrees in many different disciplines.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.
How Guelph actually handles things
From the OUAC’s Guidance Dialogues Resource Guide (Spring 2026), which OUAC publishes for guidance counsellors rather than students. Read the original. Policies change — confirm anything you’re about to act on.
- If you repeat a course
We use the highest U/M grade reported for all courses completed at a Ministry-inspected and -approved school.
- Summer school, night school, e-learning and private school
We consider all Ministry-inspected and -approved high school courses equally.
- Your Grade 11 marks
We will use final Grade 11 U/M grades where midterm or final Grade 12 U/M grades are not available to fulfill required courses.
To fulfill conditions of an offer of admission, students must complete 6 Grade 12 and/or 4U/M courses, including required subjects.
Note: Students applying to a program that requires two 4U maths (e.g., Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Engineering and Bachelor of Mathematics) must present a midterm or final grade in at least one 4U math course to be considered for admission.
- Whether your OUAC ranking matters
We do not consider rankings on the OUAC application. • High school applicants will be considered for admission to all programs they apply to.
- If you don't get your first choice
Applicants not admissible to co-op will be considered for the regular program. (Exception: Bachelor of Engineering is co-op admission only.)
BA: Criminal Justice and Public Policy will be considered for BA: Justice and Legal Studies.
BA: Psychology will be considered for BA: Sociology. • BSc: Bio-Medical Science or Human Kinetics will be considered for BSc: Biological Science. • BSc: Animal Biology will be considered for BSc: Zoology. • www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/alternate
- Supplementary applications
Some programs have mandatory supplemental application forms. www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/docs
We encourage students to submit the optional Student Profile Form (SPF). The SPF allows students to tell Admission Services about activities that have helped them develop leadership and citizenship qualities. We will also consider factors beyond their control, such as illness or extenuating circumstances, that have negatively affected their academic performance. www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/docs
Deadline: April 1, 2026
- Automatic entrance scholarships
All students entering the first semester of an undergraduate degree for the first time are automatically considered for a U of G Entrance Scholarship, based on admission average.
Entrance scholarships for Canadian citizens and permanent residents, and for international students: www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/finances-fees/scholarships-bursaries
- Scholarship deadlines
There are various scholarship and bursary deadlines. www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/studentfinance
- Scholarships you have to apply for
We have several top scholarships and merit- and needs-based programs to assist students over and above government sources.
www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/studentfinance
- Bursaries
The Financial Need Assessment Form for Entrance Awards is due April 15, 2026. An offer of admission is not required to apply. www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/studentfinance/osap_naf
- Special consideration
We encourage students who believe their admission average does not reflect their true academic ability due to a disability to submit the Supplemental Information Form for Students with Disabilities (SIF-D). | https://wellness.uoguelph.ca/accessibility
We encourage all students to submit the SPF in support of their application. www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/docs
Deadline for SIF-D and SPF: April 1, 2026 • We consider SIF-D and SPF submissions in May for students whose admission averages fall within a discretionary range of the final cut-off (up to 5%).
- Deferring your offer
Students can defer 1 offer of admission for 1 year. They must accept their offer by June 1, 2026, and fulfill all conditions of their offer.
They cannot attend another postsecondary institution during the deferral period.
Students must submit their deferral application and fee by the deadline.
www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/defer
- When offers go out
We will make offers of admission on an ongoing basis from January to May.
Bachelor of Landscape Architecture offers will be sent in May. • Students have until June 1, 2026, to respond in their OUAC application. • All offers of admission are conditional. Specific admission conditions are outlined in offer emails. www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/apply/conditions
- Tuition deposit
All students starting at the University of Guelph (U of G) in fall 2026 must pay a non-refundable registration deposit of $500 to be able to register in courses. www.uoguelph.ca/registrar/finance-fees/dates-deadlines
- AP and IB
AP: Applicants who complete AP exams with a minimum grade of 4 are eligible to receive up to a maximum of 2.0 university credits. We will assign transfer credit upon receipt of an official AP College Board exam score report.
IB: We determine admission and scholarships using the conversions submitted by the school to the OUAC. Applicants who complete Higher Level courses with a minimum grade of 5 are eligible to receive up to a maximum of 2.0 university credits. We will assign transfer credit upon receipt of final, official results from the International Baccalaureate Organization.
www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/requirements/ib-ap
- Changing programs
Bachelor of Engineering: Admission is only offered to the co-op program. Admitted students may request to transfer to the regular stream after starting the program.
BA: Art History major has been reinstated. • BA: Mathematical Economics major (co-op and regular) has been renamed Quantitative Economics and Finance. • Bachelor of Science (BSc): Microbiology major (co-op and regular) has been renamed Microbiology and Immunology. • BSc: Nutrition and Nutraceutical Sciences major (co-op and regular) has been renamed Human Health and Nutritional Sciences. • Bachelor of Applied Science: Admission requirements for Child Studies and Family Studies & Human Development have changed to ENG4U, one 4U math and 4 additional 4U/M courses.
- Transfer credit
We recognize previously completed postsecondary studies (i.e., accredited college and university).
www.ontransfer.ca • www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/transfer/ agreements-and-pathways • www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/transfer
- English proficiency
www.uoguelph.ca/admission/undergraduate/international/ english-proficiency
Which mark they use when you take a course twice.
Whether courses taken outside your regular day school are treated the same.
Whether they look at Grade 11, and when.
Does the order you list programs in change anything?
Whether they'll offer you a related program instead.
Whether this university wants more than marks.
Money you get for your average without applying for it.
Awards beyond the automatic ones.
If something happened that affected your marks.
Taking a year before you start.
Guelph's GPA scale — the percentage scale you are graded on once you arrive, from the registrar
Guelph acceptance rate — why there isn’t one, and the published bars that decide instead
Guelph entrance scholarships — all 22, and what your average is worth
What you apply to, by subject
Guelph admits into 15 entry points across these 35 subjects. Some are direct entry; for the rest you apply to something broader and choose later.
- accounting
- architecture
- biochemistry
- biology
- chemistry
- commerce/business
- communications
- computer science
- criminology
- earth science
- economics
- education
- engineering
- english
- environmental science
- finance
- geography
- health sciences
- history
- kinesiology
- languages
- life sciences
- marketing
- mathematics
- medical sciences
- microbiology
- neuroscience
- nursing
- philosophy
- physics
- political science
- psychology
- sociology
- software engineering
- statistics
How Guelph is set up
Not a ranking — the structural facts that shape what a year here feels like, computed from Guelph’s own listings. Universities list at different grain (Guelph lists 50), so read the counts rather than comparing percentages between campuses.
58%
of programs offer co-op
29 of 50 listings. Co-op is a real option here but not the default path.
12/32
subjects you apply straight into
Most subjects here start with a broader first year — you apply to the faculty and choose the subject later, so 20 of the 32 common majors are declared after you arrive.
Living there
Conditional
first-year residence
Last year’s terms (Fall 2026). The Fall 2027 dates weren’t posted when this was checked.
For Ontario high-school applicants admitted before March 1 who send the residence application by April 15 and the $750 deposit by June 1. If you’re admitted after March 1 there’s no guarantee, but you can join the waitlist. Out-of-province, international, and First Nations, Inuit and Métis applicants have their own guarantees with a June 1 deadline.
16 residence communities for about 5,000 students.
Source: uoguelph.ca · checked September 11, 2026
30,680
full-time undergraduates
Fall 2025 count, including Guelph-Humber and the Ridgetown campus.
Source: Council of Ontario Universities (Ministry data, which counts diploma and certificate students too) · checked September 11, 2026
Compare first-year residence at every Ontario campus
Guelph open house 2026
- Fall Open HouseSunday, October 25, 2026 · 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET · In person
- March Open HouseSunday, March 14, 2027 · In person
Every Ontario university open house this fall
Ontario Universities’ Fair, September 26–27. The University of Guelph talk is in room 716A, Saturday hourly from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday hourly from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.. Plan your day
A university fair on this campus, Tuesday, September 22. 21 universities send a table, it is free, and it runs 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., and 5 to 8 p.m. at University of Guelph, Gryphons Athletic Centre, Event Centre. Every city and date
Where it is
Open in Google Maps · Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
All 50 programs
show
- 86–92%Animal Biology (BSc)OUAC GZA
- 86–92%Bio-Medical Science (BSc) HonoursOUAC GZB
- 84–89%Biomedical Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBI· co-op
- 84–89%Biosystems Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBM· co-op
- 84–89%Civil Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBA· co-op
- 84–89%Computer Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBL· co-op
- 84–89%Engineering Systems and Computing (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GEK· co-op
- 84–89%Environmental Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBN· co-op
- 84–89%Mechanical Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GME· co-op
- 84–89%Mechatronics Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GMR· co-op
- 84–89%Water Resources Engineering (BEng) (co-op admission only)OUAC GBR· co-op
- 82–87%Bachelor of Computing (BComp) GeneralOUAC GCG
- 82–87%Computer Science (BComp) (co-op option)OUAC GCT· co-op
- 82–87%Software Engineering (BComp) (co-op option)OUAC GBS· co-op
- 80–86%Accounting (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBK· co-op
- 80–86%Bachelor of Commerce (BComm) Undeclared (first year only)OUAC GBU
- 80–85%Bachelor of One Health (BOH) (co-op option)OUAC GOH· co-op
- 80–85%Bachelor of Science (BSc) GeneralOUAC GZG
- 80–85%Child Studies (BASc)OUAC GCS
- 80–86%Criminal Justice and Public Policy (BA) (co-op option)OUAC GCJ· co-op
- 80–86%Food and Agricultural Business (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBB· co-op
- 80–86%Government, Economics and Management (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBJ· co-op
- 80–86%Hospitality and Tourism Management (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GHT· co-op
- 80–85%Human Kinetics (BSc)OUAC GZK
- 80–86%Management (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBF· co-op
- 80–86%Management Economics and Finance (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBD· co-op
- 80–86%Marketing Management (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBE· co-op
- 80–86%Psychology (BA) (co-op option)OUAC GPS· co-op
- 80–86%Real Estate (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GHR· co-op
- 80–86%Sport and Event Management Commerce (BComm) (co-op option)OUAC GBX· co-op
- 80–86%Sport and Event Management Commerce (BComm) (Fully Online)OUAC GXO
- 80–85%Zoology (BSc)OUAC GZ
- 78–83%Bachelor of Arts and Sciences (BAS)OUAC GAS
- 78–83%Bachelor of Mathematics (BMath) GeneralOUAC GMG
- 78–83%Mathematical Science (BMath)OUAC GMH
- 75–80%Applied Human Nutrition (BASc)OUAC GS
- 75–80%Bachelor of Arts (BA) GeneralOUAC GNG
- 75–80%Bachelor of Arts (BA) General (Area of Concentration)OUAC GKG
- 75–80%Bachelor of Arts (BA) General (Fully Online)OUAC GNO
- 75–80%Bachelor of Indigenous Environmental Science and Practice (BIESP)OUAC GEI· co-op
- 75–80%Earth Observation and Geographic Information Science (BSc [Env]) (co-op option)OUAC GEA· co-op
- 75–80%Environmental Management (BBRM) (co-op option)OUAC GBC· co-op
- 75–80%Equine Management (BBRM) (co-op option)OUAC GHG· co-op
- 75–80%Family Studies and Human Development (BASc)OUAC GFD
- 75–80%Horticulture (BSc [Agr]) (co-op option)OUAC GPA· co-op
- 75–80%International Development Studies (BA)OUAC GID
- 75–80%Quantitative Economics and Finance (BA) (co-op option)OUAC GK· co-op
- 75–80%Theatre Studies (BCAHW)OUAC GCA
- 65–70%Turfgrass Management (Associate Diploma)OUAC GTM
- —Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (BLA)OUAC GL