How To Get Into Waterloo CS 2021: Debunking The Myths

[@tuongphan9678]

I watched this when it had like 50 views. Two years later, I'm about to start 1B ECE at Loo. Thanks Jason!

[@Grind_or_Die]

At the end of the day waterloo is a business and that's something no one realizes. Waterloo is a bunch of adults who want to make money but also help you so u have to show that you can help them too. Great analysis

[@thebackendchild]

Definitely gonna do the math contest now thanks for the reassurance 🙏

[@JasonGoodison]

Glad to hear it!

[@sdfsef5968]

Just some points I thought I might add that may be considered useful for a larger demographic. The only program that requires modular programming experience is SE. Adjustment factor only applies to engineering. Math contests this year will not count towards scholarships due to integrity problems and the abundance of unreliable scores. CS has an unspoken cutoff of around 94 but there are people who get in with lower due to extremely outstanding ecs. If you get into SE and you learn that you want to transfer to CS, all it takes is signing a form. Lastly, there are many specializations in CS. The most competitive one being data sci with only 15 being accepted annually. You also pick your major of interest after 1A in CS and the rest of math fac. If you think you aren't qualified for CS and choose to apply to math instead, don't get your hopes up for transferring because it's really hard and typically requires a 90+ 1A average

[@SleepySuk]

Do math contests still help with admissions?

[@sdfsef5968]

@@SleepySuk this year they will help, but not as much as past years due to the abundance of inflated scores (probably due to cheating).

[@aadargupta]

I got into Waterloo’s CS/BBA last year with a 94-95 average. It’s not impossible to get in! The adjustment factor only applies to engineering though.

[@JasonGoodison]

Great job 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@BatMandor]

What were your extracurriculars?

[@salmanpremji9494]

Thanks for making this video. I'm a highschool freshman and my school has 13.3% adjustment which kind of relieves me. I'm just a bit worried about doing extracurriculars and managing grades especially cuz i'll have to get 97s as grade inflation will raise the admissions averages by the time I apply.

[@JasonGoodison]

Grade inflation does seem to be getting worse, but consider that Waterloo accepted 125% more CS students this year than anticipated due to covid so who knows where the world is going. 13.3% adjustment sounds pretty good Im not sure youll need 97s for CS

[@sdfsef5968]

Math faculty doesn't use that adjustment factor. That is only for engineering. Also, a new list of adjustments has been released so I would recommend checking that out. Assuming you are applying to SE or CE in addition to CS

[@beingasthetic3874]

What is adjustment factor do Indian school has that

[@Fibonacc1]

@@beingasthetic3874 no

[@xRiki11]

your channel is literally the best, thank you🙌🏼

[@JasonGoodison]

Thank you!

[@dylantran4965]

Thanks for debunking the grades myth. I remember when I was applying for math back in 2020, I was so scared because all the KZbinrs and TikTokers said they had 97-99 averages and I had like a low 90 average (91-92). Extracirculars, Contests, (which you include in the AIF) and I am guessing your high school's adjustment factor are all factors which influence Waterloo's recruitment decision.

[@Fibonacc1]

Did u get in ?

[@dylantran4965]

@@Fibonacc1 yes

[@Fibonacc1]

@@dylantran4965 thanks for the reply, into math or cs?

[@dylantran4965]

@@Fibonacc1 math

[@samihabintasorroweraisha6563]

I didn't get my results yet, but still subscribed to your channel and for the last one month, I am watching almost all of your videos😁You make really really good content. Greetings from Bangladesh💙

[@JamesChugh]

Best video for anyone to get into waterloo CS

[@pranavchopra4029]

Lovely! Thank you so much, definitely relieved my stress about the high 90s myth.

[@chrisx2342]

I really appreciate such a useful and valuable video. I am a international student in grade 10, I really want to go Waterloo and join CS program. But whatever, thank you really much for the video!

[@JasonGoodison]

Really glad to help anyway possible :)

[@skyblue4230]

For anyone curious about how things are going right now: Oh boy. It's been a while. The decisions for the CS class of 2026 are rolling out. It's literally the hunger games. So many people with 99 and 97 averages are being deffered to geomatics. It's insane. The whole thing is almost a lottery because of the insane competition. I'll come back here to provide an update if things turned out okay for most people.

[@skyblue4230]

Nope. Mass rejections to people with 97+ averages were sent out.

[@JwY0315]

Yeah this year is insane!!!

[@skyblue4230]

@@JwY0315 Yeah. Like - I appreciate the sentiment this video has but the admissions process will always be unpredictable, especially with competitive programs like these. I knew this year things would be fishy and suspected this video would be setting some people up for disappointment. The adjustment factors claim here is also inaccurate so I knew this video wouldn't be the most credible.

[@alexanderfu1069]

Thanks for this video! Could you make one talking about what courses you took in high school?

[@JasonGoodison]

If you just want to know come ask in the discord and we can chat!

[@leeyayoh3467]

This video was very helpful and informative, this is probably one of the few advice videos that actually fully reason out the logic behind applicants being decided, such as the GPA predictions from your normal grade. Do you know if waterloo cares if I haven't taken a computer science course in grade 11 or 12? I tried to apply for them and thought I would get in because I had a high grade last year but got rejected due to limited resources. I'm also at an 88 in pre-calc 12 at the moment, is this going to be affected by the cut-off? I know the class I'm in does curve the grade due to the tests in the course being very rushed, and the students that graduate have shown very consistent GPAs, but I'm also in a different province and from what I can tell, apparently the adjustment only applies to Engineering, not CS. Also, love your recent vids, keep up the great work!

[@johnsonsworld7296]

man is a god. applying next year, fingers crossed

[@Alexandre-xz6jm]

Thanks man, my High School is #2 in the region. Every year we have trash average -80% but when it's ministry exams time we always get -95% average. Grades really differ from school to school

[@bellessings9025]

Incredible. Thank you.

[@yaboi3445]

1 stat from the universities with hackathons in the uni is there’s is only a difference between 0->1 and it’s only a difference in pay in the coop phases

[@W_AV247]

Hey! I was wondering about what you said about the grade inflations. I have a few friends in the IB program, and so I know how much grades get inflated, especially since their curriculum is so stressful and hard. Does Waterloo look at these inflations the same way as it does with these normal schools without programs? Furthermore, I have seen on its website that you need to take HL math for Comp Sci. and my friends are very worried about that, so is this true? I'm asking because I've heard mixed opinions. Another question is what about extracurriculars? How well does your resume have to look in terms of clubs, extracurriculars, and leading positions? Thank you,

[@skyblue4230]

Hey man, thank you so much for the insightful video. I heard that the adjustment factors are a practice done only by the engineering faculty and not the math faculty. Do you know if this might be accurate for our year? Or if it's a false claim?

[@JasonGoodison]

That could be true! I don't claim to know everything. Just to be safe, apply to an engineering also. But if they don't take school into consideration for math, that seems to actually hurt them as a school, so they should start!

[@skyblue4230]

@@JasonGoodison Yeah, only the engineering faculty is actually open about their adjustment factors. The math faculty might use them too but they have never said that they do.

[@kevinhou9550]

Hey Jason, Thanks for the video, this is a very nice video to helping me. I'm gonna apply UW 23fall. I'll come back if I qualify 🙏

[@jonathan_kim]

thanks so much for making this video!

[@jonathan_kim]

i got accepted to waterloo engineering a while ago thank you for making this

[@mansiiiiiii430]

Hi Can you please share if you had any programming experience while applying? If yes, could you share what did your work included? I am a high school student, and was wondering what could I start working on to be a strong applicant. Any tips /advice is highly appreciated ! Thank you

[@michaelbyers6189]

He said in the video that he had minimal/no programming experience. He would have had to take Grade 11 and 12 Computer Science, but thats probably all he had. If you wanna learn more about programming, sites like Codecademy are great for learning.

[@Shusui0000]

Hey may i ask, when u apply for waterloo cs, is there a option to select cs, or you gotta choose math and get into cs after wards

[@pooblock4092]

Hello, I am currently getting my associate degree in computer engineering holdings an average of 94% after my first year. When applying to U of Waterloo, will this greatly increase my chances of getting accepted compared to let’s say just a high school student? By the way, I did not have good grades in high school which is why I am asking.

[@JasonGoodison]

I dont know how transfers work! But a 94 sounds impressive to me. It may depend on which institution youre coming from

[@youdononeetokno]

Yo Bro, I'm getting into Waterloo next year. My A level exams is in next month and my agent told me that CS Waterloo is highly competitive even after i gave her my forecast results which was 2 A* and 1 A. The requirements for the application was 3 A. So if i get the same results for my final or a bit lower with 3A, how much do i have in getting in?

[@reading-_____-5299]

Hello, I am a student from Ontario who is going to attend grade 12 next year. I am wondering if people who did not take AP/ IB courses still get a chance to get accepted for cs at UW. Since my homeschool does not provide these supplementary recourses I am worried if it will make a big impact on my final application, and even if I get accepted I worry if it will cause a large impact in the future. Thank you.

[@TimmyCreates]

funny how I just commented on your other video to explain this and I found this video lo.l... thank you

[@Abyss777]

hey Really hope u answer I live in KSA, and I'm hoping to join as an international students (the school isnt a brand huge famous school, it average, small city school) do you think uwaterloo can have adjustments on international schools?

[@zeke5793]

Hey, thanks for the video. I'm wondering what you think about the software engineering program vs the comp sci program? what do u think about the comparative co-op and career opportunities? Also, I'm from the US and don't know too much about Canadian schools, but what do u think about UofT vs Waterloo?

[@JasonGoodison]

Software Engineering is more rigid but overall a better program (if you can get in). They both will land you the same jobs though after school so I wouldnt stress too much. UofT if you want to do research - Waterloo if you want to get hired in industry

[@wavez4224]

Are you sure that it’ll look better if you enter competitions even if you do bad? CCC is in a week and I’m definitely not gonna go too great, is it better to still take it?

[@JasonGoodison]

Definitely do it. Best of luck!

[@wavez4224]

@@JasonGoodison alright. Thank you

[@leelopez9929]

I know that high school sciences are not in requirements for Waterloo CS, but a lot of other universities require them. Will taking no sciences have a toll in your acceptance rate?

[@JasonGoodison]

I think they look at the difficulty of the courses. Like what did you replace them with?

[@leelopez9929]

@@JasonGoodison I’m taking the maths, English, data management, french, social science in french for grade 12 and 2 other unrelated simple courses. I’ve already taken grade 12 com sci this year.

[@erik6747]

For a student going into G11 is it even worth setting your goals on Waterloo CS/SE

[@MastrbldrGaming]

That’s what I also want to know, no matter what anyone says the competition is insane and you need amazing grades to even have a chance

[@wavez4224]

I think it’s worth it honestly. If you’re actually interested in it then setting high goals will really help as long as you don’t beat yourself up over it. Even if you don’t get into Waterloo, you’ll probably get into other good universities

[@erik6747]

@@wavez4224 yeah that’s what I was thinking

[@atrabilis1376]

Thank you for your information!Which is really helpful! Do you think its possible for a mature student studying online high school OSSD to successfully get into waterloo CS? I'm just worried about if these schools are inflating, and apparently its difficult to gain extracuriculum experiences through online high school. If not, do you think normal high school is gonna accept mature student? How can I check which high school students gets into Waterloo CS more? Or do you have some suggestions of which high school is preparing their students well? ( I just got pr and im a new immigrant, I got pretty high score in my hometown but I dont think which is that recognizable in Canada so I am considering taking a OSSD here then apply to CS.) Many thanks for answering my questions!

[@JasonGoodison]

Hey! I don’t claim to know much about this - but I’d say Waterloo wants to have a diversity of students and don’t see why they would reject you based on age. Having some mature students seems like a good play. Just get good grades. I think as a mature student (maybe working and/or supporting a family) I can’t see them caring about extra curriculars

[@lucien5112]

"i didn't go crazy i did an extra 80 hours" 🤣🤣 just this power level is enough to get into waterloo

[@sevenaries]

LMAO hello Edwin

[@JasonGoodison]

Haha true! But it was soccer related stuff, and I was already so involved in the soccer community that i would have done it anyway

[@jhitslime5469]

I have a retail and swim instructor job, and I'm the chess club captain at my school. However, I have no coding experience. (I'm scared that first year cs will be insanely advanced) Do you think this still results in a good chance of me getting into Waterloo CS? Thanks for the vid!

[@JasonGoodison]

I don't like telling people they will or won't get in, cause that can come back to haunt me. I'll say I think you have a good profile, but can't guarantee anything. In terms of first year being advanced, it will. Hit the ground running and stay on top of the work!

[@jhitslime5469]

@@JasonGoodison You said you also had no coding experience prior to entering waterloo. Did this make it harder to get a co-op? Also, were the first year cs courses at a beginner or advanced level?

[@JasonGoodison]

Yeah I had no coding experience and that was pretty common, although yes it made it harder to get a programming internship. I have a video of this coming out soon. Also yeah it was a very hard first year for me, but it gets easier!

[@AlbertoSanchez-tp3vd]

Do they only check grade 12 marks?

[@JasonGoodison]

From what Ive heard, Grade 11 is used for early admission. But that could be a rumor (and wont hurt your chances of getting in overall)

[@TimmyCreates]

do you think its possible to get in with a 90 be honest in your opinion like a 90 in my top 6 courses and do grade 11 marks matter

[@JasonGoodison]

Thanks for all the questions and support today! I'd say it depends on your school, but with a grade like 90, I'd say you have a chance at getting into CS. I had a 93 and didn't get into SWE cause that's a much more difficult program to get into. Make sure to pump up you AIF and stand out also! In conclusion, I'd say yes for CS, but unlikely for swe. Keep me up to date with your application! Note: grade 11 marks only count for "early acceptance". So if you did poorly in grade 11, it won't keep you out

[@MastrbldrGaming]

Did you get in?

[@TimmyCreates]

@@MastrbldrGaming nope

[@karamveersingh8532]

Sir does sat scores matter for getting admission in university of waterloo and does it offers scholarships to international students on the basis of sat scores?

[@JasonGoodison]

SAT is an American score. As far as I know, it's not taken into account. I could definitely be wrong there

[@MastrbldrGaming]

Hey Jason many people in the comments say time has changed and people with 99 averages are getting rejected, do you think this is true?

[@JasonGoodison]

I think that was true when I posted this too. The point is that school and other circumstances matter too. For example, I know students with 99 that got rejected but students with 94-95 got accepted cause they had a much better aif. Be on the lookk out for my aif course later this year if you're interested

[@amystockwell9627]

@@JasonGoodison Hi Jason! Where are you going to offer this aif course?

[@NoName-nb1yu]

Meanwhile I applied in 2022 and got rejected with the following (I went to a small town school with less than 500 students): 97.3 top 6 average played varsity soccer, basketball and volleyball every year from grade 9 - grade 12 was exec of an extracurricular club Did CCC and Euclid twice each Went to a school that was standard adjustment factor for Ontario Got a 99.5 average in my CS classes (ICS3U and ICS4U) Did several other extracurriculars as well I also had a part-time job on weekends You definitely do need high 90s now, you do need to know how to code and you do need to be a top 95th-98th percentile applicant minimum. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is now.

[@NoName-nb1yu]

Even crazier is that there were people who better applications than I did who also got rejected. The system is fucked now and it's basically a lottery.

[@WorldWideSam.]

Agreed, I would say 98%+ is reasonable with more then 150+ volunteer hours and a ton of meaningful extracurriculars with a really good AIF/Interview

[@jackbranston3797]

You are definitely extremely qualified to be admitted into the program. However, if there are 5 students in your grade who had a higher average than you did it's likely you got screwed by inflation and an adjustment factor right. It is also important to keep in mind that there is provincial inflation additionally, which makes things tricky (For instance this might make sense if you were in British Columbia). Above the speculation from a place of fear and insecurity (Its almost May), I totally agree with every point and heard admissions is compared to a lottery these days. It's too bad that this is the only school in Canada that has such a great co-op system. I'm sure it's the only reason people go anymore. I also find it frustrating how a lot of schools have a common first year :(

[@jackbranston3797]

Another idea is that last year was fucked. No other way to put it to be honest.

[@NoName-nb1yu]

@@jackbranston3797 Only one other person in my school applied to UW CS and the one person who had a higher average applied to biomed engineering. There also isn't an adjustment factor in CS. Admissions is a lottery but you still need to have a ridiculous resume to even qualify for this lottery lmao. It's absolutely ridiculous now, there either needs to be more clarity from the universities that you're not getting in unless you can code at an extremely high proficiency (you need to be employable before you even get to uni) or some other sort of measure because this puts students from non-urban areas (such as myself) at a severe disadvantage simply due to not having access to the same resources and opportunities as those from larger cities. Thankfully, I still got into a very good program but if I had applied even 5 years ago, I would have probably got in lmao.

[@vihaanjagiasi1628]

I had applied to Waterloo for CS but got deferred to Honours in Math, should take it or should I go for UBC Vancouver Bsc where I would be able to declare my major in the second year Btw if I accept the math major would I be able to do co-op in the tech industry and do software engineering/web dev interns despite being a math major? I'm an international student btw

[@JasonGoodison]

Yes you will be able to get tech jobs - but you will most likely not be able to switch into cs. Meaning you will have to do the full math degree - I don’t know too much about ubcs cs program but I would probably still go with Waterloo if I were you

[@vihaanjagiasi1628]

And any idea about math, like how difficult is it? and can we take CS courses?

[@vihaanjagiasi1628]

@@JasonGoodison I finally decided to commit to Waterloo Math and hope to Co-op as a SWE/developer

[@kane5645]

I’d love to dive into more ECs, but COVID-19 cucked me of that opportunity

[@JasonGoodison]

:(

[@knightwalker9692]

Nah man it’s a lot more different now. Almost every single person below a 97 got rejected

[@JasonGoodison]

I spent a few weeks in Januray studying the process inside and out. I reviewed like 24 applications, spoke with admissions officers, ... Going to create a course later this year on how to get in

[@knightwalker9692]

@@JasonGoodison could you give a summary or quick list fo what’s required nowadays?

[@realestningen]

hello sir i got 68% in 10th grade and 92% in 12th grade , can i get cse in waterloo (international student)

[@NumanKhan-cm2xu]

Sir how much of my fees can I pay through co op in Undergrad CS

[@JasonGoodison]

Will make a vide on this

[@NumanKhan-cm2xu]

@@JasonGoodison thanks sir

[@samihabintasorroweraisha6563]

@@JasonGoodison Please try to make a video on how much fees can international students pay through co-op🙂

[@JasonGoodison]

@@samihabintasorroweraisha6563 already created it just editing now!

[@nathandault7209]

Do ECs matter alot? As I only have ones from creating clubs at school and being part of some. What were your ECs?

[@murk959]

Also keep in mind you graduated 5 years ago It's SO much more competitive and different now Also very toxic

[@liov_]

@@objectoriented3049 the acceptance rate for u of w cs is 40% maximum, or 14%. the cs is very good there especially the co-op, thats why competitiveness is very toxic, people are agressive.

[@sdfsef5968]

@@objectoriented3049 it's a competitive community meaning everyone is trying to outdo themselves. I think that's what he means

[@harkaranrangi9471]

@@liov_ acceptance rate is 53% on avg for cs if u have a grade range of 92-95 Source: Their website

[@Asher-gx6hv]

Do we really need mathematics to get in?

[@aryamoghaddam529]

Exactly I was thinking the of the same thing when I was watching this video, I will tell you when I get accepted and prove you definitely don't need a 98 to get in.

[@JasonGoodison]

Please do!

[@jamesnam918]

What was your grade that got you into Waterloo?

[@pooblock4092]

@@jamesnam918 He never got in lol

[@badmintonnick]

Well, did you get in?

[@fruiteapai1398]

Did you get in?

[@shutterrstories]

Thankyou for this i am average student from Indian working hard to get into Waterloo 💙 Love from India 🇮🇳

[@BatMandor]

Hey so I have an average of 96.2% (international student - India) and have extracurriculars like: A tensorflow API project (this was official for an exhibition) (python) for a model self driving car, used the opencv module in python, used C++ for arduino, setup the API in ubuntu so had to learn some linux. I also made 2 discord bots, 1 in python (this was a school project) - with an sql database, 1 in node.js, it was used for moderation of a server, creating a chat game (blackjack), and did some web scraping (of my school website) and reddit for memes. Also made a really basic minecraft plugin in java (attempted to make a mod but failed), and know some web development (html/css/xml) from my junior high school. Also helped some classmates with their project. Have also done some codewars (reached 5-4 Kyu). Do I have a good profile to get in the university? Although I'm applying a little late (already got my 12th grade marks this year)

[@mr.zzzzzzzzzz3311]

eh not really. do more

[@SuzukiKid400]

You studied CS, you are not an engineer, so don’t tell lie and tell people you’re an engineer. That’s like saying you studied biology and you’re now a medical doctor.

[@JasonGoodison]

uh oh! I'll tell my boss at Microsoft to change my job title

[@knightwalker9692]

@@JasonGoodison 💀💀💀 this has to be a troll

[@MastrbldrGaming]

Cs is the degree you study, when you get a job ur not a computer scientist lmao

[@themonsterlegend3709]

I didn’t get into Waterloo I also haven’t applied yet

[@siboyang1205]

time has changed, man

[@jennytai6226]

From my experience last year, no not really

[@noons186]

bro you have so much potential you should've just started your own company instead of going to waterloo lol

[@JasonGoodison]

Watch this next to learn if you can pay for school with co-op: kzbin.info/www/bejne/b3fNqJSOe95lbtU Join our discord for tips and advice on getting in: discord.gg/VFvpDzzZnT