Queen's Computing admission requirements: the mid 80s minimum, courses and choosing your plan

Queen's School of Computing says its Bachelor of Computing (Honours) is equal to a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science. The name reflects courses that also draw on engineering, math and psychology.

You apply to Computing (QD) on OUAC. You aren't admitted straight into a degree plan. You choose one at the end of first year, and every plan needs 120.0 units to graduate. A Computing Major can be paired with a Minor in another subject.

Queen's asks for an Ontario Secondary School Diploma and six 4U or 4M courses. For Computing, three are set: English 4U, Advanced Functions 4U and Calculus and Vectors 4U. The other three can be any 4U or 4M courses.

No high school computer science course is required. Queen's School of Computing says you don't need to know any programming language before its main first-year course. Plan Grade 11 and 12 with our course planner.

Queen's publishes the minimum average, based on your prerequisite courses, that it needed to consider an applicant last September. For Computing it was the mid 80s.

That's a floor for consideration, not a promise. Queen's says it changes each year, could be higher and favours the strongest applicants. Queen's doesn't publish a Computing acceptance rate. See our Queen's acceptance rate page for what it does publish, and check your own average on our Top 6 average calculator.

If you've programmed before, in a high school course, a summer course, a job or online, Queen's suggests CISC 121 in the fall and CISC 124 in the winter of first year.

If you haven't, start with CISC 101 in the fall, then take CISC 121 in the winter and CISC 124 in the fall of second year. Queen's says this doesn't delay your graduation. It recommends a short self-assessment quiz if you're unsure.

Queen's advice is blunt: doing well in CISC 101 and then CISC 121 beats rushing into CISC 121 and doing badly, because most later CS courses build on it. CISC 101 counts as an elective in a Computing degree. Arts students usually take CISC 110 instead, and CISC 151 focuses on data analytics.

In May at the end of first year, you pick a plan for your last three years. You can take a Computing Major with a sub-plan: Artificial Intelligence, Fundamental Computation or Security. Or you can take a Specialization: Cognitive Science, Computing and the Creative Arts, Computing Mathematics and Analytics, or Software Design.

Cognitive Science draws on psychology, philosophy, linguistics and neuroscience. Creative Arts points toward entertainment and multimedia software. Software Design is for future software architects and developers. A sub-plan shows on your transcript, while a Specialization also shows on your diploma.

Every four-year Computing plan has the same entry requirements, set by first-year grades, and they can change each year. Queen's FAQ still quotes figures from 2021 and 2023, so we don't repeat them. If you fall a little short, you may go on a pending list, qualify for a three-year general degree, or choose a plan in another department.

Queen's doesn't run a short-term co-op for Computing. Students in a Bachelor of Computing (Honours) plan can take a paid internship of 12 to 16 months through the Queen's Undergraduate Internship Program (QUIP), after second or third year.

You return to Queen's afterward to finish your degree, which then reads "with Professional Internship". QUIP charges a one-time $75 registration fee. Queen's says technical internships go more smoothly after key third-year courses.

For 2026-27, Queen's lists Computing tuition of $8,541 for Ontario students in years 1 to 4, or $10,151.38 with the student levy and ancillary fees. International students pay $54,808.20 in tuition. Queen's hasn't posted 2027-28 fees yet.

Every applicant is considered automatically for a $7,000 Principal's Scholarship, given to the top 3% of each program's admission average. The larger Major Admission Awards, worth up to $72,000, need an application by December 8, 2026. Queen's says you need a cumulative average of 90% or more to be competitive for them.

Queen's works out a separate awards average from the same prerequisite courses it uses for admission. For Ontario students it uses final Grade 12 marks when they exist, and any Grade 12 midterm marks available when you're offered admission.

Estimate your awards average with our Top 6 average calculator.

Getting into Computing is the first step. Getting into a four-year plan depends on first-year marks, so steady work in first year matters.

Queen's deadline is March 1, but the award application is due December 8, 2026. Compare Queen's with other schools on our computer science admission requirements page.