Recruiting for the upcoming admissions cycle has begun. Members of the Engineering Admissions Team have already visited select schools and events in North America.
I will attend my first in-person college fair of the season in Seattle. The NACAC Seattle National College Fair is being held today (Friday, October 6, 2023) at the Seattle Convention Center from 9:00 am to Noon. The fair will resume tomorrow (Saturday, October 7, 2023) from Noon to 4:00 pm.
The University of Waterloo booth at the Seattle National College Fair.
I arrived in Seattle yesterday and setup our booth for the fair. Shown above is a photograph of our booth. It is near the doors on the right as you enter the room. We are next to the University of Nevada – Las Vegas and across from Imperial College London.
For students in Silicon Valley, I will also be attending the Palo Alto College Fair on Monday, October 9, 2023 at Henry M Gunn High School from 4:45 pm to 7:30 pm.
I invite prospective students to drop by to talk to me if you are in the area. I will be happy to answer your questions.
I grew up in the small town of Welland, Ontario in the heart of the Niagara Peninsula. In my youth, I enjoyed softball, golf, and the uniquely Canadian sport of 5-pin bowling. My high school years were productive. I excelled at my studies and had enough time to devote towards extra-curricular activities to earn a school letter. I was fascinated with computers having owned a Commodore 64 and having maintained a network of Unisys machines running a very early version of QNX at my local high school. I had part-time jobs teaching computer courses to both adults and children at local secondary schools. I worked hard in my final year of high school to excel at the now defunct Descartes math competition and earn a spot in Computer Engineering at the University of Waterloo. Little did I know that I would stay at the university for three degrees and eventually a permanent faculty position. Now, as Director of Admissions for Waterloo Engineering, I hope to share my thoughts on the road towards a career engineering.
View all posts by William Bishop
26 thoughts on “Upcoming U.S. College Fairs”
Hello Mr. Bishop, I was just wondering if you will be attending the Ontario Universities Fair in Toronto on Oct. 21-22?
Admission averages are only meaningful for universities that use cutoffs to select students for admission. We individually select students from the pool of applicants.
I submitted the AIF by the early consideration deadline, but I made an amendment after the deadline passed. Will this affect my eligibility to be considered for the March round?
Hello Mr. Bishop, I was wondering how historically competitive has selecting applicants been for Electrical Engineering as compared to the other tier two programs? Also, from the publicly listed statistics it appears that the number of students within Electrical Engineering has been steadily declining since 2010, unlike many other programs, what might be the cause of this? Lastly, considering historical data, how likely would it be to receive an offer of admission and early admissions to Electrical Engineering, given an applicant has a top six admissions average of ~96%, an impressive AIF and well done interview? Thank you
Program targets evolve over time in response to changes in program demand. However, the targets for Electrical Engineering have been stable for the past 5 years. While the targets for the Fall 2024 class have not yet been finalized by the university, I expect the targets to be similar to those used last year. For Electrical Engineering, the 2023 targets were 100 domestic students and 20 visa students.
The probabilities provided in the Faculty of Engineering brochure provide the best estimate of the competitiveness of programs for Ontario Secondary School (OSS) students. It is always that case that an impressive AIF and a strong interview will greatly improve an applicant’s chances of receiving an admission offer. A student with an average in the 90’s with an impressive AIF and a strong interview will often have an excellent chance of receiving an admission offer.
I always recommend focusing on the things you can control. If you have already applied, completed your AIF, and completed your interview, you should now focus on completing your remaining high school courses and enjoying whatever extracurricular activities you choose to pursue.
Thank you for providing this blog. I appreciate the effort to help students gain a greater insight into the admissions process. I’d like to ask whether or not a low mark (i.e. 70s) in a non-prerequisite gr11 course has any effect on admissions to a T2 engineering program such as mechatronics, computer, mechanical, or electrical.
Thank you so much for responding. I read on Prof. Anderson’s blog that they used to split up the AIF sections and send them out to alumni for evaluation. Is this still the case or is it one person reviewing the entire AIF? Also, is the interview and AIF assessed by different people or is this not necessarily the case? Thank you.
It has been a very long time since alumni had any role in AIF assessments. The AIF’s are assessed by the Engineering Admissions Office. However, the process may change over the next couple of years. Interviews are assessed by a large group of dedicated volunteers. It is extremely rare for the AIF and the interview to be assessed by the same person. It is possible since some interviews are flagged to be reviewed by the Engineering Admissions Office.
I have a question about how the top 6 average is calculated. If the 6th 4U course (non-mandatory course) mark is 96% but there is a 3U course with 98%, which will be considered for the top 6 calculation during early admission? There are 2 more 4U courses in the second semester where the average could be higher than 96% for regular admission.
We always use the most recent grade information. If we have a Grade 12 grade that we can use in the average calculation, it will be used. Grades can be predicted grades, midterm grades, or final grades.
Hello Mr. Bishop, do you think this year will be more competitive than last year in terms of getting an offer to engineering? Are there more applicants this year?
We do not yet know our final applicant numbers for this year. Students may still apply to our programs on the OUAC site. There are some programs that will have an increased number of applicants this year and some that will have a decreased number of applicants this year. In general, our domestic application numbers remain strong. Our visa application numbers appear to be down slightly relative to previous years.
Hello sir. Does individual selection imply that an applicant with a lower average or lower overall admission score may be given an offer over another applicant with a higher average or higher overall admission score?
Yes. We attempt to select students who will be successful in our program. Grades are only one indicator of success. We have other tools that we use to identify applicants who will be successful in our programs.
Hey Mr.Bishop! I’ve seen a lot about the emphasis waterloo puts on the AIF & individual selection, however I would like to ask whether the average is still a crucial factor?
For example, would a 97% average student with 3/5 on AIF beat out a student with a 95% average but 4/5 on AIF (assuming same interview and adjustment factor)? Just trying to understand the evaluation process a bit better, thanks!
For programs with highly competitive applicant pools, we often admit students based on their AIF scores and interview scores. While grades are an important consideration, high grades alone will not typically result in an admission offer for programs with highly competitive applicant pools. As long as applicant grades are sufficiently high, an outstanding AIF score may be enough to result in an offer of admission. The same is also true for an outstanding interview score.
However, for programs with less competitive applicant pools, grades are often the deciding factor. Completion of the AIF is still required to give out an offer of admission. A low AIF score or a low interview score will not prevent a student from being admitted to a program.
The exact AIF score, interview score, or grade average needed to be considered a strong applicant will vary from one year to the next.
Hello Professor Bishop, I hope all is well. I am applying as a transfer applicant from a general engineering program to Architectural Engineering – do you think this is a likely transfer? I know transfers are case by case and first time applicants are preferred, and given the very small amount of spots in the program compared to a large applicant pool, I was wondering if this is even possible (or has even ever been done!)
Transfers can be successful into any of our engineering programs. University grades are typically the most significant factor in our decisions. Beyond this, we look for students who are motivated to study their chosen program. The Admission Information Form is often a significant factor in our decisions. Ideally, we like to see a strong motivation for the proposed transfer. Hopefully, your AIF will demonstrate your passion for Architectural Engineering.
Long time reader – this blog remains a highly watched source of vital information (evidenced by the frequency of referrals from heresay-sites like Reddit), so I’m hopeful for a 2024 post soon.
One recent topic generating of a lot of conversation online: how will recent government changes to international student visas impact UWaterloo, if at all? Do you expect the changes will only affect ‘mills’ like Conastoga, or is UW Engineering also expecting an impact?
Your other posts (and your January 17 comment above) note that there are international targets for each program (ex: 100 domestic and 20 international for EE), so IF there was a decrease in international acceptances*, then would there be a corresponding re-allocation of spaces to domestic students?
*Hopefully UW wouldn’t just ‘lower the bar’ to admit less-qualified international students, though maybe it’s necessary to do so, to maintain current funding for the programs?
The immediate change is that international undergraduate students will now need an attestation letter from a particular province to apply for a study permit. There is some information online that discusses the change. The Province of Ontario has not yet announced how attestation letters will be allocated to institutions and/or programs. The process put in place by the provincial government will ultimately determine which institutions and/or programs are most affected.
There will likely be a financial impact on all universities and colleges in the Province of Ontario. Institutions that have low numbers of international students will be affected less than those that have high numbers of international students. The impact will last well beyond the 2 year period indicated in the announcement. If you do not admit students into first year in 2024, you will be missing 2nd year students in 2025, 3rd year students in 2026, and 4th year students in 2027 for a standard 4 year university degree program. For our 5 year engineering co-op programs, limitations on the admission of international undergraduate students for the next two years (2024 and 2025) will affect our student numbers until 2029. The same will not be true for colleges which typically offer diploma programs that are shorter in duration.
While one might think it would be easy to simply take in more domestic students to replace the international students, the system prevents this from occurring in several ways. Our domestic student numbers are capped by the provincial government. If we exceed our domestic targets, our grant funding per student is reduced. At the same time, our domestic tuition fees are frozen. Domestic tuition fees alone are insufficient to cover the cost of educating our students. As many people have observed, international students have been subsidizing the education of Canadian students for quite some time. The most likely scenario is that our students will see slightly smaller class sizes in the coming years and there will be slightly less competition for co-op placements.
Lowering the bar to admit less-qualified international students is not helpful in any way. Admitting more international students will not yield more international students given study permit restrictions. If anything, our international student targets might be reduced. This would raise the bar slightly since international students would be competing for fewer spaces in Canadian universities. It is too early to determine whether the change will affect our targets for international undergraduate students. Hopefully, we will receive more details prior to our early admission round in March.
The Road to Engineering 
Hello Mr. Bishop, I was just wondering if you will be attending the Ontario Universities Fair in Toronto on Oct. 21-22?
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Yes, will be at the event on the Sunday. Other members of our team will be at the event on the Saturday. Hopefully, we will see you at the fair.
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Is the AIF deadline for early consideration January 15 at 11:59 PM or January 15 at 12:00 AM (midnight)?
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The deadline is at the end of January 15th.
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Hello Mr. Bishop,
I was wondering if you were able to provide admission average statistics for last year
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Admission averages are only meaningful for universities that use cutoffs to select students for admission. We individually select students from the pool of applicants.
LikeLike
I submitted the AIF by the early consideration deadline, but I made an amendment after the deadline passed. Will this affect my eligibility to be considered for the March round?
LikeLike
AIF Amendments made after the January 15th early consideration deadline do not affect eligibility for consideration in the early round of admissions.
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Hello Mr. Bishop, I was wondering how historically competitive has selecting applicants been for Electrical Engineering as compared to the other tier two programs? Also, from the publicly listed statistics it appears that the number of students within Electrical Engineering has been steadily declining since 2010, unlike many other programs, what might be the cause of this? Lastly, considering historical data, how likely would it be to receive an offer of admission and early admissions to Electrical Engineering, given an applicant has a top six admissions average of ~96%, an impressive AIF and well done interview? Thank you
LikeLike
Program targets evolve over time in response to changes in program demand. However, the targets for Electrical Engineering have been stable for the past 5 years. While the targets for the Fall 2024 class have not yet been finalized by the university, I expect the targets to be similar to those used last year. For Electrical Engineering, the 2023 targets were 100 domestic students and 20 visa students.
The probabilities provided in the Faculty of Engineering brochure provide the best estimate of the competitiveness of programs for Ontario Secondary School (OSS) students. It is always that case that an impressive AIF and a strong interview will greatly improve an applicant’s chances of receiving an admission offer. A student with an average in the 90’s with an impressive AIF and a strong interview will often have an excellent chance of receiving an admission offer.
I always recommend focusing on the things you can control. If you have already applied, completed your AIF, and completed your interview, you should now focus on completing your remaining high school courses and enjoying whatever extracurricular activities you choose to pursue.
LikeLike
Hi Prof. Bishop,
Thank you for providing this blog. I appreciate the effort to help students gain a greater insight into the admissions process. I’d like to ask whether or not a low mark (i.e. 70s) in a non-prerequisite gr11 course has any effect on admissions to a T2 engineering program such as mechatronics, computer, mechanical, or electrical.
LikeLike
A mark in the 70’s in a non-required grade 11 course will have no affect on our admission decisions.
LikeLike
Thank you so much for responding. I read on Prof. Anderson’s blog that they used to split up the AIF sections and send them out to alumni for evaluation. Is this still the case or is it one person reviewing the entire AIF? Also, is the interview and AIF assessed by different people or is this not necessarily the case? Thank you.
LikeLike
It has been a very long time since alumni had any role in AIF assessments. The AIF’s are assessed by the Engineering Admissions Office. However, the process may change over the next couple of years. Interviews are assessed by a large group of dedicated volunteers. It is extremely rare for the AIF and the interview to be assessed by the same person. It is possible since some interviews are flagged to be reviewed by the Engineering Admissions Office.
LikeLike
I have a question about how the top 6 average is calculated. If the 6th 4U course (non-mandatory course) mark is 96% but there is a 3U course with 98%, which will be considered for the top 6 calculation during early admission? There are 2 more 4U courses in the second semester where the average could be higher than 96% for regular admission.
LikeLike
We always use the most recent grade information. If we have a Grade 12 grade that we can use in the average calculation, it will be used. Grades can be predicted grades, midterm grades, or final grades.
LikeLike
Hello Mr. Bishop, do you think this year will be more competitive than last year in terms of getting an offer to engineering? Are there more applicants this year?
LikeLike
We do not yet know our final applicant numbers for this year. Students may still apply to our programs on the OUAC site. There are some programs that will have an increased number of applicants this year and some that will have a decreased number of applicants this year. In general, our domestic application numbers remain strong. Our visa application numbers appear to be down slightly relative to previous years.
LikeLike
Hello sir. Does individual selection imply that an applicant with a lower average or lower overall admission score may be given an offer over another applicant with a higher average or higher overall admission score?
LikeLike
Yes. We attempt to select students who will be successful in our program. Grades are only one indicator of success. We have other tools that we use to identify applicants who will be successful in our programs.
LikeLike
Hey Mr.Bishop! I’ve seen a lot about the emphasis waterloo puts on the AIF & individual selection, however I would like to ask whether the average is still a crucial factor?
For example, would a 97% average student with 3/5 on AIF beat out a student with a 95% average but 4/5 on AIF (assuming same interview and adjustment factor)? Just trying to understand the evaluation process a bit better, thanks!
LikeLike
For programs with highly competitive applicant pools, we often admit students based on their AIF scores and interview scores. While grades are an important consideration, high grades alone will not typically result in an admission offer for programs with highly competitive applicant pools. As long as applicant grades are sufficiently high, an outstanding AIF score may be enough to result in an offer of admission. The same is also true for an outstanding interview score.
However, for programs with less competitive applicant pools, grades are often the deciding factor. Completion of the AIF is still required to give out an offer of admission. A low AIF score or a low interview score will not prevent a student from being admitted to a program.
The exact AIF score, interview score, or grade average needed to be considered a strong applicant will vary from one year to the next.
LikeLike
Hello Professor Bishop, I hope all is well. I am applying as a transfer applicant from a general engineering program to Architectural Engineering – do you think this is a likely transfer? I know transfers are case by case and first time applicants are preferred, and given the very small amount of spots in the program compared to a large applicant pool, I was wondering if this is even possible (or has even ever been done!)
LikeLike
Transfers can be successful into any of our engineering programs. University grades are typically the most significant factor in our decisions. Beyond this, we look for students who are motivated to study their chosen program. The Admission Information Form is often a significant factor in our decisions. Ideally, we like to see a strong motivation for the proposed transfer. Hopefully, your AIF will demonstrate your passion for Architectural Engineering.
LikeLike
Long time reader – this blog remains a highly watched source of vital information (evidenced by the frequency of referrals from heresay-sites like Reddit), so I’m hopeful for a 2024 post soon.
One recent topic generating of a lot of conversation online: how will recent government changes to international student visas impact UWaterloo, if at all? Do you expect the changes will only affect ‘mills’ like Conastoga, or is UW Engineering also expecting an impact?
Your other posts (and your January 17 comment above) note that there are international targets for each program (ex: 100 domestic and 20 international for EE), so IF there was a decrease in international acceptances*, then would there be a corresponding re-allocation of spaces to domestic students?
*Hopefully UW wouldn’t just ‘lower the bar’ to admit less-qualified international students, though maybe it’s necessary to do so, to maintain current funding for the programs?
LikeLike
The immediate change is that international undergraduate students will now need an attestation letter from a particular province to apply for a study permit. There is some information online that discusses the change. The Province of Ontario has not yet announced how attestation letters will be allocated to institutions and/or programs. The process put in place by the provincial government will ultimately determine which institutions and/or programs are most affected.
There will likely be a financial impact on all universities and colleges in the Province of Ontario. Institutions that have low numbers of international students will be affected less than those that have high numbers of international students. The impact will last well beyond the 2 year period indicated in the announcement. If you do not admit students into first year in 2024, you will be missing 2nd year students in 2025, 3rd year students in 2026, and 4th year students in 2027 for a standard 4 year university degree program. For our 5 year engineering co-op programs, limitations on the admission of international undergraduate students for the next two years (2024 and 2025) will affect our student numbers until 2029. The same will not be true for colleges which typically offer diploma programs that are shorter in duration.
While one might think it would be easy to simply take in more domestic students to replace the international students, the system prevents this from occurring in several ways. Our domestic student numbers are capped by the provincial government. If we exceed our domestic targets, our grant funding per student is reduced. At the same time, our domestic tuition fees are frozen. Domestic tuition fees alone are insufficient to cover the cost of educating our students. As many people have observed, international students have been subsidizing the education of Canadian students for quite some time. The most likely scenario is that our students will see slightly smaller class sizes in the coming years and there will be slightly less competition for co-op placements.
Lowering the bar to admit less-qualified international students is not helpful in any way. Admitting more international students will not yield more international students given study permit restrictions. If anything, our international student targets might be reduced. This would raise the bar slightly since international students would be competing for fewer spaces in Canadian universities. It is too early to determine whether the change will affect our targets for international undergraduate students. Hopefully, we will receive more details prior to our early admission round in March.
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