With an enrollment of 59,389 full-time students and consistently rated # 1, University of Toronto is Canada’s largest tertiary institution sited in the country’s most culturally diverse city Founded in 1827, the University of Toronto (UT) is Canada’s largest varsity with an enrollment of 59,389 full-time students tutored by a faculty of 11,365 and an annual budget of C$1.1 billion (Rs.4,620 crore). Sited in downtown Toronto, UT has been consistently ranked as Canada’s # 1 research university by the Tornoto-based Macleans magazine. Likewise, the Shanghai Jiao Tong University Institute of Higher Education in China recently ranked UT 24th among the best 500 universities worldwide the highest ranking obtained by any Canadian university, while the Times Higher Education Supplement rated it 29th in its annual list of the world’s top 200 varsities. Spread across three campuses in Toronto (St. George, Mississauga and Scarborough), University of Toronto offers the widest spectrum of academic programmes of any varsity in Canada. Its 17 academic divisions provide more than 300 study programmes and 2,000 courses in the arts, sciences and business (see box). The university also boasts an endowment fund of C$1.6 billion (Rs.6,720 crore), and the largest library system in Canada with 15 million volumes. “The University of Toronto offers education on a global scale. As an institution, we have been recognised as Canada’s top university and one of North America’s best public research universities,” says David Naylor, president of the university. Toronto. Rated by Fortune magazine as the world’s best city to live and work in, Toronto (pop. 4.6 million) is Canada’s largest and most culturally diverse city. Over 100 languages and dialects are spoken in Toronto and 49 percent of the city’s residents were born outside of Canada. The streets teem with cafes, restaurants, bookstores, art galleries, and museums and the vibrant city boasts four major sports teams, national ballet and opera companies, a renowned symphony orchestra, and is the world’s third largest English language theatre centre. Toronto is well-served by an extensive, affordable, public transportation system the second-largest in North America after New York and is within driving distance of a number of American cities including Washington, Chicago, Boston and New York. Situated on the shores of Lake Ontario, Toronto’s climate is one of the mildest in Canada. Spring and summer temperatures range between 15ºC-25ºC while during winter months, the average daytime temperature, with the exception of January, the coldest month, hovers just slightly below freezing point. Campus facilities. Toronto U is spread across three campuses with complete facilities, including residences, libraries and student centres. The largest of the three, the St. George campus is located in the heart of Toronto and houses the faculty of arts and science. The 43,000 students studying in this faculty are all members of one of the seven colleges sited on the St. George campus. Each college offers residential facilities, a library, cafe and student centre. “Choosing a college is a matter of personal preference and will not affect access to courses or programmes of study,” says a Toronto U…
