Canada Education System Explained for International Students | Qogent Global

Academic Structure

Understanding the Canada Education System

Gain insights into the Canada higher education framework, academic culture, teaching methods, and grading system to prepare for your studies.

Canada's Degree Levels

Bachelor's degree

3 or 4 years

Usually three or four years of full-time study. The length depends on the province and the kind of program.

Master's degree

Typically 2 years

Typically two years of study after a bachelor's degree.

Doctoral degree

3 to 5 years

Three to five years of extra study and research. You write a long research paper at the end, called a dissertation.

Universities in Canada offer bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. Universities and colleges may also offer diplomas and certificates.

Higher Education Framework

Degrees and Institutions

Canada has 223 public and private universities and 213 public colleges and institutes.

Types of Higher Education Institutions

Universities

Grant bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees.

•Public universities mostly make their own choices.

•They set their own admission rules and degree requirements.

Colleges and institutes

Offer diplomas, certificates and some degrees.

•Canada has 213 public colleges and institutes.

Academic Degree Structure

Diplomas and certificates

Universities and colleges may offer some diplomas and certificates, often in professional fields.

Key Characteristics:

To get a PGWP after a college program, you need CLB 5 (English) or NCLC 5 (French) in all 4 skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. CLB is Canadian Language Benchmarks, Canada's language levels.

Bachelor's degree

3 or 4 years

The first university degree.

Key Characteristics:

Students enter after secondary school, or, in Quebec only, after cégep, a two-year school between high school and university.
Graduate schools often ask international applicants for a four-year degree.

Master's degree

Typically 2 years

Study after a bachelor's degree.

Key Characteristics:

A master's program of at least 8 months can lead to a 3-year PGWP.
Since 1 January 2026, master's and PhD students at a public DLI do not need a provincial or territorial attestation letter (PAL/TAL).

Doctoral degree

3 to 5 years

Advanced study and research.

Key Characteristics:

You write a long research paper at the end, called a dissertation.
UBC Vancouver gives full-time PhD students at least Canadian dollars (CAD) 40,000 for each of the first four years. This is for students who started in September 2026.

Terms

Term 1 (UBC)

Started 8 September 2026

First term of UBC's Winter Session for most faculties. A term is part of the school year.

Term 2 (UBC)

Starts 5 January 2027

Second term of the Winter Session.

Institutional Quality

How Schools Are Recognised

In Canada, each province or territory runs its own education. A school can give degrees only if its province or territory allows it.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) list of designated learning institutions

Schools that can accept international students.

Visit site

Check that your school is approved

For a study permit (the paper that lets you study in Canada), your school must be a designated learning institution (DLI), a school the government approves for international students. Check that your program can lead to a PGWP.