Inbound exchange

Becoming an exchange student

• STEP 1: Check your eligibility

  To be accepted to Ontario Tech's exchange program, you must be nominated by one of our partner universities. Please contact your home university for details about the nomination process. 

  Nomination deadlines:

  • Fall (September to December) -  March 15
  • Winter (January to April) -  September 15 
  • Spring/Summer (May to August) - January 15 (undergraduate-only)                                                                                                  Note: Course offerings in spring/summer are limited. Graduate exchange is not possible in spring/summer.

  • Inbound Nomination Form to be completed by the partner's International Office representative.
  • Entry to graduate-level courses is restricted. Students wishing to take graduate-level courses will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

  If your university is not a current exchange partner, you cannot apply to our university as an exchange student. Please visit the links provided for more information about coming as a visiting student or visiting scholar.

  English language proficiency

  An English language proficiency test is not required. Partner schools must confirm that candidates nominated for exchange meet Ontario Tech's English language proficiency requirements at the time of nomination. 

  • Graduate English language proficiency requirements
  • Undergraduate English language proficiency requirements
• STEP 2: Apply to Ontario Tech

  Once you are nominated, please complete the online exchange application. 

  Application deadlines:

  • Fall (September to December) -  April 15
  • Winter (January to April) -  October 15 
  • Spring/Summer (May to August) - March 15             

  Required documents

  Please note that you will be required to upload these documents to submit the online application:

  • A copy of your passport
  • A current transcript including:
    
    • The courses you took and are currently enrolled in.
    • The final marks you received.
    • The credit value of each course.
    • Your degree designation (if applicable).

  Official letter of acceptance

  Exchange admissions decisions are normally made May through July. After we have received and assessed your exchange application, we need to obtain course approvals from the faculties. If you are approved to take courses, we will send you an official letter of acceptance. You will need this to get a Canadian entry visa/Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) and/or study permit.

  Visit our immigration information webpage to learn about the requirements for entry into Canada.  

• STEP 3: Choose your courses

  Submit your course selection form

  Once an exchange nomination and application have been approved, students will receive an email with a link to fill out the Inbound Student Exchange Course Selection form. Once this form is submitted, your course selections will be reviewed by our faculties. 

  You will be asked to provide the following required documents when filling out the course selection form:

  • Your transcript
  • Copies of course syllabi or equivalent, for all courses you have taken to date, including courses currently in progress.

  Quick facts:

  • The course selection form will include a link to our tentative course list which can be used as a guide for selecting your course preferences. 
  • Course descriptions and prerequisite requirements can be found in the Academic Calendars:
    • Graduate Academic Calendar
    • Undergraduate Academic Calendar
  • Graduate-level courses have course codes ending in 'G.' Undergraduate course codes end in 'U.'
    • Undergraduate students are not eligible to enroll in graduate courses.
  • Some courses have a lecture as well as an associated lab and/or tutorial.
  • Undergraduate students can be enrolled in a maximum of five courses per semester.
  • The recommended course load for graduate-level students is three (G) courses per semester.
  • Not all courses are offered every semester.
  • It takes about 30 minutes to travel between the North and Downtown campus locations.
  • To register in a course with prerequisites, you must submit the syllabi from courses you have completed at your home institution for equivalency evaluation. 
  • Preference is given to Ontario Tech students where there is limited space and the course is required for graduation.

  Wait for approvals

  Once you have submitted your course selection form, it will be reviewed by the appropriate faculty at Ontario Tech and overrides will be added to the registration system which will allow you to register into available courses. This process can take several weeks. You will receive email(s) when your courses are approved.

• STEP 4: Register for classes

  Creating your class schedule

  Students can preview available courses any time after June 15 for the following Fall and Winter semesters to build your schedule from your approved list of courses.

  Make sure to review the scheduling information carefully. Choose courses that do not have time conflicts and that are offered in the term when you will be studying at Ontario Tech. Please also note the location of the course. It takes approximately 30 minutes to travel between our North and downtown campuses.

  What do the letters mean?

  short-form symbols for days of the week

  M	T	W	R	F
  Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday

  Course registration

  Graduate students

  Graduate students will be registered in any approved graduate-level courses by the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies team once registration opens. 

  If a graduate-level student has been approved to take any undergraduate-level courses, you will need to follow the instructions below to register yourself in the approved undergraduate courses.

  Undergraduate students

  Once you have received course approvals and have built your schedule, start registering for your courses in MyOntarioTech. View the how-to register videos for step-by-step tutorials on how to add classes. For courses that have a lecture and an associated lab and/or tutorial, make sure that you are registered in all sections.

  If you have any questions about logging in to the portal or have trouble with your log-in/password, please contact the IT Helpdesk at +1.905.721.3333 or by email at servicedesk@dc-uoit.ca.

  When you have completed registration for all of your courses in MyOntarioTech, send an email to internationalexchange@ontariotechu.ca to confirm you have completed the process.

• STEP 6: Prepare to come to Ontario Tech

  Flights

  You must be at Ontario Tech from the beginning of International Orientation, our orientation for international and exchange students, until the end of the exam period. Check the Academic Schedule for important dates. Be sure to plan around the December holiday closure.

  Immigration

  Visit our immigration for exchange students webpage for more information on if you will need to apply for a study permit.

  Housing

  The choice is up to you! See where you will live for information on your options.

  Laptops

  Ontario Tech supports a technology enriched learning environment. You must have a laptop computer that meets the minimum hardware specifications in the Laptop Standards while you study at Ontario Tech.

  Orientation

  All exchange students must attend International Orientation, our orientation event for international and exchange students. You may also register for other optional orientation programs like Undergraduate Orientation or Graduate Orientation. Register for each orientation program you will attend.

  Other events

  Bring photos, snacks and little things from home to share with the Ontario Tech community at various events while you are here. All exchange students are encouraged to be exhibitors at two of our big events on campus: the International Exchange Fair (Fall) and Languages of Pangaea (Winter).

  UHIP

  All students are required to have health insurance while studying at Ontario Tech. Since exchange students do not qualify for provincial health insurance, you are automatically enrolled in the University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP). You are welcome to buy additional health insurance, but you must still be enrolled in UHIP.

  U-Pass

  All full-time students at Ontario Tech receive a Universal Transit Pass (U-Pass), which provides you with unlimited access to Durham Region Transit (DRT) during the academic year. For more information about the U-Pass, including instructions on how to access it, please visit the U-Pass webpage.

• STEP 7: Pay your fees

  As an exchange student, you must pay the following fees each term:

  UHIP and U-Pass fees

  UHIP	The University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP) is a basic emergency health insurance plan that is mandatory for all exchange students. Plan information can be found at uhip.ca. You may want to purchase private health insurance to cover yourself beyond UHIP.
  U-Pass	U-Pass is a transportation pass that allows you unlimited access to Durham Region Transit.

  How do I pay my fees?

  Current costs can be found on the Ancillary Fees page for graduate and undergraduate programs. 

  Once you have registered in classes, the UHIP and U-Pass fees will be charged to MyOntarioTech. These fees must be paid at the beginning of each term through one of the accepted payment options. Popular options for exchange students are PayMyTuition and Flywire.