Universities in Quebec: CEGEP, how to apply from Ontario, deadlines and tuition

In Quebec, secondary school runs five years and ends with the Secondary School Diploma. Most students then go to a college, usually called a CEGEP. A pre-university program there lasts two years and leads to the Diploma of College Studies, known in French as the DEC. A technical program usually lasts three years and can lead to a job or to university.

Because Quebec students arrive with that extra college year, many bachelor's degrees in Quebec run three years for them. Quebec's own overview says a bachelor's lasts three or four years, depending on the field.

Every DEC includes general education as well as program courses. At Dawson College, for example, that means English, French, humanities and physical education courses, plus an exit exam in the language of instruction.

Quebec has 48 public CEGEPs, and 5 of them teach in English. There are also about 70 private colleges.

You don't need a DEC. McGill, Concordia and Bishop's all assess your own high school record. You apply on each university's own site, and each one charges its own fee.

At McGill, Ontario applicants need at least six 4U, DU or 4M courses. At least four must be 4U or DU, only two 4M courses count, and every program needs English or French at the 4U level. McGill works out its own Top 6 average, and you must have your OSSD before classes start. Most Ontario applicants self-report marks: an optional window from February 1 to March 1 and a required one from April 1 to May 15.

Concordia asks Ontario students for a high school diploma with at least six Grade 12 U or M courses, including English 4U (or Français 4U at a French school). Programs add their own prerequisites, such as Advanced Functions or Calculus and Vectors for math-based programs.

Bishop's accepts any 4U course and lets a 4M course count as the fifth course. ENG4U, EAE4U or NBE4U is required. It lists 80% as its estimated minimum average and assesses complete files on a rolling basis, usually within 10 business days.

Work out where you stand with our Top 6 average calculator, then compare program pages such as McGill admission requirements and Concordia engineering.

A Quebec CEGEP graduate has 13 years of school behind them. You'll have 12. So Quebec universities add a first year for students from outside the province.

At McGill it's called the freshman or foundation year, also known as U0. McGill says students from provinces outside the CEGEP system may start there and complete a 30-credit freshman year before courses in their chosen field.

At Concordia it's the Extended Credit Program. Concordia says most students from a high school outside Quebec are admitted to it, and it adds 30 credits to the regular degree. Most programs then take four years (120 credits), and some, such as engineering, take longer.

For your family's budget, plan for four years of tuition and living costs, not three.

The Quebec government sets tuition. Since fall 1997, Canadian students who aren't Quebec residents have paid a set amount per credit on top of base tuition. Quebec's policy, dated May 2024, brought in new pricing from fall 2024 for out-of-province undergraduates.

The same policy says out-of-province students who choose a French-language program at a French-language university aren't subject to the fall 2024 pricing. It also exempts some students, such as those in recognized French language and literature programs, and students covered by Quebec's agreements with Ontario and New Brunswick who are admitted to limited-enrolment programs.

You may count as a Quebec resident, and pay the lower rate, in some cases. Two examples from the policy: you were born in Quebec, or one of your parents lives in Quebec. Read the full list before you assume either way.

In April 2025, Concordia reported that a Quebec court asked the government to review the fall 2024 increase and removed the French-language target described below. For 2026-27, McGill and Concordia still publish $432.85 per credit for students admitted since fall 2024. At that rate, 30 credits cost $12,985.50 in tuition alone. Bishop's publishes $324.35 per credit.

You may have heard that out-of-province students at McGill, Concordia and Bishop's must learn French. We found no Quebec government page that sets out the current rule for students, so this section reports what each university has published, with its date.

Concordia's news story of April 28, 2025 says a Quebec court removed the government's requirement that 80% of graduating students from English-language universities reach an intermediate level of French.

Concordia's news story of June 16, 2026 says Concordia, McGill and Bishop's each signed an agreement with Quebec's higher education ministry. In Concordia's account, the goal is for 60% of new international and out-of-province undergraduates to reach Level 4 on the Quebec scale of French proficiency by graduation. Concordia says the agreement has no impact on admission or graduation requirements and that taking part is voluntary.

McGill's French-learning FAQ (no date shown, read October 8, 2026) says French proficiency is not a general admission or graduation requirement and that taking part is optional. It also says most students do not need to show French to graduate, so check your own program.

Bishop's page on tuition and language (last updated February 2026) says you don't need to know French to study there and don't need to reach any French level to graduate.

These are the universities' own statements and policies can change. Before you apply, confirm the language requirements for your program directly with McGill, Concordia or Bishop's. Learning some French will still help you live in Montreal, Sherbrooke or Lennoxville.

Most Quebec universities teach in French, including the Université de Montréal, Université Laval, the Université de Sherbrooke, Polytechnique Montréal, HEC Montréal and the Université du Québec campuses. They welcome students from other provinces, but you'll need to show your French.

The Université de Montréal says every applicant must show that their spoken and written French meets the program's requirements. Since the winter 2026 term, test results must cover three parts: reading, listening and writing. Some recognized study paths count instead of a test.

HEC Montréal's bachelor's program with a preparatory year asks for transcripts that meet one of its criteria, or a French test or program result at the intermediate-advanced level from the last two years.

If you went to a French-language school in Ontario, ask each university whether your studies count. Our Université de Montréal and Université Laval pages show what each school publishes about admission.

The Université du Québec is an umbrella for 10 institutions: UQAM, UQTR, UQAC, UQAR, UQO, UQAT, INRS, ENAP, ÉTS and Université TÉLUQ. The head office doesn't admit students. You pick a program and apply to the institution that offers it.

Two members aren't first-year options. ENAP offers only second- and third-cycle programs, which are master's and doctoral level. INRS also offers only master's and doctoral programs. Skip both when you build a high school list.

Dates differ by campus. For fall 2027, UQAM lists May 1 for most bachelor's programs, with some at March 1 or August 1. ÉTS lists August 1 for Canadian applicants.

Some families ask whether a student from outside Quebec can go to a CEGEP instead. You can apply. John Abbott says applicants who haven't studied in Quebec need education the college deems equivalent.

John Abbott College is in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, on Montreal's West Island. You apply through SRAM, the regional service that takes applications for 32 public colleges. The deadline is March 1 for fall. Its fact sheet, dated December 2025, says Quebec residents pay no tuition, everyone pays $162 per semester in fees, and non-Quebec residents pay an extra $1,833 per semester.

Champlain Regional College is an English-language CEGEP with three campuses: Lennoxville, Saint-Lambert and St. Lawrence. Saint-Lambert's 2027-28 handbook lists a March 1 fall deadline. It asks applicants from a high school in another province for their latest transcript and proof of 180 hours of French instruction. Lennoxville has 317 residence rooms.

If you're in a high school outside Canada and the U.S., McGill's Fall 2027 deadline is January 15, 2027, about two weeks earlier than for Canadian schools. Bishop's international deadline is March 31, 2027. Concordia asks international applicants to apply by February 1 so there's time for immigration papers.

McGill releases decisions for high schools outside Canada and the U.S. from mid-November to mid-May. For Ontario high schools, the window is mid-February to the end of May.

International tuition is much higher than the Canadian rates above, so check each school's fee page. Our Caribbean pathways guide and English test guide cover the next steps.

Start with language. If you want to study in English, your choices are McGill and Concordia in Montreal and Bishop's in Lennoxville. Visit if you can, because the three feel very different.

Then check cost. Four years at an out-of-province rate is a real number, so compare it with the Ontario schools you're also applying to. See the Ontario list and the Atlantic Canada guide for options with different deadlines and fees.

Last, put every date in one calendar. Our Canadian deadlines guide and application fees guide help you plan, and our McGill acceptance rate and Concordia acceptance rate pages show what each school publishes.