Have you given any thought to going to any of the five universities in Winnipeg? They all accept out-of-province students and have similar entrance requirements as other universities in Manitoba, but given their location in Winnipeg, they offer a more vibrant, urban setting. The largest university in Winnipeg is the University of Manitoba, but the University of Winnipeg is another important destination for many, including international students. This article will detail what makes universities in Winnipeg unique among other Prairie universities, such as universities in Alberta and universities in Saskatchewan and what you need to get in.
Disclaimer: Please note: although we have made every effort to provide the most accurate information, admissions information changes frequently. Therefore, we encourage you to verify these details with the official university admissions office. You are responsible for your own results. BeMo does not endorse nor affiliate with any official universities, colleges, or test administrators and vice versa.
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Article Contents
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Universities in Winnipeg
- University of Manitoba
- University of Winnipeg
- Booth University College
- Canadian Mennonite University
- Université de Saint-Boniface
Want to learn some strategies to get into a top tier college with a low GPA? Watch this video:
1. University of Manitoba (U of M)
Acceptance Rate: n/a
Minimum Grade Average: 70%
Founded in 1877, the University of Manitoba is both the oldest and largest university in Manitoba, with close to 30,000 students (undergraduate and graduate). U of M has various locations throughout Winnipeg and the surrounding area, with the Fort Garry campus being the university’s central hub. The Bannatyne campus is located in downtown Winnipeg and hosts the school’s health professional schools, such as the University of Manitoba Max Rady College of Medicine, the Max Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, the College of Dentistry and College of Nursing. As the largest of all the universities in Winnipeg, U of M has the most to offer academically. Aside from the various health professional schools, the school is also known as one of the best universities in Canada for engineering for Indigenous students because of its Engineering Access Program.
But if engineering isn’t for you, U of M has over thirteen different faculties, along with nine colleges under its banner that may interest you. To get into a Faculty of Arts program, you need at least a 70% grade average. Other undergraduate programs, such as the business school or health sciences, such as kinesiology, require at least an 85% average, and this is normal across most other STEM or professional programs.
However, if you apply to the Faculty of Arts and your average is below 70%, you can be accepted on a Limited Admission basis, as long as your average is at the minimum of 65%. If you’re accepted on Limited Admission, you’ll spend at least a year at the school’s University 1 program that acts as a transitional year for how to get into college with a low GPA.
You’ll get personalized advice from college advisors, including which courses to take to improve your grades, which undergraduate degree is best for you, and help developing your academic skills for university. Limited Admission and the University 1 program are also open to mature students, or anyone who has taken less than 24-credits at the post-secondary level. U of M has an online application portal that all applicants must register with to apply to any undergraduate or graduate program.
The school’s prerequisites for all Canadian students are different for each province. In-province students need to have completed at least five Grade 12 credits, while students from other provinces have varying requirements. If you’re from Ontario, you need to have completed six grade 12 courses; if you’re from British Columbia, you need to have completed four grade 12 credits. To apply to the U of M, you need to register online with the school’s application portal, upload your transcripts, and your English language proficiency scores if you are an international student (who make up 22% of all undergraduates at U of M).
2. University of Winnipeg
Acceptance Rate: n/a
Minimum Grade Average: 65%
The second largest of the universities in Winnipeg, the University of Winnipeg is an urban university that has some of the most unique undergraduate degree programs in the Prairie provinces, such as a Bachelor of Arts in Human Rights. There are close to 9,000 students in total at the U of W. Close to 17% of all undergraduates are international students; over 11% identify as Indigenous students, which translates to the school having a lot of Indigenous-focused academic programs.
The University of Winnipeg has only five faculties for undergraduates; much less than the University of Manitoba, but within these faculties you can find several unique undergraduate programs, from Urban and Inner-City studies to Indigenous Studies and Conflict Resolution Studies to Psychiatric Nursing. One similarity to U of M is that the University of Winnipeg also has a separate educational program to help you get into university if your grades are not good enough.
The Collegiate is the University of Winnipeg’s high school within a school. It offers high school students the chance to complete Grade 9 through 12 at the UWinnipeg, but also gives disadvantaged students the chance to take extra credit courses and receive academic support so they can gain entry into undergraduate programs at UWinnipeg, or other Canadian universities.
The Collegiate is open to both Canadian and international students, as you only need to submit your transcripts from your previous years of high school. But as the Collegiate is a competitive program, you must also interview with the Dean of students, so you should review common college interview questions and answers.
Aside from the Collegiate, you can apply for direct-entry into any of the school’s undergraduate program as a high-school student from Manitoba, other parts of Canada, or abroad. You need only a minimum of 65% on your final Grade 12 courses so the admission requirements are a little easier than the University of Manitoba. You can also apply for several pre-professional programs, such as a dental hygienist, which is only one of many majors for dentistry, but the minimum grade averages to get into these programs are different, often higher, than typical undergraduate programs.
3. Booth University College
Acceptance Rate: n/a
Minimum Grade Average: 65%
Booth University College, located in the heart of Winnipeg, offers a unique and transformative educational experience rooted in Christian values. As a small institution (there are only four faculties) it fosters an intimate and supportive community, providing a holistic approach to education through its mission and background in the Salvation Army. The school is one of the few universities in the world that is dedicated to analyzing and advocating for the Salvation Army through its one-of-a-kind Centre for Salvation Army Studies.
The Booth University College’s connection to the Salvation Army and Christian principles does not mean you must be a practicing Christian. The school accepts applications from all Canadian students and international students, as long as you meet the requirements of having completed five or six Grade 12 courses (if you’re from Canada) or having at the minimum a C grade for your final year of high school. As we talked about, the Booth University only has four faculties:
- School of Social Work
- School of Humanities
- School of Social Sciences
- School of Business
Booth University also has a continuing studies school so you can apply for diploma or training programs in various fields from Non-Profit Management or Community Leadership. While you can apply to attend in-person courses at the Winnipeg campus, Booth University can also be considered an online university in Canada, where you can take either blended courses (in-person and virtual), or fully online programs, depending on the course and program.
4. Canadian Mennonite University
Acceptance Rate: n/a
Minimum Grade Average: 70%
The Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, has a faith-based foundation rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The university aims to integrate faith and learning, creating an environment where students explore their academic pursuits through a lens of Christian values. Among the ways that the school expresses this spirit is by holding regular chapel services, spiritual formation opportunities, and a commitment to peace and justice reflected through the institution's Mennonite identity and various academic programs.
The school prides itself on its small, tight-knit community, as it only has forty different undergraduate degree programs through six different faculties from Social Work and Business Administration to Music and Science. CMU also features its own business school, which is rare for most Christian-based universities. You can apply to either the in-person MBA program or the online MBA program, as there are two separate streams. The MBA program at CMU teaches you about the basics of business administration, such as managerial economics and data analytics for
decision making, but also emphasizes particularly Christian beliefs such as Leadership for the Common Good.
CMU also hosts a graduate school that offers some of the most unique master’s degree in Canada, as they are mostly involved in divinity or theological studies. You can apply to the CMU as an undergraduate through the school’s online application portal. But the minimum grade average to get into an undergraduate program also depends on where you are from; students from Manitoba require a 70% grade average, but students from New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island only need a 65% grade average.
5. Université de Saint-Boniface
Acceptance Rate: n/a
Minimum Grade Average: 85%
The Université de Saint-Boniface was one of the first post-secondary institutions in Western Canada. Its founding predates that of the University of Manitoba, and even the province itself, as it dates back to 1818. The founder of Manitoba, Louis Riel, is one of the school’s most famous alumni. With this illustrious history, the Université de Saint-Boniface remains one of the most important post-secondary institutions for French-speaking students in Manitoba and Canada, in general, as it has strict admissions requirements for its fourteen different bachelor degree programs. All instruction at Boniface is in French but some programs (Bachelor of Nursing and Bachelor of Social Work) are taught in English, for which you will have to provide English proficiency test scores if you’re a French-speaker.
You must have a minimum 85% average to get into the Faculty of Arts or the Faculty of Business Administration. However, Boniface also hosts a University 1 program that helps students who don’t meet the minimum averages increase their GPA and choose a degree program suited to them. Boniface is also home to a technical school. You can gain admission into several certificate and diploma programs in fields as varied as Tourism, Technology and Media or Health and Early Childhood Development.
The school also hosts several pre-professional programs, such as a Bachelor of Nursing, and a pre-dentistry program that also have high admissions standards. You can apply as an undergraduate to these health profession programs, and then complete your studies after you graduate at the University of Manitoba, which is associated with the Université de Saint-Boniface. The school also has partnerships with the University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine to accept eight Saint-Boniface students who want to study medicine in French, which uOttawa is known for.
If you qualify for this bridge program to medical school, you will not have to write the MCAT, as uOttawa is among the medical school that do not require the MCAT. You only have to have completed an undergraduate degree in any field from Boniface and then apply to the uOttawa medical school. But, if you want to stay in Manitoba for medical school, you can also apply to any of the three spaces that the Max Rady College of Medicine at the U of M holds for French-speaking students who want to receive instruction in French.
How to Get into Universities in Winnipeg
1. Research Admission Requirements
These are important to know, especially if you’re applying as an out-of-province student. All the universities in Winnipeg have different minimum grade averages for students from out-of-province (Manitoba students usually have to have a minimum 70%). They also have different prerequisite requirements based on your home province, so if you’re planning on applying to any of the universities in Winnipeg you should familiarize yourself with your school’s particular admission requirements. You should also pay attention to the minimum grade averages for the different programs available at each university in Winnipeg, since they also differ, with some programs (particularly in business, health profession, or STEM subjects) having higher admission requirements than programs in the arts or humanities.
2. Research Program Offerings
While there are only five universities in Winnipeg, they all have diverse academic programs based on the school’s particular mission and values. The University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg are the most conventional post-secondary institutions in the province but even they have distinct offerings that could appeal to you, based on your background, academic interests or extracurriculars for college. U of M has the most extensive offerings with over 100 different undergraduate programs, but it also features several degree programs aimed at Indigenous students. The University of Manitoba also stands out for its robust Faculty of Health Sciences, offering programs like Medicine and Dentistry. The University of Winnipeg also boasts a unique Indigenous Studies program, which means you have to dig deep to make a decision about which is best for you by examining what individual courses are offered, what research experiences for undergraduates exist, and what co-op or summer undergraduate research fellowships are available to make up your mind.
3. Attend On-Campus or Virtual Information Sessions
As there is no Manitoba University Fair similar to the Ontario University Fair that you can attend to learn more about universities in Winnipeg, you have to take the initiative to attend university information sessions, either in-person or online. All the universities in Winnipeg have these types of sessions for interested undergraduate students, so you can choose to go to any of them, but especially if you’re an out-of-province or international student who wants to learn more about how to apply for university in Canada as an international student. Information sessions also let you discover information that is not always public. You can ask professors, administrators and even current students about day-to-day life on campus, the course offerings for specific programs, and what other internships or other research experiences are available for students of that particular program.
FAQs
1. How many universities in Winnipeg?
There are five universities in Winnipeg.
2. What can you study at universities in Winnipeg?
You can study standard arts and humanities programs, as well as STEM-based subjects, but universities in Winnipeg have also created several programs around Indigenous culture and knowledge. Many of the universities in Winnipeg are also values-based schools, so you can also learn about the ministry or community engagement leadership.
3. What are the best universities in Winnipeg?
The University of Manitoba is the largest and most comprehensive university in Winnipeg, but the best university for you is the one that offers academic programs and campus amenities that apply to you.
4. What is the best university in Winnipeg for international students?
All the universities in Winnipeg make an effort to attract international students, but 20% of all undergraduates at the University of Manitoba are international students so it offers the most support.
5. What grade average do you need to get into universities in Winnipeg?
In-province students need a minimum of 70% for most of the universities in Winnipeg. The Université de Saint-Boniface has the highest grade average requirement at 85%, but if you don’t have a 70% grade average, you can still be admitted to the U of M, UWinnipeg, and Boniface as limited admission students.
6. How do I get into universities in Winnipeg as an international student?
All the universities in Winnipeg allow international students and have different application requirements for international students, so you have to inquire as to what are the exact application requirements and processes. But international students need to typically submit their official transcripts, as well as English language proficiency scores.
7. How do I apply to universities in Winnipeg?
Universities in Winnipeg all have their proprietary application portals, so you need to create an account with them and then submit your application materials, which are generally limited to your official transcripts.
8. Is it hard to get into universities in Winnipeg?
It is not hard to get into universities in Winnipeg, although Boniface has higher admission requirements than other universities in Winnipeg. If you meet the minimum grade average requirements, you won’t have many problems getting in. But universities in Winnipeg and universities in Manitoba offer preparatory programs for students who do not have the requisite grade averages. So, if you want to attend any of the universities in Winnipeg, you can get additional support to help you.
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