Admission Requirements by Credential
All applicants will be considered in accordance with Fanshawe College Policy A108. Program-specific admission requirements are found on individual program pages.
Note: We will consider applications from those who do not have a secondary school diploma who are over 19 years of age (mature applicants) if they have academic credit in all courses listed as admission requirements.
Certificates, Diplomas or Advanced Diplomas
For Ontario College Certificates, Diplomas, or Advanced Diplomas, the minimum academic admission requirement is one of the following:
- Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) with a minimum of four grade 12 courses at the College (C), Mixed (M) or University (U) Level.
- Academic and Career Entrance Certificate (ACE).
- An equivalent secondary school diploma from outside of Ontario.
Note: We offer several Business Administration Advanced Diplomas. The first two years of the Business Administration Advanced Diploma is the Business Diploma. These programs are not considered graduate programs, but students must finish the first two years with a GPA of 2.5 before being granted permission to continue to the third year.
Degrees
For Bachelor Degrees, the minimum academic admission requirement is one of the following:
- Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) with a minimum of six grade 12 courses at the Mixed (M) or University (U) Level.
- An equivalent secondary school diploma from outside of Ontario with at least six advanced-level courses.
A final minimum average of 65% based on the highest six Grade 12 U or M (advanced level) courses is also required for admission.
Graduate Programs
The minimum academic admission requirement for these programs includes the completion of a post-secondary credential. Some programs may allow entry based on a combination of education and work experience.
Competitive Programs
Where the number of eligible applicants exceeds available spaces in a program, applicants will be accepted according to the process outlined on our competitive program page.
Non-direct Applicants
Over half of our applicants are not currently attending high school. If you are not a high school student, the information below can help you with your application.
Types of non-direct applicants:
- A Canadian or permanent resident with a high school diploma and not currently in an Ontario high school.
- A Canadian or permanent resident or refugee applicant who was educated outside of Ontario.
- An applicant who has attended post-secondary before coming to Fanshawe College (transfer). Learn more about transferring to Fanshawe College.
- Mature applicants (no high school diploma, but over 19 years old). Learn more about Mature Applicants.
Non-direct students can apply to Fanshawe College using the process highlighted on the application process page. Depending on your circumstances, additional steps may be required. Explore the sections below to see if any apply to you.
Mature Applicants
Mature applicants are at least 19 years old by the first day of scheduled classes and have been away from high school for at least two years. Mature applicants are not required to have a high school diploma to can gain entry to our programs. As long as you are enrolled in or have finished the courses listed in the admission requirements on the program page(s) you are applying to, we encourage you to apply.
Fanshawe offers a variety of upgrading options or equivalency assessments to assist mature students in acquiring the required courses for admission:
English Equivalency Assessment for native English speakers
Academic and Career Entrance (ACE)
Academic Upgrading in Biology, Chemist, Physics, English and Math
Learn more about mature applicants
Domestic Applicant Educated Outside of Ontario
Fanshawe College welcomes students from around the world. Applicants studying on a student visa (international students) should consult the International Centre for application information.
If your transcript comes from another province in Canada, or anywhere around the world – it must be professionally translated into English in order for it to be accepted.
For those educated outside of Ontario, but within Canada, please contact your institution and have them mail Ontario Colleges a paper copy in a sealed envelope or email a PDF version to service@ocas.ca.
For those educated outside of Canada, an official credential assessment report (International Credential Assessment Service of Canada (ICAS) or World Education Services (WES) is preferred but not mandatory. You can also send your professionally translated documents as one PDF to regforms@fanshawec.ca.
Transfer/Advanced Standing Applicants
Have you completed at least one full semester of post-secondary education at another college or university? You may be eligible for external credits or to enter one of our programs at a level beyond one. Check out our Transfer to Fanshawe page for details.
Please note that transfer or advanced standing applications are not available on Ontario Colleges unless you include an institution name in the education section. The name of the institution should correspond with the credential you are including in your application which verifies that you have completed at least one (or more) full semester of post-secondary education[SG1] We recommend applying at least six months before the start of the term so your documents can be assessed, and you can be placed appropriately.
Applicants for whom English is a second language
In addition to meeting all published academic course requirements, applicants whose first language is not English must submit proof of language proficiency in the form of a test result.
Applicants with Disabilities
Applicants will not be disadvantaged in the admissions process as outlined in Policy A108. We encourage these applicants to review Fanshawe College Policy A101, Accommodation of Applicants and Students with Disabilities. For further information, please contact our Accessibility Services office at 519-452-4282.
Homeschooled Applicants
Fanshawe College will accept documents prepared by your homeschool provider. If you are under 19, they will need to attest to the fact that you have the equivalent of a high school diploma. If you are over 19, you are considered a mature as outlined below under mature students.
Application tip: When submitting your application through Ontario Colleges, in the education section, select Canadian High School Education from the drop-down list. For the School Name, type Home. Select Home / Private Non-Accredited High School from the list. After completing your application and paying the application fee, email your transcript documentation to service@ocas.ca.
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