Canadian Comp Sci Degrees without High School prerequisites?

[Happyfist]

Hello. Are there any Computer Science degree programs in Canada that don't require High School prerequisites?Knowing this could save me a little money. I won't have to spend money on a few High School level courses to qualify for entry to a Computer Science degree program.

More info about me:

1)I'm a mature student.
2)I have an Arts degree.

Any info you can give is greatly appreciated. Thanks

[DemonWasp]

Based on a cursory search, it looks like both the University of Waterloo and the University of Toronto allow admission of students who have "equivalent" experience to the admission requirements they list (which are always defined in terms of the high school curriculum). I didn't look at any other universities so they probably have similar offers.

See here:
UofT: http://www.artsci.utoronto.ca/futurestudents/admissions/mature
UofW: https://uwaterloo.ca/find-out-more/admissions/mature-students
other universities: google "mature student admission (university name)"

You will probably have to demonstrate the equivalent of the following for computer science:
- Grade 12 English (you probably have something in your Arts degree that would count)
- Grade 12 Calculus & Vectors
- Grade 12 Advanced Functions

Do you have any training in mathematics? Where did you get your art degree, and what kind of art degree?

[Happyfist]

I received a B.A from Cape Breton University and an Education degree from Memorial University.As for university, I took one stats course and a course on grading and assessment for my education degree;these are my university level math credits. I took university prepatory High School Math all the way up to Grade 12 but I doubt my proficiency or grades in the subject are up to snuff. I didn't take sciences in High School that required much math either(no physics or chemistry).I guess I'll need to take some High School level science and Math courses online to qualify for a degree. Comp Sci prerequisites in regards to science and Math differ by province.

My options appear to be:

1)Find a way to do the high school prerequisites online even though different universities have different prerequisites.
2)Find a university with no High School prerequisites. I have found one university with no high school prerequisites. I was wondering if there were others.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

[knowthyself]

I don't have any knowledge of universities that don't have high school prerequisites, but I am a mature comp sci student. My path was option #1 that you mentioned above -- I took the HS courses online.

My story: I have been out of high school since 99, and when I was there we had "OAC's" (maybe before your time). But I elected not to do OAC's, but instead left after Gr 12 to go to College. So, when I decided that I wanted to go back to university, I didn't have any of the pre-req's at all (though maybe they wouldn't have accepted OAC's in place of the *-4U courses anyway). So I looked at some online HS options and settled on Virtual High School. The other option that I was considering was ILC, which is as I understand it handled by the Government of Ontario which provides the distinct benefit of being cheap/subsidized ($40 per course). However, at the time that I was looking into it, I think the only option was to complete the course-work by mail, and it seemed like getting help with assignments and what-not was going to be tedious due to limited access to instructors (I forget what the process was, but it seemed like it was going to be a pain). This may have changed or improved since then -- you might want to look into it. But I found Virtual High School and it all looked very professional (and accredited of course) and well-organized. The downside is that since its a private institution, it's not cheap (looking at their website now, $500 per course). And looking back now, I'm pleased with my decision. The courses were very well organized, and the online delivery system and testing worked well, the teachers were excellent IMO and quick to respond to queries with constructive advice.

When I was preparing to apply for university, I found that the required HS courses to be completed by mature students varied slightly. Most required at least 1 science (usually physics is recommended). I ended up taking English, Calculus/Vectors, Advanced Functions, and Physics. Yes, four courses, as that was the most that any of the universities that I was applying for required, so I wanted to have all my bases covered. It was a lot of work, but it prepared me well for university. And doing all that course work (well, one at a time anyway) in evenings while working full-time was in itself a test also, which gave me some added confidence.

Hopefully this was helpful. If you have any specific questions that you think I could help with, ask away.

Jeff

[Tony]

Happyfist @ Fri Aug 09, 2013 7:24 pm wrote:

More info about me:

1)I'm a mature student.
2)I have an Arts degree.

It's complicated in a way that definitions (and thus application paths) differ between Universities, and even faculties within a single University.

e.g. UWaterloo -- http://ugradcalendar.uwaterloo.ca/page/Admissions-Mature-Student-Admission

Quote:

Applicants who have previously attended university or college are not considered as mature students for admission purposes. They should follow the admission requirements for Applicants from Canadian Universities or Applicants from Ontario Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology.

You might be able to use your existing degree to cover the pre-requisites.

[DemonWasp]

Most universities will also have someone you can call to get specific advice and answers. Prepare a set of questions you want to ask, then go to their contact page and figure out who to call. Take notes during the call!

UW: https://uwaterloo.ca/find-out-more/contact-us
UofT: http://www.adm.utoronto.ca/contact-information/