Ontario Tech reports 13,790 OUAC undergraduate applications for 2026, up 5.3%

Ontario Tech University reported that it received 13,790 undergraduate applications through the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) for the 2026 admission cycle, a 5.3% increase from the previous year, according to a university news release dated Jan. 26.

For prospective students in Durham Region and beyond, the figures offer an early indication of how many people are applying to the Oshawa-based university through the province’s centralized application system, as universities compete for applicants.

Ontario Tech said the 5.3% increase was more than twice the provincial average, though the release did not provide the provincial figure.

The university also said undergraduate applications through OUAC have increased 73% since January 2021.

Ontario Tech said the 2026 total represents a record high number of undergraduate applications to the university through OUAC.

Registrar and assistant vice-president (international) Dr. Joe Stokes attributed the increase to how applicants view Ontario Tech’s programs. “This growth confirms that students recognize what sets Ontario Tech University apart,” Stokes said in the release.

Ontario Tech said applications increased across several areas of study, including business, education, engineering, health sciences, science and social sciences.

The university also said it is seeing heightened interest from transfer students, mature learners and applicants from outside Ontario, but it did not provide numbers for those groups.

The release did not include figures on offers made, acceptance rates or expected enrolment.