Three of the six N.S. universities that received grades for the Globe and Mail's 2012 University Report Card: SMU (left), MSVU (centre), Dalhousie (right). (Photos: Bianca Müller)

N.S. universities earn above average GPA

The tables are turned as Canadian university students grade their post-secondary institutions.

Six universities in Nova Scotia received an above average grade of B+ across a total of 19 categories in the annual University Report Card for 2012 published by the Globe and Mail on Oct. 27.

The 'report card' is the result of a Canada-wide survey that assigns grades to 60 participating universities in various categories, such as student satisfaction, quality of teaching and learning, campus atmosphere, buildings and facilities, and so on.

The universities are subdivided within each category based on undegraduate student body size: large (e.g. University of Toronto), medium (e.g. Dalhousie University), small (e.g. Saint Mary's and St. Francis Xavier universities) and very small (e.g. Mount Saint Vincent, Acadia and Cape Breton universities).

This year 33,000 students participated in the survey that was conducted by data collection and analysis experts Higher Education Strategy Associates in Toronto. For each report, university administrators are asked to send mass e-mails through their student registries, inviting students to partake in the big survey.

Other N.S. institutions such as the University of King's College and NSCAD were not included in the newspaper's survey results. This can be due to the low number of participation from students in those schools, which makes the data statistically unviable for final inclusion in the survey results, says Simon Beck, the Globe and Mail Education Reports editor.

Beck helps run GlobeCampus, a site dedicated to providing tips, advice and discussions about undergraduate education in Canada.

Below are selected categories found in the report card detailing the grades of the six N.S. schools (including the national top or bottom-ranking universities specific to each category, to give points of reference):

Student Satisfaction

• Acadia (Wolfville): A
• St. Francis Xavier University (Antigonish:): A-
• Dalhousie (Halifax): B+
• SMU (Halifax): B
• MSVU (Halifax): B
• Cape Breton (Sydney): B

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is York University (Toronto, ON): C+


Quality of Teaching & Learning

• Acadia: A
• St. Francis Xavier: A-
• Dalhousie: B+
• SMU: B+
• MSVU: B+
• Cape Breton: B+

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is the University of Ottawa (Ottawa, ON): B-


Campus Atmosphere

• Acadia: A
• St. Francis Xavier: A
• Dalhousie: B+
• SMU: B+
• MSVU: B+
• Cape Breton: B+

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is York University: C+


Buildings and Facilities

• Queen's University (Kingston, ON): A
• Acadia: A-
• Dalhousie: B
• SMU: B
• Cape Breton: B
• St. Francis Xavier: B-
• MSVU: B-

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is the University of Toronto (Scarborough, ON): C-


Recreation and Athletics

• Acadia: A-
• SMU: B+
• St. Francis Xavier: B+
• Cape Breton: B+
• Dalhousie: B
• MSVU: B-

The highest-ranking institution in this category is the University of Western Ontario (London, ON): A+


Student Residences

• Acadia: B
• Dalhousie: B
• St. Francis Xavier: B+
• Cape Breton: B+
• SMU: C+
• MSVU: C+

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is Brandon University (Brandon, MB): C-


Research Opportunities

• Acadia: A-
• St. Francis Xavier: B+
• Cape Breton: B
• Dalhousie: B-
• SMU: B-
• MSVU: B-

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is OCAD University (Toronto, ON): C


Reputation with Employers

• St. Francis Xavier: A
• Acadia: A-
• SMU: B+
• Cape Breton: B+
• Dalhousie: B
• MSVU: B-

The lowest-ranking institution in this category is York University: C

Comments on this story are now closed