Based on data collected by CourseCompare, educational rankings, released on Jan. 21, show UW is high ranking in areas such as its co-op program, data science masters program, online courses and flight school. 

CourseCompare is a site that matches learners to schools and programs in Canada based on any learning needs they may have and their future career goals. In 2023 CourseCompare aided in connecting over 100,000 students with 50 partnered institutions. CourseCompare aims for transparency in its data collection methodology and how it determines the rankings and has specifics of this published on its website.

Jessica Robinson, the content marketing manager at CourseCompare, discussed how these rankings indicate how UW is in a strong position to continue its success in moving through current educational and societal shifts in Canada.

With current inflation in Canada and a changing job market, partly due to the emergence of AI, more people are favouring institutions and programs with a more measurable career path and outcome. UW’s #1 ranking across Canada for its co-op program, and its reputation for its STEM-based programs such as Engineering and Computer Science, will only make UW continue to grow more favourable to students looking for a degree that will give them more certainty in finding employment post-grad. 

“Waterloo’s existing and growing strengths in co-op, engineering, computer science, and other technological fields are absolutely… going to position it well in the years to come as we put even more emphasis on institutions to deliver career readiness as a main outcome of education,” Robinson said. 

Robinson said that with a decline in international students coming and being able to stay in the country, some institutions will struggle with the lack of enrollment from outside of Canada. However, she said that schools with reputations for specific programs, such as UW’s co-op program and flight school, which ranked #4 overall, and with a smaller international student percentage are poised to remain successful.  

Robinson highlighted that colleges will feel the impact of this change in international students more than universities since colleges, such as Conestoga College, have a much higher percentage of students from outside of Canada than universities.  

UW ranked #6 for its online course offerings which not only can help to diversify the student body but enable the university to move forward in a new digitally hybrid world. Robinson explained how success in an institution’s online course offerings is not only dependent on how many courses are offered, but also on the quality. Institutions that succeed both in the quantity and quality of their online learning opportunities will attract more people who are looking for flexibility in their education.

“The pandemic really accelerated the legitimacy and demand for online education… having strong rankings in this space could help Waterloo continue to diversify its student base,” Robinson explained.