How to Apply to Business at the University of Waterloo: Direct Entry to Accounting and Financial Management (AFM) With Co-op, and Requirements and Timeline for Chinese, Canadian High School and Transfer Students

The University of Waterloo has no single undergraduate business school; its business programs sit in several faculties, and Waterloo’s business programs page lists 17 of them. The one most Chinese and Canadian applicants target is Accounting and Financial Management (AFM), offered by the School of Accounting and Finance in the Faculty of Arts. The degree is the Bachelor of Accounting and Financial Management (BAFM), and you apply directly to the program. Here is what you need to know for September 2027 entry, focusing on AFM with a short look at the other business programs, based on Waterloo’s official information, for students at Canadian high schools (including BC and Vancouver), students at high schools in China, and transfer students.

1. What you study in AFM

• First year: fall courses include AFM 191 (financial reporting and managerial decision making 1), AFM 111 and AFM 112 (analytic methods for business 1); winter courses include AFM 182, AFM 121 (global financial markets) and AFM 113, five courses per term. Waterloo describes a Value Suite of courses alongside Tech Stack courses in data, analytics and digital tools.
• After first year: 70 to 80% of your classes are AFM courses; the number of electives depends on the professional designation (CPA, CFA) or specialization you choose.
• Career specializations: choose one or two, such as Assurance and Advisory, Business Leadership, Corporate Finance, Corporate Reporting, Public Equity and Wealth Management, or Venture Capital and Private Equity, with an optional focus in Emerging Technologies and Data Analytics, or add a minor.
• Designations: Waterloo says AFM is a direct route to CPA and CFA; completing AFM and the eight-month Master of Accounting (MAcc) removes the need for the two-year CPA Professional Education Program, so you can go straight to the CPA Final Exam. The school holds CPA Canada’s highest accreditation and is in the CFA Institute University Affiliation Program.

2. Co-op

• AFM is co-op only.
• Schedule: from second year you normally alternate between school and work every four months, with your first work term in the winter of second year. Waterloo’s sequence ends with a final study term in the fall of fifth year.
• Sample roles: financial analyst at a bank or investment firm, audit and assurance at a professional services firm, business analyst at a large corporation.
• Cost: co-op students pay $836 per school term; you pay no tuition during work terms.

3. Other business programs (overview)

• Choices alongside AFM: you can apply to AFM or Sustainability and Financial Management (SFM), not both, and can add Computing and Financial Management and/or Science and Financial Management.
• Mathematics/Business Administration: a Bachelor of Mathematics with business courses taken at nearby Wilfrid Laurier University. Ontario requirements are Advanced Functions, any Grade 12 U English and one more 4U course, with “individual selection from the mid-80s”. Faculty of Mathematics programs require the AIF.
• Global Business and Digital Arts (GBDA): a co-op-only Faculty of Arts program taught at the Stratford campus (about 45 km from main campus) from second year, with admission averages in the low 80s.
• Others include the Laurier Business Administration double degrees with Waterloo Computer Science or Mathematics, Management Engineering, Mathematical Finance, Mathematics/CPA, Science and Business, and Environment and Business; requirements differ, so check each program page.

4. Students at Canadian high schools

• British Columbia: a high school diploma with six Grade 12 academic courses, including English Studies 12 (or English First Peoples 12), Pre-Calculus 12 and Calculus 12 (or AP Calculus), each at 75% or higher. The admission average is in the mid-80s. Apart from Economics 12 and Financial Accounting 12, ADST courses don’t count as academic courses.
• BC tip: upload a transcript with second-semester midterm marks as soon as possible; marks sent automatically by BC arrive too late for admission decisions.
• Ontario: six Grade 12 U/M courses including any Grade 12 U English, Advanced Functions, and Calculus and Vectors, each at 75% or higher; admission average in the mid-80s; Principles of Financial Accounting and Mathematics of Data Management are recommended.
• No supplementary form: Waterloo states that AFM and SFM do not use the AIF; admission is based on grades.

5. Students at high schools in China

• Grades: at least 80% in Senior 3 English and Senior 3 Mathematics, and an 88% overall Senior 3 average. Waterloo doesn’t mention Gaokao requirements.
• After admission: submit your graduation diploma through China Credentials Verification (CSSD-Parchment), and have your school mail your official final transcript (with at least five Senior 3 academic courses). Waterloo may withdraw offers if documents don’t match final results.
• English: required if your four most recent years of full-time education were not in an English-language school system (see below).

6. English requirements

• TOEFL iBT (including Home and Paper Editions): from 21 January 2026, 4.5 overall with 5 in writing and speaking; earlier tests 90 overall with 25 in writing and speaking. MyBest and TOEFL Essentials are not used.
• IELTS Academic: 6.5 overall, 6.5 in writing and speaking, 6.0 in reading and listening; One Skill Retake is accepted.
• PTE Academic: 63 overall, 65 in writing and speaking. Duolingo: 120 overall with Literacy and Production of 125.
• Only tests taken on or after 1 May 2025 count; scores must come directly from the testing agency by the document deadline.
• Exemptions: four most recent years of full-time education in Canada, or entirely in English-language schools (with school confirmation). Full-time ESL doesn’t count.

7. Deadlines and decisions

• Applications open on OUAC in mid-September 2026; international students have the same deadlines.
• 1 February 2027: application deadline (non-Engineering programs).
• 15 February 2027: documents deadline (transcripts, English scores and others).
• By mid-May: all remaining offers are sent; most scholarships are awarded in mid-May.
• 1 June 2027: deadline to accept your offer; residence applications close 8 June.
• First-year entry is September only. Deadlines may be extended if a program isn’t full; late applications are reviewed only if space remains.

8. Tuition and scholarships

• First-year tuition and incidental fees (two terms, eight months, estimated from September 2026 fees, CAD):
  • international: AFM/SFM 58,000, Computing and Financial Management 64,000, GBDA 56,000, Mathematics/Business Administration 62,000;
  • Canadians from outside Ontario: AFM 10,000; Ontario: AFM 9,000;
  • books and supplies about 1,500.
  Waterloo notes that tuition for accounting and finance programs is significantly higher in upper years.
• President’s and Merit Scholarships (automatic for full-time first-year students coming straight from high school, based on the early-May admission average):
  • 95%+: $2,000 entrance scholarship plus a $1,500 International Experience Award and/or $1,500 Research Award (claimed in upper years);
  • 90–94.9%: $2,000; 85–89.9%: $1,000.

9. Transfer students

• How to apply: transfer students apply through OUAC by 1 February 2027 and, once admitted, send detailed course syllabi for transfer credit assessment.
• AFM transfers: for BC university students, the same high school prerequisites apply, with an admission average in the mid-70s; you can receive up to 2.0 units (four Waterloo courses) of transfer credit. Students who hold or are close to completing a degree are not eligible for AFM.
• Business programs closed to transfers: Computing and Financial Management, Mathematics/CPA, and the Laurier Business Administration double degrees with Waterloo Computer Science or Mathematics.

Checklist

Students at Canadian high schools (including BC and Vancouver):

• 75%+ in English Studies 12, Pre-Calculus 12 and Calculus 12, six Grade 12 academic courses, aiming for an average in the mid-80s or higher
• Apply on OUAC by 1 February 2027 and send documents by 15 February; upload second-semester midterm marks promptly

Students at high schools in China:

• 80%+ in Senior 3 English and math, 88%+ Senior 3 average
• TOEFL (4.5 new scale, 5 in writing and speaking) or IELTS (6.5, 6.5 in writing and speaking) taken on or after 1 May 2025
• After admission, submit your diploma through CSSD and have your school mail your final transcript

Transfer students:

• Meet the high school prerequisites with a university average around the mid-70s; up to four courses transfer; degree holders can’t apply to AFM

Sources: University of Waterloo, Accounting and Financial Management; Business programs; Mathematics/Business Administration; Global Business and Digital Arts; AFM requirements for BC students; AFM requirements for Chinese-system students; AFM requirements for university transfer students; Admission Information Form; Deadlines; Important dates; English language requirements; First-year tuition; Scholarships; How to apply as a transfer student. Information is for September 2027 entry; admission averages are Waterloo’s published guidance and fees are estimates based on September 2026 entry. Check Waterloo for the latest details.