The Queen’s University acceptance rate is approximately 42%. Queen’s University receives approximately 45,000 applications for just over 4,700 spaces in direct-entry, first-year undergraduate programs across all faculties and schools. However, the university sends out far more acceptances than it has space for since many high school students apply to various programs and universities.
This post covers a full breakdown of why the acceptance rates for Canadian universities are so high, programs with notably low acceptance rates, and comparisons with various other universities in North America.
Comparing Queens University Acceptance Rates to Canadian Schools:
This data is fairly consistent among all universities in Canada. The average acceptance rate of Canadian Universities will hover around 45-55%, depending on the year and institution. In comparison to other Universities in Canada, Queen’s University has a relatively low acceptance rate.
Chart of Biggest Canadian Universities and Their Acceptance Rates
Full List of Canadian Universities and Their Acceptance Rates
American Ivy League University Acceptance Rates:
| UNIVERSITY NAME | ACCEPTANCE RATE |
|---|---|
| Brown University | 9.00% |
| Columbia University | 6.00% |
| Cornell University | 14.10% |
| Dartmouth College | 10.50% |
| Harvard University | 5.20% |
| Princeton University | 6.50% |
| University of Pennsylvania | 9.40% |
| Yale University | 6.30% |
The average acceptance rate of the top Canadian Universities is approximately 5x more than the acceptance rates of Ivy League schools in the United States!
Why is the Queen’s University Acceptance Rate so High?
We believe there are two main reasons why the Queen’s University Acceptance rate is so high compared to its American counterparts.
Firstly, most programs in Canada only have two requirements, prerequisite courses and minimum grades. For most undergraduate colleges this means that if you apply with no other information other than your transcripts from high school, and meet the minimum grade requirement, then it’s likely they’ll accept you! No supplement applications are needed and you can tell immediately whether acceptance is possible before submitting anything else.
Secondly, in America, the university’s prestige is often what is looked at. In Canada, the emphasis tends to be placed more so toward each specific program and less so on the university itself. For example, the Queen’s Health Sciences Program (BHSc) is a highly sought-after program with an acceptance rate of 4.25%. This is comparable to most Ivey League schools.
In general, in Canada, a University degree is a University degree, regardless of which Canadian institution you get it from. Employers typically treat all degrees equally among all accredited Canadian Universities. For example, if you obtain an undergraduate life science degree, it doesn’t particularly matter from which Canadian institution you received it from as long as it is accredited. However, there are some extremely difficult undergraduate programs to get into Canada that many students strive to be accepted into.