Higher education in Ontario includes postsecondary education and skills training regulated by theMinistry of Colleges and Universities and provided by universities, colleges of applied arts and technology, and private career colleges.[1] The current minister isJill Dunlop who was appointed in June 2021. The ministry administers laws covering 22 public universities,[2] 24 public colleges (21 Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology (CAATs) and three Institutes of Technology and Advanced Learning (ITALs)),[3] 17 privately funded religious universities,[4] and over 500 private career colleges.[5] 18 of the top 50 research universities in Canada are in Ontario.[6]
TheConstitution of Canada provides each province with the responsibility forhigher education; there is no corresponding federal ministry of higher education.[7] WithinCanadian federalism the division of responsibilities and taxing powers between the Ontario and Canadian governments creates the need for cooperation to fund and deliver higher education to students. Each higher education system aims to improve participation, access, and mobility for students. There are two central organizations that assist with the process of applying to Ontario universities and colleges: theOntario Universities' Application Centre andOntario College Application Service. While application services are centralized, admission and selection processes vary and are the purview of each institution independently. Admission to many Ontario postsecondary institutions can be highly competitive. Post-secondary students in Ontario are typically represented bystudent unions affiliated with one of several provincial or national student associations.
TheConstitutional Act of 1791 by theBritish House of Commons divided theold province of Quebec into two British colonies. The western colony becameUpper Canada withJohn Graves Simcoe as its first head of state by fulfilling the role ofLieutenant Governor. Governor Simcoe was the first advocate for establishing educational institutions in the new colony to increase citizens' connection to Britain and prevent the incursion of influence from post-revolutionary schools in the United States.[8] In 1797, theDuke of Portland agreed, on behalf of theBritish King, to the request from theLegislative Council andHouse of Assembly of Upper Canada for a portion of Crown Land to support the foundation of grammar schools and a college or university.[9] Higher education precededCanadian Confederation with the establishment of private and sectarian universities in Ontario during the early 19th century.[10] Initially, Ontario's first three universities were formed with religious affiliations.[11] Established in 1827, King's College was associated with theChurch of England through its first presidentJohn Strachan, which was later secularized by the government ofUpper Canada to become theUniversity of Toronto. The Presbyterian Church establishedQueen's College in 1841.[11] In addition, the Roman CatholicMissionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate established the College of Bytown in 1848.[11] In 1866, the College of Bytown completed its conversion to theUniversity of Ottawa through incorporation byRoyal charter from the government inLondon,England.[12] In 1912, Queen's College ended its affiliation with the Presbyterian Church and becameQueen's University.[13]
In 1867, section 91 of theCanadian constitution established that the government of Canada has responsibility for trade and commerce whereas section 93 conferred to each province responsibility for education.[7]Higher education in Canada reflects this division of powers inCanadian federalism through the overlapping of interests and responsibilities between the provinces and thefederal presence in higher education in Canada. In 1868, the province of Ontario withdrew financial support for religious universities.[11] In 1874, the Canadian government established the first federal institution of higher education in Kingston, Ontario, theRoyal Military College of Canada.[10] In 1876, the Ontario Society of Artists founded the forerunner to theOntario College of Art & Design at theToronto Normal School. In 1878, BishopIsaac Hellmuth founded the "Western University of London" with religious affiliation to theAnglican Diocese of Huron and later the institution became the non-denominationalUniversity of Western Ontario. In 1887,William McMaster foundedMcMaster University by merging Toronto Baptist College and Woodstock College. By 1899, there were seven higher education institutions established in Ontario.
In 1900, theDominican Order established the Dominican College of Philosophy and Theology that later became theDominican University College.[14] In 1906, controversy over the role of the Ontario government and the leadership of theUniversity of Toronto led to theFlavelle commission that articulated a separation of powers, resulting in the widespread adoption of thebicameral model for universitygovernance in Canada.[15] In 1911, theEvangelical Lutheran Church in Canada founded theWaterloo Lutheran Seminary that was associated with the development of theUniversity of Waterloo andWilfrid Laurier University.[16] Higher education was a low-priority under the provincial government ofMitchell Hepburn due to the effects of theDepression but universities supported the national war effort through funding from the government of Canada.[17] In 1942, the Ottawa Association for the Advancement of Learning established the non-denominational Carleton College that later becameCarleton University. By 1945, there were three publicly supported secular universities, six denominational private colleges, and several vocational institutes.[18]
| Percentage of population aged 20 to 24 enrolled in school[19] | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | 1951 | 1961 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | 3.9 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 7.1 | 12.6 |
In 1946, the government of Ontario established the Lakehead Technical Institute in Port Arthur (nowThunder Bay) that later becameLakehead University. In 1948,Howard Hillen Kerr persuaded the government of Ontario to turn the Training and Re-Establishment Institute for veterans into the Ryerson Institute of Technology. Over the following forty-five years, the institute expanded its vocational focus to becomeRyerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University).[20] In 1951, the provincial government hired a part-time consultant on higher education policy matters to support the Minister of Education given that no office in the government or agency had ever had full responsibility for the sector.[21] In 1956, PremierLeslie Frost replaced the consultant with a committee of senior government officials who served two years before being replaced by civil servants from the government departments of economics, education and treasury who made up theUniversity Committee.[21] In 1957,Gerry Hagey, Ira Needles, and Rev. Cornelius Siegfried founded the Waterloo College Associate Faculties that later became theUniversity of Waterloo.[22] In 1959, the government of Ontario establishedYork University andMurray Ross served as the founding president. By 1960, there were five publicly supported secular universities.[21] In 1960, the government of Ontario establishedLaurentian University as a bilingual federation representing Roman Catholic, United, and Anglican religious affiliations.[23] In 1961, the government expanded and changed theUniversity Committee into anAdvisory Committee on University Affairs consisting of civil servants and non-government members.[24] In 1962, the government of Ontario formed theUniversity of Windsor as part of turningAssumption University into a federated institution. By 1963, Ontario's post-secondary system consisted of 14 universities (with 35,000 full-time undergraduate students), seven institutes of technology (with just over 4,000 students), 11 teachers colleges, almost 60 hospital schools of nursing, and the Ontario College of Art.[25] In 1964, the government introduced a Department of University Affairs within the Ministry of Education under MinisterBill Davis.[26] In the same year, the provincial government foundedBrock University named afterSir Isaac Brock, theUniversity of Guelph through integrating three institutions, andTrent University. In the mid-1960s, the government of Ontario passed legislation to establish a new category of post-secondary institutions called Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology (CAATS) with an emphasis on vocational, technological, and general education.[27] In 1966, the provincial government began to establish anapplied arts college system with theCentennial College of Applied Arts and Technology as the first college. In 1967, the government of Ontario established twenty-three moreCAATs. The universities retained a monopoly over the right to grant degrees and the government defined clear non-degree granting mandates for the CAATs thereby creating a binary system of higher education within Ontario.[28] Also in 1967, the government of Ontario responded to citizens' interest to formAlgoma College which became a university in 2008.[29] In addition, the government formedNipissing College in affiliation withLaurentian University.[30] In 1992, the provincial government converted Nipissing College intoNipissing University. The1995 Ontario general election provided a large majority for the newMike Harris government. After 1995, the provincial government undertook actions that led to increased privatization within higher education, blurred boundaries in the binary structure, institutional differentiation, and the overall system's expansion.[31] In 1996, the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training released the first review of higher education as a system.[32]
By 2000, there were a total of twenty public universities established in Ontario. In 2002, the government of Ontario created theUniversity of Ontario Institute of Technology to increase supply and address a change in theOntario Academic Credit system that created a double cohort of students entering post-secondary education. In 2005, the HonourableBob Rae released a comprehensive review of postsecondary education entitledOntario: A leader in learning, more commonly known as theRae Report or Rae Review. Within four months of its release, the provincial government of PremierDalton McGuinty implemented an investment plan for postsecondary education called "Reaching Higher" outlining its strategy until 2010.[33] As part of this plan, the provincial government accepted a recommendation of the Rae Report to establish theHigher Education Quality Council of Ontario as an independent advisory agency. On June 18, 2008, the provincial government converted Algoma University College intoAlgoma University.[34]
In 2000, the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development authorized Ontario's Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology (CAATs) to offer a limited number of applied baccalaureate degrees under thePostsecondary Education Choice and Excellence Act, 2000.[35]
| Timeframe | Duration | Political Party | Party Leader(s) | Major Reports on Higher education |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943–1985 | 42 years | Progressive | George Drew,Leslie Frost,John Robarts,William Davis | The Learning Society. Report of the Commission on Post-Secondary Education in Ontario, 1972 |
| Growth in Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology. Report of the Minister's Taskforce on College Growth, 1981 | ||||
| Report of the Committee on the Future Role of Universities in Ontario. Ministry of Colleges and Universities, 1981 | ||||
| Ontario Universities: Options and Futures. Commission on the Future Development of the Universities of Ontario, 1984 | ||||
| 1985–1990 | 5 years | Liberal | David Peterson | Report of the Advisor to the Minister of Colleges and Universities on the Governance of the Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology. Walter Pitman, 1986 |
| 1990–1995 | 5 years | NDP | Bob Rae | Vision 2000: Quality and Opportunity. Ontario Council of Regents for Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology, 1990[36] |
| University Accountability: A Strengthened Framework. Task Force on University Accountability, 1993 | ||||
| For the Love of Learning. Royal Commission on Learning, 1994[37] | ||||
| 1995–2003 | 8 years | Progressive | Mike Harris | Excellence Accessibility Responsibility. Report of the Advisory Panel on Future Directions for Postsecondary Education, 1996[38] |
| 2003– 2018 | 15 years | Liberal | Dalton McGuinty,Kathleen Wynne | Ontario: A Leader in Learning (The Rae Report).Bob Rae, 2005[39] Ontario's differentiation policy framework for postsecondary education. Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, 2013.[40] |
| 2018- Present | 6 years to date | Progressive | Doug Ford |
The higher education system in Ontario includes the interaction among government, external advisory bodies, educational institutions, and associations. TheCanadian constitution allocates responsibility for higher education to the provinces. In Ontario, executive responsibility lies with the Minister of Colleges and Universities, who is a member of theExecutive Council of Ontario (or cabinet) headed by thePremier and accountable to theLegislative Assembly of Ontario. The Minister through theDeputy Minister manages the operations of the Ministry that has responsibility for administration of laws relating to postsecondary education and skills training in Ontario.[41] The Ministry of Colleges and Universities also works with several external advisory bodies to assist the governance of the higher education system in Ontario.[42]
Governance within Ontario universities generally follows a bicameral approach with separation of authority between a board and senate.[43]
Ontario has a binary public post-secondary education structure consisting of parallel college and university systems. The public college system comprises 21 colleges of applied arts and technology and three institutes of technology and advanced learning. The public university system comprises twenty-two universities. Some universities have federated and/or affiliated colleges which are considered part of the public university system. In addition, there are seventeen private religious universities and over 500 private career colleges that are not classified as universities.[5] Ontario's private career colleges provide specific skills training for employment and must be registered with the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development.[5] A program run byServiceOntario enables students to search for career colleges providingvocational training in their field of interest.
There are eight associations in Ontario that provide representation for faculty, staff, institutions, and students by interacting within the structure of higher education in Ontario.
The public funding of higher education in Ontario primarily relies on cooperation between thegovernment of Canada and thegovernment of Ontario. Public funding of higher education involves direct public funding of institutions forinstruction,investment, andresearch combined with funding of students.[58] To fund public higher education institutions, thegovernment of Ontario can use funds from theCanada Health Transfer, Equalization and Territorial Formula Financing programs for financing instruction and investment. Funding of research is supported by theCanada Foundation for Innovation,Canada Research Chairs program, theIndirect Costs of Research program, and throughNetworks of Centres of Excellence. Both governments of Canada and Ontario provide funding and support for post-secondary students.
Tuition fees in Ontario are higher than any other province in Canada.[60] On average, undergraduate students pay 29% more and graduate students pay 41% more compared to the Canadian average.[60] In the last 20 years, Ontario college tuition fees outpaced inflation by 435% and undergraduate tuition fees by 601%.[60] Universities in Ontario educate more students with less provincial funding per student than any other province.[61]
A 2018 study of students in their first and last years at university found that, in the use of written or numerical information tosolve problems, 25% of students showed inadequate ability, 45% showed adequate ability, while 30% showed superior ability. A comparison ofcritical thinking skills showed little improvement over the course of an average student's academic career.[62]
Ontario boasts the highest postsecondary participation and attainment rates among Canadian provinces, ranking high in international comparisons as well.[63] A 2010 report fromStatistics Canada,Education Indicators in Canada: An International Perspective, indicates that 63% of Ontario's population aged 25–34 have educational attainment to at least the tertiary level as compared to the national average of 56% and the average acrossOECD countries of 37%.[64] A study commissioned by Colleges Ontario found that, between 2001–02 to 2006–07, 60% of Ontario students enrolled directly in postsecondary programs (34% in university, 20% in college, and 6% in apprenticeships) after five years of secondary school.[65]
Despite these comparatively strong participation and attainment rates, under-represented groups in Ontario face access issues that are common around the world. TheHigher Education Quality Council of Ontario (HEQCO) illustrates that issues such as geography and disability have negative impacts on participation that may largely relate back to family income and the cost of postsecondary education, but the two most significant factors affecting postsecondary participation in Ontario are parents' level of education and Aboriginal status, factors that relate more to the perception of higher education rather than the actual costs.[66]
Ontario's Liberal government and the Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development embarked on theReaching Higher plan for postsecondary education in the province beginning in 2005. The plan calls for a $6.2 billion investment in postsecondary education to address such issues as capacity, access, financial assistance and more, including a target postsecondary attainment rate of 70%.[67]
Reaching Higher follows the 2005 report by the Honourable Bob Rae,Ontario: A Leader in Learning (a.k.a. the Rae Report), which also sparked the creation of the HEQCO. While current government efforts are intended to address issues of access, the HEQCO warns that a lack of reliable system-wide data will make it difficult to monitor the effects of these efforts and the state of access and participation in the future. One current source of data, Stats Canada'sYouth in Transitions Survey (YITS),[68] will soon end while another Stats Canada source, theSurvey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID),[69] provides less comprehensive data with respect to higher education transitions specifically.[66]
In 2014, Ontario postsecondary enrolment fell for the first time in 15 years, with 2.9% fewer students enrolled at universities and 3.5% fewer at community colleges.[70]
Ontario has a binary postsecondary education system consisting essentially of universities on one hand and colleges on the other (seeStructure for details). This binary structure has been long-standing and intentional with little mobility between the two sides; a characteristic that has been maintained through formidable resistance from universities to develop a more articulated system. Only in recent years have pathways begun to emerge between these two otherwise distinct types of institutions.
In 1996, the provincial government initiated the College and University Consortium Council (CUCC) in order to foster closer collaboration between colleges and universities in Ontario. Three years later, in 1999, theCouncil of Ontario Universities (COU) and the Association of Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology of Ontario (ACAATO) jointly endorsed a set of principles governing mobility and transfer that has become known as thePort Hope Accord.[71]
In the decade following, a collection of laddering and degree-completion agreements had begun to accumulate on the Ontario College University Transfer Guide (OCUTG). The agreements tend to be very specific between one university and one college. This style of transfer agreement differs from articulated systems such as those in British Columbia (see:British Columbia Council on Admissions and Transfer) and Alberta (see:Alberta Council on Admissions and Transfer).
The Honourable Bob Rae's 2005 report,Ontario: A Leader in Learning, makes the most recent call for improvements to student mobility and institutional cooperation. Following government endorsement of theRae Report, in 2011 the CUCC evolved into the Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer (ONCAT),[72] which has assumed jurisdiction over the OCUTG; now known as the Ontario Postsecondary Transfer Guide (OPTG).[73] ONCAT works to create establish and maintain pathways from college to college, college to university, and university to university transfers. They also work to maintain a province-widetransfer credit database.[74]
In a recent study of student perspectives of postsecondary mobility in Ontario published in the Canadian Society for the Study of Higher Education Professional File, PhD. candidate Christine Arnold writes, "Transfer pathways have progressed significantly in the province over the last five years (College-University Consortium Council, 2007); resources and sources for transfer currently do not match this level of care."[75]
Ontario's current public university and college system was essentially established in the late 1960s; however, both systems have since changed, and the objective of colleges increasingly includes degree-granting powers. This brings into question the design of a college system discrete from universities and has led to Ontario's Ministry of Finance's formal recommendation to increase differentiation through establishing mandate agreements.[76]
Since 2012, Ontario is driving its Differentiation Agenda encompassing several initiatives undertaken by the Government of Ontario to transform the postsecondary education system with the following overarching transformation goals: 1) support student success and access to a high quality Ontario postsecondary education; 2) increase the global competitiveness of Ontario's postsecondary education; 3) build on and help focus the well-established strengths of Ontario colleges and universities -while avoiding unnecessary duplication; and 4) maintain an efficient and financially sustainable postsecondary education system.
On November 29, 2013, Minister of Training, Colleges, and Universities released the final version ofDifferentiation Policy Framework for Postsecondary Education. The framework contains six components including jobs, innovation & economy, teaching and learning, student population, research and graduate education, program, and institutional collaboration; and two directions, namely strategic enrolment and financial sustainability with an associated set of metrics. Very limited information regarding how the components and metrics are to be used is available as the framework intends to provide a "vocabulary" for institutions to construct Strategic Mandate Agreements (SMAs). Strategic Mandate Agreements are the primary vehicles for implementing Ontario's differentiation goals. Institutions were required to submit SMA proposals in 2012 followed review by a committee appointed by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario. In August 2014, Ontario signed SMAs with its all 45 publicly funded colleges and universities. In 2015, Ontario's launching University Funding Formula Consultation with university sector to review and modernize the funding model. Consultations will include students, university leadership and faculty, as well as important partners such as employers, colleges, the elementary and secondary sector, and professional associations.
2% of Ontario's population are First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people.[77] Overall, Ontario's Indigenous communities are significantly younger and have a population growth rate four times higher than the non-Indigenous population in Ontario.[77] 30.7% of people in Ontario have a university credential compared with only 11.8% of Indigenous people in Ontario.[77] Today, 1.7% of university students and 3.6% of college students in Ontario overall are Indigenous; in northern Ontario, 9.2% of university students and 13% of college students are Indigenous.[77]
Ontario contains nine Indigenous institutions: Anishinabek Education Institute, First Nations Technical Institute, Kenjgewin Teg Educational Institute, Iohahi:io Akwesasne Adult Education Centre, Oshki Pimache-O-Win Education and Training Institute, Ogwehoweh Skills and Trades Training Centre, Seven Generations Education Institute, Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig, and Six Nations Polytechnic. Indigenous institutions in Ontario operate without public funds and grant diplomas or degrees through partnerships with colleges and universities.[77]
| [77] | No certificate, diploma, or degree | High school certificate or equivalent | Apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma | College, CEGEP, or other non-university certificate or diploma | University certificate, diploma, or degree |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Ontario Population | 13.6% | 25% | 8.8% | 22% | 30.7% |
| Ontario Indigenous Population | 28.1% | 24.2% | 12.5% | 23.4% | 11.8% |
The number of international students studying in Ontario universities has grown each year by an average of 7% since the start of the 21st century, until it grew by more than 8% in 2011–12 and 9% in 2012–13.[78] Between 2000 and 2010, the number of international students at Ontario universities almost tripled.[79] In 2013–14, 10% of all university enrolments in Ontario were international students[80] contributing just under $3 billion annually to Ontario's economy.[81] The top five source countries of international students at Ontario universities are China, India, Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Nigeria.[80] International student enrolment at Ontario colleges is also growing, with a five-fold increase between 2000 and 2010.[79]
Although tuition fees for domestic students are regulated by Ontario's provincial government, international student fees have not been regulated since 1996.[79] As recently as the 1970s, there were no differential fees for international students in Ontario; however, as successive governments have divested from postsecondary education, institutions have used differential fees as a way to generate revenue.[79] Today, international students thus pay, on average, 4.5 times more in tuition fees than domestic students.[79] However, heavy reliance on revenue from foreign students can result in prioritizing the success of foreign students above the education and training of local students. In particular, universities must offer degrees that are of interest to foreign students. Also, the acceptance of students who are not sufficiently fluent in English or French requires an erosion of academic standards.[82]
In 1994, the Ontario government excluded international students from the Ontario Health Insurance Program (OHIP). International students studying at universities must enrol in a private health insurance program called the University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP), while many international college students are also required to purchase mandatory private health insurance plans.[79]
Ontario's Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration, and International Trade recruits international post-secondary students as permanent residents through three Provincial Nominee Programs: the International Student With Job Offer Stream, the International Masters Graduate Stream, and the International PhD Graduate Stream.[83]
According to the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario's predictions, the future of postsecondary education in Ontario will include increased diversity among students (due to continued immigration, growth in the number of adult learners, and efforts to increase participation by currently underrepresented groups); continued enrolment growth; greater student mobility between institutions; and technology-enabled changes to program delivery.[84] Additional changes include gradual economic constraint, increasing integration with business and industry, and an extensive use of technology.[85]
Ontario's Ministry of Finance identified five significant pressures currently faced by the postsecondary sector in Ontario: educating a growing share of the population; helping equalize economic and social outcomes across the population; providing an important component of lifelong learning; functioning as an engine of innovation; and delivering quality education with a constrained provincial fiscal situation.[76]
The rapid increase (60% from in the last decade) in student enrolment in Ontario universities has not been met in similar increase of university professors (28% increase in the same time span) resulting in a student-to-faculty ratio of 26:1, which is much higher than the national average.[86] Enrolment is projected to increase by an average of 1.7% through to 2017–18, meaning one of every six adult Ontarians will be enrolled in Ontario public post-secondary institutions.[76] Internationalization of higher education is also on the rise, as the number of domestic students studying abroad and international students studying in Canada is increasing rapidly.[87]
The Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development'sReaching Higher plan for postsecondary education in the province, initiated in 2005, includes a $6.2 billion commitment to postsecondary education to address such issues as capacity, access, financial assistance and more. The plan calls for, among other deliverables, a target postsecondary attainment rate of 70%.[67] Following the October 2011 provincial election which resulted in a Liberal minority, the government re-affirmed its commitment to thereaching higher plan by announcing that 3 new undergraduate campuses will be established to serve increasing demand.
Academic Reform: Policy Options for Improving the Quality and Cost-Effectiveness of Undergraduate Education in Ontario, written byIan D. Clark,David Trick andRichard J. Van Loon, provides recommendations on the way forward for Ontario higher education.
