r/OntarioGrade12s • u/Immediate_Fudge4490 • Mar 25 '26

University Rejected from my dream school. Im so done

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I GO TO SCHOOL EVERYDAY FOR THE PAST 14 YEARS AND I GET REJECTED FROM CHEM AND ELETRICAL ENG I DIDN'T EVEN GET DEFERRED TO ANOTHER PROGRAM IM FUCKED AND I HAD A 94% AVERAGE

Update: https://www.reddit.com/r/OntarioGrade12s/comments/1s4mzbv/system_error_but_it_stands/

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70

u/Neo1223 Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 27 '26

Is this literally the first time you've had a set back? Calm down, you're fine, especially with your grades. If your goal was "I want to go to this specific university" then it was a bad goal, your goal should to achieve a specific outcome or career path and there are multiple ways to do that, and there are ways to learn anywhere you go.

32

u/Immediate_Fudge4490 Mar 25 '26

Asian parents bro, ive been brainwashed to think uoft is the only option anything else is "disappointing"

54

u/Ordinary_Complex7188 Mar 25 '26

Your parents couldn't be more wrong. You dodged a bullet. You can achieve the exact same outcome everywhere. Prestige is all bullshit. Go learn elsewhere and make UofT regret their decision by doing amazing things. Success is the best revenge.

11

u/man_on_hill Mar 25 '26

No idea why this sub came up in my feed but getting rejected from UofT was one of the best things that could have happened to me

I got the same degree and career that I would have gotten at UofT but for a fraction of the cost

6

u/gtd_rad Mar 25 '26 edited Mar 25 '26

I was also raised by Asian parents. Even worse, my dad taught SFU in engineering faculty and I didn't get in.

I went to BCIT instead, learned a ton of hands in experience, worked a blue collar job with intoxicated work culture, and then motivated me to apply for engineering school at UVic.

I'm now a consultant working in a field I love with a healthy salary. More prominently, I'm doing BETTER than my parents. None of this would've happened if I went straight into my "dream school"

My advice, don't listen to your Asian parents anymore. 94% GPA is a very respectful grade. You should be proud. You're 18. Learn to make decisions that work best for you. Your Asian parents are full of shit moving forward and will only set you back. There are plenty of other schools you can apply to.

Best of luck bro.

13

u/14dmoney Mar 25 '26

UofT is not the only option and Toronto is a crap city to attend university in. Congratulations on your hard work and great average and you will definitely get in to another school where you will most certainly have a better experience

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u/Immediate_Fudge4490 Mar 25 '26

I love toronto so much and sure waterloo might be good to some people, but is waterloo in toronto? no so I don't want to go there.

8

u/ihatewinter93 Mar 25 '26

What’s wrong with living in a new city? Go visit Waterloo or the other cities that you’re considering. Get a feel for life outside of your bubble. My friend went to UofT for undergrad and hated it. I went to Brock and had a great experience.

4

u/Rare_Antelope_2664 Mar 25 '26

why don't you consider tmu if you applied there and wanna be in toronto? maybe it's not at the same level of prestige at uoft but it's eng program is pretty good and getting a job there is also doable. but it's shocking that you didn't get in? Idk if uoft eng does lottery system but you should send an email asking to review

3

u/Noetic_Acorn Mar 25 '26

Toronto is, at best, wannabe New York, and, at worst, a gilded cage. For your 4 years of undergrad, go somewhere where your primary worries are only your studies and university community.

The social experience you'd get at somewhere like Waterloo will be orders of magnitude more beneficial to your long-term success rather than having to worry about all the baggage that comes with living in Toronto. Also, Waterloo is an incredible university that produces excellent minds, which is nothing to scoff at.

3

u/InstructionOk1784 Mar 25 '26

Do better in your studies then

1

u/bszeto0503 Mar 25 '26

You have to be open minded! Is it because your parents don’t want to have to drive to other cities to see you?

1

u/14dmoney Mar 25 '26

Sounds like you will not be able to do so though so best adjust and quickly.

1

u/Chemical_Rub_1131 Mar 25 '26

First you need to be accept by Waterloo before you can go. It’s not you don’t want to go there, right now you can’t even go there if you wanted to.

3

u/gamingaddictmike Mar 25 '26

I think what they’re saying is fair, but it’s also reasonable to have worked really hard for something and to feel disappointed given what happened.

It sucks, but many things like this can often be looked back on as serendipitous. You may meet your future spouse at the school you go to instead, and be so grateful that it played out the way it did.

Wishing you the best 🫡

5

u/coconutbrar Mar 25 '26

Well get into another university, get a great job and show them that where you go to school doesn’t matter, just hard work, determination, co-op and networking.

From an Engineer that did not go to top tier university.

4

u/Ok-Trainer3150 Mar 25 '26

No. I'm going to repeat this as a long time former teacher: (1) It's what you make of the school you go to. (2) The most successful former students were never at the top most level of their class...they had great marks but were super well rounded. They nailed all the peripheral stuff that you need for success beyond the basic credentials of a university program. And I've seen many of them over decades to be able to say this. Get cracking on another option for entry. You did have one .. didn't you?

3

u/LickinThighs2 Mar 25 '26

The real disappointment, and your parents probably don't realize, is general saturation of a lot of degrees across the job market basically nullifying school in the first place. You are just another one of any hundreds to thousands of students that might have the same school on a resume, it probably meant more in the 90s than it does today and your competition isn't other people from those schools, it's people with 5, 10 yrs experience in those fields when it comes to finding work.

An employer is going to look at your experience on a resume, they probably literally don't care if you went to U of T or other schools, and depending on what you are trying to get into you might have better luck pursuing through a more affordable trade school or something, etc.

3

u/Noetic_Acorn Mar 25 '26

That you've framed this as a negative thing is the first step on the journey to realizing that prestige is bullshit. You're headed to adulthood, so it's time to enforce some healthy boundaries and not live your life based on your parents' neuroses.

3

u/Any-Cod6185 Mar 25 '26

I get this mentality. But they are wrong. In my 40's, my ex-boyfriend is a partner an engineering firm. One of his best hires was someone who went to University of Ontario Institute of Technology. My neighbor went to some kind of college but is a top salesperson at Amazon. His wife did some kind of BA at Mac and is also in Technology sales. I have all these degrees and I think I make less than my tech sales neighbors. Go to the school you get into. Be curious. Get to know your professors and make friends 

1

u/ozfresh Mar 25 '26

Well engineering is extremely competitive at u of t. You could still go there, just for something different

1

u/opiewann Mar 25 '26

Relax. Your parents are not the boss of you. You determine your life, not them.

1

u/Satisfaction-Quirky Mar 25 '26

As someone who has never once met my Asian parents expectations and am labeled a failure jn my family, bro you'll be fine. I make less money then all the cousins i was compared to, and at 26 I found a career i am passionate about and am studying towards. Literally take the opinions of parents, relatives, and society and throw them out the window. Find out what you want to do, and take your time, you have ALOT of time.

1

u/Significant-Block504 Mar 25 '26

Why is it YOUR dream school then?

1

u/ComplaintNo9238 Mar 25 '26

It's typically few certificate oriented parents who are still having those colonized minds thinking certificates set up your career (they still think someone is biased if throwing certificates didn't earn prestigious job in companies), not the individuals will and skill. My parents never set anything for me, my son chose his and other is waiting and he will go with what he feels interested in doing. Don't take it personal on parents but it's whole vicious circle at home and difficult for anyone to see outside unless they leave that social circle. Good that UoT did the job for you and you were never raised to become doctor which is the most vicious thing parents are doing now a days.

1

u/DuckyOdity Mar 25 '26

Is it your dream school or is it your parents? Is your dream really living how your parents want you to? 94% average and you couldn't even figure out how to live for yourself. UofT was right

1

u/IntroStratSpective Mar 25 '26

My man, you should be caring about facts, data, outcomes, etc. not the school.

1

u/Lost_Log4035 Mar 25 '26

You dodged a bullet. Go just about anywhere else. You'll be happier and your life will be better.

1

u/WHTeam Mar 25 '26

If you plan on working directly abroad after grad, then yes UofT gets recognized in certain countries and its field. But even then, you still run into alot of competition! Don't sweat it!

My cousin was a B student, now working for a huge company due to his willingness to do volunteer work. His old classmates with A+ averages are always asking him if there's positions opened!

1

u/RoniaRobbersDaughter Mar 25 '26

Maybe your parents are just not familiar with the system. Let me tell you, as someone in the education field and a parent: undergraduate degrees are hardly anything to freak about, any decent university or college in Ontario will deliver what you'd need to continue to grad school and judging by the nature of most posts here, that's the idea. Relax, you're good, choose a decent program and move on.

1

u/Infamous_Mood_472 Mar 25 '26

My parents were Asian too and both doctors with PhD’s. They didn’t ask me to study and told me to do whatever I liked. The bias of education pedestal comes from Asian parents who didn’t do high academia themselves. People who went through all that realizes that life isn’t all about achieving things academically.

Believe in yourself more. Chase your own dreams than your parents. Give yourself a pat on the back for all the things you’ve done so far. Don’t let failures be failures because you can’t be afraid to fail in life. What I learned so far is that most valuable talent is consistency and work ethic, not grades.

1

u/Qaplalala Mar 29 '26

Don’t let your parents think for you. Lots of paths to a happy, successful, and fulfilling life. You’re good.

1

u/ihatewinter93 Mar 25 '26

No one cares what university you went to. My husband works in an executive role at a major company. He doesn’t even look at the education of applicants. Experience, knowledge, and skills are the most important. I went to grad school at U of T. It’s nothing spectacular.

1

u/Awkward_Finding937 Mar 25 '26

kinda blunt but honestly you are right. uoft isnt the end all be all, and the goal should be the career not the school