OSSD FAQs - Answered by Our Advisors

• Yes, on two counts. Career: a degree from abroad carries weight with employers, which shows up in the roles offered, the promotions and the pay.
• Personally: the language is learned by living in it, and a student sees another way of life, builds an international outlook and finds where they are distinctive.

Studying abroad teaches more than the coursework. Students learn to run their own lives and find their strengths early, which is where the return on the investment comes from.

• High school, if the family can manage it: more time in the language, more natural English, more familiarity with the place and its culture, so university and the first job come easier.
• University or graduate school: the student arrives with a clear plan and strong motivation, but has far less time to adjust to how teaching works there, so the wider gains are smaller.

• Less than studying abroad does, because the student stays at home. OSSD is taught online and in person, so a family can choose the format that matches the student's independence and what they can carry. Nobody has to leave home young and live in Canada alone: most OSSD courses can be finished online at home, with the final year in person, which strips out most of the cost of living abroad and keeps the family together.
• The OSSD system lowers the bar to studying abroad. Courses are taught in English throughout, so language ability is built before the student goes and the settling-in period is shorter.

We run online and in person together, because online study asks a lot of a student's self-management:

• In person: tutoring centres in China, where students get help on their coursework in person or online.
• Online: Canvas, the leading teaching platform, which tracks what matters automatically - hours studied, material covered, work completed, work submitted, marks and attendance. Teachers and coordinators can see how a student is doing, step in early, and keep both quality and completion high.

• It depends where the student stands. Already planning to study abroad: move to OSSD early, and study in person where possible - the results are better and the adjustment is easier.
• Still weighing it up: run OSSD online at weekends and in the holidays alongside the domestic programme, on two tracks, and keep it as a card to play later.
• Under pressure, or results slipping: if the domestic workload and the entrance exam are not working, start OSSD sooner. OSSD is lighter, so a student rebuilds a base in familiar material and lifts their English while they do it.

Yes: one year is enough to finish. The preparation is tight, so if studying abroad is the plan, start soon. Four things come from starting early:

• Two tracks at once: the domestic and Canadian courses run together, and each makes the other easier to score well in.
• Language: the earlier English starts, the faster it moves, and the smoother the OSSD courses that follow.
• Adjustment: time to get used to how North America teaches, and to studying independently.
• Attention: local certified teachers get to know the student's interests and character sooner, which makes the university application calmer.

Ontario recognises junior and senior high school results from China.

• After Grade 9: up to 8 credits transfer, entering Ontario Grade 10.
• After Grade 10: up to 16 credits transfer, entering Ontario Grade 11.
• After Grade 11: up to 22 credits transfer, entering Ontario Grade 12.
• After Grade 12: up to 24 credits transfer, leaving 6 credits to earn in Ontario Grade 12, the university preparation year, to graduate as a Canadian high school student.

>>> With 30 credits complete, the student holds a high school diploma issued by Ontario's Ministry of Education, and applies to universities and majors on exactly the same terms as a local student.

A Chinese high school diploma

• Entrance exam result: not every university abroad accepts it. Most of the top universities will look at the score only as context, and they set a high IELTS or TOEFL bar on top of it.
• Coursework marks: some universities do not accept them at all, others want an average of 85%+, and the most selective want 95%+. There is no retake and no substitute course.

An OSSD Ontario high school diploma

• No single selective examination: apply on OSSD coursework marks in six Grade 12 subjects.
• One test does not decide it: OSSD counts the work done through the year, at 70% coursework and 30% final examination:

• ✓ An OSSD average of 75% reaches the Canadian top 10 - the University of Alberta, the University of Waterloo, the Universite de Montreal and their peers;
• ✓ An average of 85% reaches the Canadian top 3 - the University of Toronto, McGill University and the University of British Columbia.

• OSSD rewards the process and the softer skills. Students pick their options around their plans, their subject strengths and their interests, which shows up in stronger Grade 12 marks and better odds at a top university.

The conclusion: an OSSD transcript gets a better answer from the university a student wants.

No. We assess the student's English on entry and use the result to set the ESL level they start at, so they begin where the English actually fits.

No: the Ontario courses are lighter than the domestic ones, and students from China finish them. OSSD recognises credits from a Chinese high school: Chinese, mathematics, English, physics, chemistry, geography, history and art all map onto OSSD subjects. Up to 24 credits transfer, and 6 to 8 more credits finish OSSD.

The matching OSSD courses are usually easier than the domestic ones, though they are taught in English, which is the one hurdle for a student whose first language is not English. That is exactly what makes OSSD suit high school students from China: they sharpen their English inside material they already know, and get used to the North American system as they go.

To earn the Ontario Secondary School Diploma, a student needs:

• At least 30 credits (18 compulsory and 12 optional) >>> up to 24 can transfer from a Chinese high school
• A pass in the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) >>> low bar, resittable, replaceable
• 40 hours of community involvement and volunteering >>> hours completed at home can count towards it

Compared with a Chinese transcript or an entrance exam result, an OSSD diploma and its marks are widely accepted by top universities in Canada, the US, the UK, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong, and the offer rate is higher.

Most students stay, at least for the first few years, and Canada makes that easy: three of the ten most liveable cities in the 2023 Economist Intelligence Unit ranking are here.

Canada scores well on stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. Living conditions and social support are strong, many communities live here comfortably, and opportunity is evenly spread, which makes it a straightforward country to arrive in.

Our advice is to use study and work to secure Canadian PR first. Wherever a graduate ends up building a life, a second status widens the options, gets them seen by employers and investors, and makes a comfortable retirement easier to plan for. There is very little downside to holding it.

• Teaching runs online and in person, so students choose: no leaving home, no giving up the domestic programme or the entrance exam, and a Canadian high school diploma alongside them. Far lower cost, and a second route secured.
• Our Ontario high school is supervised by Ontario's Ministry of Education: qualified teachers, approved content, recognised by universities.
• Chinese high school results convert into Ontario credits, which cuts repeated work, cost, time and effort.
• An experienced, licensed teacher team that takes the marks personally and stays with the student.
• Guaranteed-offer programmes built by a strong team, so what goes in and what comes out are clear from the start.
• An advanced teaching platform that tracks the learning automatically, so a teacher sees a problem and follows it up immediately.
• A platform used widely across North American universities, so students arrive already familiar with how it works.