Public, Catholic, French and Private: How to Choose a School in Ontario or British Columbia

Education in Canada is run by the provinces, so the choices on offer depend on where you live. This guide covers the two provinces on this site.

Ontario

Ontario funds four publicly funded systems: English public, English Catholic, French public and French Catholic boards. All are free, follow the Ontario curriculum and sit EQAO assessments. Catholic boards may give priority to Catholic families, and French-language boards require a parent with French-language rights or an admissions committee decision. Private schools charge fees and are inspected only if they grant credits toward the Ontario Secondary School Diploma.

Most boards assign a home school by address; many allow optional attendance at other schools with space. Specialised programs such as French immersion, International Baccalaureate, arts and STEM schools usually have their own application process and deadlines in the winter before entry.

British Columbia

BC has public school districts and independent schools, which receive partial provincial funding and charge fees. Public catchments are set by address, with cross-boundary applications accepted where space allows. French immersion (early and late entry) is popular and oversubscribed in many districts, and the Conseil scolaire francophone runs French-first-language schools province-wide.

Using the data

• Start with the school profile: level, grades, enrolment, and the provincial results (EQAO in Ontario, FSA in BC).
• In Ontario, read results next to the low-income and parental education figures; in BC, check participation in the FSA.
• Use the district or board page to compare nearby schools and the comparison tool for a side-by-side view.
• Provincial results do not cover secondary schools in BC or private schools in either province; for those, ask the school for its graduation and post-secondary data.

On the visit

Ask how the school supports students who are behind or ahead in literacy and numeracy, how special education is resourced, what the French program entails and when the entry points are, how class sizes compare to the provincial caps, and what the transition looks like at Grade 7 or 9.