Canadian universities offer international students a lot of options to study business, innovation and entrepreneurship. The Maclean’s magazine released its 2020 ranking of the best business schools in Canada. For those of you interested in studying business, commerce and management etc. Let’s explore the top 10 business schools in Canada. Hope this article can give you some helpful insights to make decisions on which business schools you should head to.
Top 10 Business Schools in Canada
10. University of Montreal
HEC Montreal – Ranks #10
The University of Montreal is located just near the downtown of Montreal, where there are various coffee shops, bars, boutiques, restaurants, and multiple selection for student accommodation.
The university has its business school, called HEC Montreal, which offers programs at undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D. levels. HEC can student the Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) in 3 different formats: French, Bilingual (French and English), and Trilingual (French, English, and Spanish). The degree last three years for students from Quebec, and four years for students from other provinces or international students from other countries.
8. University of Waterloo
– Ranks #8 (tie)
Although the University of Waterloo does not set up a business school per se, its multi-disciplinary business-related study programs offer an attractive degree of flexibility. For example, students can pursue a Bachelor of Arts degree with a focus on Business for Honours in Arts and Business.
Also, the Science and Business program offers an opportunity for students to blend a scientific outlook with business methodologies. Business-oriented co-op placements are plentiful in the local job market. Waterloo has a partnership with more than 7,000 employers and industry leaders to help students get connected and gain valuable professional experience in large organizations and startups. Students can select a four-month paid work term alternating with a study term.
8. Queen’s University
Smith School of Business – Ranks #8 (tie)
Queen’s University is located in Kingston, Ontario, which is a small but beautiful town. The school is diverse and has accepted international students from 120 countries around the world. The university is known for its vibrant student life, outstanding research facilities and reputation.
Queen’s has its own business school called Smith School of Business that provides BCom programs, graduate studies and MBA programs. In addition to Kingston campus, Smith School of Business has opened a branch campus in downtown Toronto because Toronto is Canada’s business capital.
The school integrated team-based into experiential learning with a small boutique class size. It is easy for students to get involved, connected and network with professionals through co-op programs, career coaching services and network events in school.
7. McMaster University
DeGroote School of Business: Ranks #7
The DeGroote School of Business at McMaster University offers a variety of programs, including Bachelor of Commerce, MBA and Ph.D. programs, and some other special programs such as executive development and international exchanges.
The Commerce Internship Program at the business school provides commerce students with the chance to get an internship for 12 up to 16 months. Additionally, undergraduate programs take into consideration professional accreditation. For example, a student can take CPA PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION COURSES, which are equivalent PREP courses for the CPA Professional Education Program. That means students from DeGroote School of Business can become a Certified Professional Accountant (CPA) faster.
6. McGill University
Desautels Faculty of Management – Ranks #6

McGill is located at the downtown of Montreal. Just like those at the University of Toronto, students at McGill are never far from off-campus activities, events and opportunities.
The Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University offers a BCom, MBA, and Ph.D. programs at undergraduate and graduate levels, as well as interdisciplinary programs such as the Doctor of Medicine (MD)/MBA and MBA/Law programs partnering with the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Law.
The business faculty also set up a teaching centre in Tokyo, Japan. The BCom program claims to offer the most flexible course selection of any Canadian business schools. Students can choose from 12 different majors and 13 different concentrations, along with joint specializations and different minors.
5. Western University
Ivey School of Business – Ranks #5
The Ivey School of Business at Western University may have limited selections of programs compared with other business schools, but their quality is fantastic. Ivey is famous for its practical, collaborative teaching approach, extensively relying on the case method of study.
At the undergraduate level, the BBA program is delivered in a 2+2 format, so students can pursue broad subjects in the first two years, then focus on business studies in year 3 and 4.
4. York University
Schulich School of Business: Ranks #4
The Schulich School of Business at York University ranked #1 business in Canada by Forbes, CNN Expansion & Corporate Knights. The school offers a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) program at the undergraduate level and Master of Finance, MBA and other master programs at the graduate level.
The school is very competitive and offers limited entry to an average of 252 new enrolments per year.
3. University of Alberta
Alberta School of Business – Ranks #3
The University of Alberta is mainly known for science, engineering, computer science, and medicine. This year the University of Alberta made its business school the first time to rank among the top 3 Canadian universities to study business. Located in the city of Edmonton and being the largest university in the province of Alberta, the university is high-profile. It has attracted students from 120 countries globally.
The University of Alberta has its own business school born in 196, named Alberta School of Business. Entrepreneurship at the University of Alberta is achieved through partnerships with different faculties and stakeholders in the industry. eHUB is the University of Alberta’s entrepreneurship hub, where resources, networking opportunities, and funding are offered to students being selected.
2. University of Toronto
Rotman School of Management – Ranks #2

The Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, located at the heart of Canada’s commercial capital, has a long history with studies in business since 1901.
Undergraduate and graduate students can pursue interests in business administration, finance, analytics and commerce. The undergraduate BCom curricula combine business with other interdisciplinary studies such as statistics, marketing and economics so that students can achieve a breadth of experience in various fields.
The UofT is no stranger to top rankings regardless of Canada ranking or world ranking. This year the UofT also ranked 1st for engineering, mathematics and computer science.
1. University of British Columbia (UBC)
Sauder School of Business – Ranks #1
UBC Sauder School of Business is always recognized as the 1st or 2nd best business school in Canada. There are around 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students enrolling in different fields of business studies at UBC Sauder.
UBC Sauder has two campuses: one is located is located in UBC’s Point Grey campus (main campus), the other is located in the downtown of Vancouver (Robson Square campus). It offers an abundance of international study opportunities with business development workshops in destinations such as China and Kenya.