Part B- School Rankings

Choosing the right university can be overwhelming for prospective students who

want not only a highly recognized degree upon graduation, but also a memorable school

experience socially. Resources such as The Globe and Mail can give a prospective

student insight into the overall school experience of large, medium, small, or extra small

post-secondary institutions in Canada. The University of Calgary (which has current

enrollment numbers of over 22,000) will be compared with other large universities across

the country, which has enrollment numbers over 22,000, specifically with those of

Corporate Knights’ top five ranked undergraduate business programs. Macleans

Magazine will be used to compare minimum entrance grades for the commerce programs,

“Best Overall” rankings from professionals (in terms of quality, innovation, and

leadership), and the student-ranked level of academic challenge provided in each of the

chosen universities provides.

In their summer 2010 issue, Corporate Knights measured each institution based

on how well they integrated sustainability of social and environmental values into their

academic curricula. A mark of 70% was their performance bar and each university in the

top 5 met that bar, with the University of Waterloo leading the charge with a mark of

92.7%. University of British Columbia (UBC) rose to second place, replacing the

University of Calgary who which fell from second to third from the previous year.

Concordia University (#4) and l’Université de Montréal (#5) made significant

improvements from the previous year to crack the top 5, pushing out Simon Fraser and

Dalhousie, respectively. The 2009 issue only ranks the top two schools, Waterloo and

Calgary, barely made it over the 70% performance bar. All the top 5 schools, except

Simon Fraser, have made improvements to outperform their previous year’s results.

The Globe and Mail’s student survey ranked the University of Waterloo as the

highest of these five universities in overall student satisfaction, receiving a mark of A-,

with the other four institutions receiving the same mark of a B+. Only Calgary and

Montréal made improvements from last year’s results. Waterloo improved from last year

to top the charts for quality of education, with UBC and Montréal making improvements

as well to tie with Concordia, and Calgary just below them. In terms of class size,

Concordia beat out Waterloo and UBC, with Calgary and Montréal rounding out the

bottom. Only UBC and Calgary upgraded from their standings last year. Student

Residences, an important aspect for first year students found similar results, Waterloo

beating out the competition with UBC a close second, Concordia in the middle, and

Calgary and Montréal a full grade behind the top contender. This category found all

universities bettering themselves except for Waterloo, and Calgary making a significant

full-grade improvement.

In terms of career preparation, again, University of Waterloo topped the rankings;

UBC unchanged from last year is now tied with Calgary and Montréal, who upped their

ranking, and Concordia finishing just below that. The last category, academic reputation,

plays mostly into the status and prestige of the school. All the universities apart from

Concordia increased their status from last year. Waterloo tied for the top spot with

McGill, while UBC and Montréal received the same grade, and Calgary and Concordia a

full grade below them.