About the University

History, Affiliations & Rankings The University of Waterloo is a public research university that was founded in 1957. Located in the heart of Canada's tech hub, the university offers a great platform for graduates to deepen their work-based learning. The University of Waterloo was founded on the principles of innovation and entrepreneurship by a group of business executives who envisioned a new university created to address some of the world's most complex challenges. The university was also the first university to inaugurate the first co-op program outside of engineering was established in the Department of Physics in 1962. The university is also affiliated with the Association of Commonwealth Universities, Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada, Canadian Association of Research Libraries, Universities Canada and more. Year after year, international and Canadian rankings place Waterloo among the best universities in the world. The Maclean's 2022 university rankings has placed the university at #1 in Canada for being the most innovative university, #3 for best overall university in the country and #4 in Canada for the highest quality. The University of Waterloo is ranked #149 in the QS World University Rankings 2022, between #201-250 in THE World University Rankings 2022, and #199 in the US News Best Global University Rankings 2022.

Infrastructure, Campuses & Courses The main campus of the University of Waterloo is spread across 400 hectares and is located in Waterloo, Ontario. The university also has campuses in Cambridge, Kitchener, and Stratford. It offers multiple opportunities for students to strengthen their foundation for work-based learning. The university majorly emphasizes specializations like Architecture, Health Sciences, Mathematics, Geography, Physics, Transportation Science and Technology, Digital Media, Quantum Information, Psychology, and Nanotechnology. With 4 different campuses and education hubs in Asia, Europe, and North America, the University of Waterloo is one of the most sought-after universities in the world. From Accounting and Architecture to Earth Science and Economics, UoW offers a multitude of undergraduate as well as postgraduate diploma and degree courses. Research is integral at Waterloo with extensive studies dedicated to practical and research work in various subjects.

Accomplishments & Alumni Waterloo graduates have become famous in various fields and have received multiple awards, including the Nobel Prize. In 1999, Robert Mundell received the Nobel Prize in Economics for his contribution to monetary dynamics and optimal currency areas. In 2018, Donna Strickland, a member of the Waterloo faculty, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for her work in laser physics. Waterloo Professor and Physicist Avery Broderick captured the first image of a black hole and unveils it to the world on April 10, 2019. Aside from that, the University of Waterloo has a $2.6 billion per year economic impact in Ontario according to a 2013 Economic Impact Report. Some of the startups launched by Waterloo researchers, students and alumni include BlackBerry, Clearpath Robotics, D2L, Maplesoft, OpenText, Vidyard and more. Today, Waterloo has more than 203,000 graduates in 152 countries including notable names like Mike Lazaridis (co-founder of Blackberry), Martha Leino (the first woman to lead a simulated Mars mission), and Heather Moyse (Olympic gold medallist).

Student Diversity & Top Recruiters Waterloo is proud of its massive international graduate student population. It now has nearly 5,800 graduate students on campus, 40% of them are foreign students from 84 different countries. The university is home to an incredible community of people with diverse backgrounds, communities, and interests. UoW helps more than 7,000 active employers across a variety of industries in finding the best match candidates. TD Securities, Ernst & Young, TD Business Banking, GE Global Operations, Microsoft, Sander Geophysics Limited, Allstate are some of the recruiting companies that visit the Waterloo campus. It is all set to structure the future by bridging the gaps between institutions, industries, and communities. The Velocity program at UoW claims to be one of the largest startup incubators worldwide with a workspace for over 120 startups and helps entrepreneurs in building businesses.