Have you ever wondered which is the oldest university in Canada? Then this article is for you because you are going to learn about the oldest Canadian university. In this article, we will learn about the oldest university in Canada.
Canada is a country in North America. There are more than 100 universities in this nation. It is worth noting that Canada rates 4th in terms of education. Today we will discuss the ten oldest universities in Canada.
1. Université Laval – 1663
Université Laval is a public research university in Canada. The university was established in 1663. It is the first North American institution to offer higher education in French. Université Laval is the oldest university in Canada. It is located in the Quebec City area of the Canadian province of Quebec.
In 1878, the university opened a second campus in Montreal. As of 2002, Université Laval offered more than 350 programs. The university has more than 2,500 international students each year. The university has 43000 students, of which 32,250 are undergraduates and 10,750 Postgraduates.
2. University of New Brunswick – 1785
The University of New Brunswick is a public university in Canada. It is the oldest English-language university in Canada. It was founded by seven Loyalists who left the United States after the American Revolution. It is the 2nd oldest public university in Canada. It has two primary campuses.
The main campus was established in 1785 in Fredericton. And a smaller campus that opened in 1964 in Saint John. The University of New Brunswick offers over 75 degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The university has fourteen faculties. The university has 9,662 students.
3. The University of King’s College – 1788
The University of King’s College is the oldest chartered university in Canada. The university was first established in 1788 as King’s Collegiate School in Windsor, Nova Scotia. On February 5, 1920, a fire engulfed the university campus. For this reason, the original university institution moved to Halifax.
It is the first English-speaking university in the Commonwealth outside the UK. The University of King’s College has 64 Academic staff. It is the 3rd oldest university in Canada. The university has 914 students, of which 865 are undergraduates and 49 Postgraduates. Its athletics team is called the Blue Devils.
4. Saint Mary’s University – 1802
Saint Mary’s is the second oldest English-speaking university in Canada. The Roman Catholic Church established this university in 1802. It is located in the Halifax area of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. It is a public university in Canada. It is the first Roman Catholic-initiated university in Canada.
As of 2016, the university has 6,373 students, including 6,003 undergraduates and 370 postgraduates. The nickname of the university is Huskies. It is the 4th oldest university in Canada. In Maclean’s 2023 ranking, Saint Mary’s was ranked third among 19 “primarily undergraduate” universities in Canada.
5. Dalhousie University – 1818
Dalhousie University was established in 1818 by the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia. It is a large public research university in Canada. Dalhousie University is one of the oldest universities in Canada. The university’s largest source of revenue was provincial operating grants, followed by tuition fees.
The university has five libraries. Dalhousie University is located in Nova Scotia, Canada. The university has 20,970 students, of which 16,002 are undergraduates and 4,968 Postgraduates. The 2023 QS World University Rankings placed the university 308th in the world and twelfth in Canada.
6. Université de Saint-Boniface – 1818
The Université de Saint-Boniface was founded in 1818 by Father Norbert Provencher. It is a French-language public university in Canada. It began as a small school where boys from the French-speaking Red River Colony were taught Latin. According to our information, it is the 6th oldest university in Canada.
The Université de Saint-Boniface is located in the Saint Boniface area of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The university is affiliated with the University of Manitoba. In 1890, French lost official language status in Manitoba. And in 1916, the Thornton Act banned French-language instruction in the province’s public schools.
7. McGill University – 1821
McGill University is located in Quebec City, Montreal, Canada. The university’s previous name was McGill College. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was established on March 31, 1821. Twelve alumni of McGill University have won the Nobel Prize and 147 Rhodes Scholars. Both are the largest of any university in Canada, with 16 billionaires.
The total area of the two campuses is 1680 acres. In the McLeans rankings, the university has held the top spot in Canada for 16 years. It is the only Canadian member of the Global University Leaders Forum in the World Economic Area. There are 32 international students out of every 100 students.
8. University of Toronto – 1827
The University of Toronto is a public research university. It is located in the Toronto area of the Canadian province of Ontario. It was established by royal charter in 1827. The old name of this university is King’s College. The University of Toronto proposes around 200 graduate and 700 undergraduate programs.
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences is the primary undergraduate faculty of the university and administers most of the courses in the university system. It is the third-largest academic library system in North America. The university has 64,218 students, of which 44,763 are undergraduates and 19,455 Postgraduates.
9. Acadia University – 1838
Acadia University is a public undergraduate university. It is located in the Wolfville area of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Acadia University was founded in 1838. It offers over 200 degree combinations in the faculties of arts, pure and applied science, professional studies, and theology. The old name of this university is Queen’s College.
In 1838, the Nova Scotia Baptist Education Society established Queen’s College. The college started in January 1839 with 21 students. The total area of the university is about 250 acres. The university has 4,542 students, of which 4,024 are undergraduates and 518 Postgraduates.
10. Mount Allison University – 1839
Mount Allison is one of the top undergraduate universities in Canada. It was founded in 1839 and is located in Sackville, New Brunswick. However, Maclean’s Magazine has ranked it among the nation’s top undergraduate universities 23 times in the past 32 years, a record unmatched by any other university.
It was the first university in the British Empire to award a degree to a woman. Mount Allison’s architecture is one of the hallmarks of the campus. The arms and badge of Mount Allison University were registered with the Canadian Heraldic Authority on November 15, 2007.
11. Queen’s University – 1841
12. Bishop’s University – 1843
13. University of Ottawa – 1848
14. St. Francis Xavier University – 1853
15. University of Windsor – 1857
16. Mount Saint Vincent University – 1873
17. Ontario College of Art and Design University – 1876
18. University of Manitoba – 1877
19. University of Western Ontario – 1878
20. Université de Montréal – 1878
Conclusion
Here is the list of the 20 oldest universities in Canada. From this article, we can see that Université Laval is the oldest university in Canada. Do you know of any university in Canada that is old but we did not mention it? Please comment because your comments are valuable to us.
