Canadian University requirements

Apart from what his answer includes, I only have a little more to add here. Admission to top
Canadian universities is pretty much the same as admissions to top universities anywhere. Yes, your
odds might vary a little based on the number of applications received but essentially it will boil down
to your profile. There are a multitude of factors that determine admission and good mix of those
factors is usually what pushes your case over the wall into the top 3 or 4 universities as opposed to
the next 4 to 5 in the top 10.

I am reproducing here an answer I had written for a question regarding factors that influence
admission to universities in general.

An MS in Canada/USA/UK/Germany/Australia or anywhere for that matter depends on a potpourri

of factors which primarily include (but are not limited to) -

 CGPA - Quite obviously, the better your score, the better your chances. But it is understood
that not all universities grade their students the same way. So your percentile score matters
as well. A student scoring 7.1 in a university where the topper scored 7.35 will definitely
garner more attention than a 8.1 where the topper had scored 9.4 and there are many other
people in between them.

 GRE and TOEFL/IELTS scores - The US places heavy emphasis on the GRE, other places treat
it with less importance. It is not even mandatory in Canada. Your TOEFL/IELTS scores usually
need to be above the required score. That would suffice. A good score might not add extra
points with respect to admission but they can help you chances with getting TA etc.

 Letters of Recommendation (LOR) - These are extremely important yet vastly under-rated or
many a time over-written. Most LORs that I have come across have included very little
information about a students that cannot be gauged from their grades, or they contain a
very bombastic account of how the student could be the next Elon Musk or Isaac Newton.
Quite evidently people just go online, search for LORs and edit them to get them signed by
their professors. A good collection of LORs from 2 to 3 professors will include a first person
account of you as a person, as a student, as a future professional, as a researcher, as a
possible leader, etc. WHY would your professor recommend you? A recommendation is not
a suggestion saying “Perhaps you could take Akshay in your program because he writes his
records on time”.  A recommendation is about the professor staking his reputation on you. It
should include information about you that made him/her find you worthy of further studies
in that particular university. Let your LORs also talk about possible shortcomings in you. You
can definitely sit down with your professors and talk to them about what they plan to write
(some might encourage it and some might not). You can always ask them to write what they
feel about your tenacity or your grit or your perseverance or your incessant need for
perfection (which can also double up as a shortcoming but one that is a positive). LORs need
not be limited to professors who have taught you. They can also include your supervisors at
the place where you worked or had at internship at. Ideally it would be best to limit LORs
from such supervisors to 1 since you are primarily applying for education and not a job.

 Statement of purpose (SOP) - The nemesis of every prospective grad student. This essay
eats away your brain like nothing else! Why do you want to study what you want to study
where you want to study it? It is an elevator pitch rolled into a 1 to 2 page essay. A well
drafted SOP can avoid the slip between the cup and the lip. Your SOP needs to clearly
define what makes you who you are and what drives you to study further. You can be
brutally honest. You do not have to always say you want to make a difference to the society.
 Canadian University requirements

That might sound like something the admissions committee will like to hear, but they will be
able to see through the smoke screen. You can always mention that you feel your current
level of education seems inadequate to catapult you to the level you know you belong at.
Let it talk about what you plan to do when you are armed with your graduate degree from
that university. Let it talk about why you picked that university (they know they are not your
only choice. But they want to know why they made it to your shortlist). Your SOP should be
akin to this quote by Jim Sturgess from the movie 21 (2008) - “Did I dazzle you? Did I jump
off the page?”

 Work Experience / Internships - Quite a no-brainer. If you have any relevant work
experience in your field, your odds just went up. You are better equipped for a masters if
you already have practical exposure to the theory that you have already studied. Beware
that working in an IT company and applying to a masters in Photonics is about as helpful as a
one-legged man at an arse kicking contest (Courtesy - Rowan Atkinson).  Your work
experience might also help you bag part time jobs outside the campus (assuming you are
legally allowed to work) and other projects with various professors in the university

 Projects / Papers - These are similar to work experience. The more papers/projects you
have, the better. The better the reputation of the journal/conference where your work was
published, the higher your chances of an admission with scholarship or tuition waiver. While
these are not a must, they vastly improve the probability of the dies rolling in your favour.

 Extracurricular activities - These can include sports, community work, volunteering with
NGOs, working with underprivileged, Musical interests (perhaps you played in a band) and
pretty much everything else that makes you stand out from others (being able to fart on
demand will not be counted as a special talent though unfortunately).

As long as you have a good mix of the above, you can definitely get into any university you desire.
While it is not mandatory to have every item mentioned in the list, it sure helps! Another factor (out
of your control) is the popularity of the course. If the school is famous for that field, you will have
more competition. So see what else you can do in the remaining time :) 1 year is a lot of hours to
make a difference. Good luck!