How to Optimize your Degree and Earn a 10.0/10.0 CGPA

Co-author: Wei Hu

At convocation, the graduates with the highest GPA in each discipline are awarded faculty plaques. As a thought experiment, we want to explore how one should go about a University of Ottawa degree if the sole goal is to optimize for a perfect CGPA and to save tuition fees, especially for international students.

Through these optimizations, I have also saved 1 year worth of tuition fees (worth ~$40k) and completed 6 terms (24 months) of internships at various places before graduation. While some of these ideas are specific to the uOttawa Faculty of Engineering, they could be applied to other institutions and programs.

1. Request for Prerequisite Waivers.

Prerequisites are but a recommendation, and usually little prior knowledge is required. The waiver also helps you to register for electives and graduate courses that would require one. For example, MAT 2377: Statistics for Engineers is a requirement for CEG 3185, a computer networking course, but the course did not require statistics.

2. Request for a different elective.

For courses that are not listed in the electives list of the degree program, they could be swapped to a reasonable alternative option. For example, BPS 1101 (Drugs 101) may be counted as a science elective and CSI 2101 may be counted as a complementary elective.

3. Pick a different equivalent course for credit.

For example, you may pick Python (ITI 1120) over C (GNG 1106) as your first programming course. There are also equivalent classes with different course codes such as first year Chemistry CHM 1301 and CHM 1311.

4. Take Challenge Exams.

For non-engineering courses, there is a little-known mechanism known as the challenge exam. It allows you to take the final exam of a course directly without having to take the course.

This would be beneficial for people who score better on exams than school assignments. Challenge exams are more common for MAT and first year courses. For example, ITI1120 and in science. Consider speaking to the department heads (Steven Desjardins is a generous person!). Professors who have previously taught the course are generally accommodating, and would often provide you with study materials.

5. Complete half of your degree outside of uOttawa.

Courses transferred over from other institutions are treated as Pass/Fail on your transcript. The fewer courses taken in uOttawa, the lower the probability of hurting your perfect GPA. Consider crediting your courses from other recognized curriculums such as IB or AP.

To take external courses, get a Letter of Permission from your faculty. Consider Athabasca University: courses are cheaper and more flexible (monthly course intake). This also works in parallel with courses that have prerequisites waived (Point 1) and challenge exams (Point 4).

While course equivalences are fairly generous, they are not for engineering courses due to needing the Professor to have a P.Eng. for accreditation purposes.

6. Consider doing an exchange.

Exchanges are not typically more expensive than regular attendance, thanks to the many sources of funding offered by the university, such as the Faculty of Engineering International Experience Scholarship valued at $6000, MITACS and the Canadian Learning Initiative in China (CLIC). uOttawa’s competition pool for exchange awards, such as the Killam Fellowship, is also less saturated than many other participating institutions.

As aforementioned, courses taken on exchanges are treated as Pass/Fail (Point 5). Furthermore, prerequisite courses (Point 1) can often be skipped over through exchanges. Don’t ask permission; just ask forgiveness. If you’ve already completed an upper-level course at a different institution, it is too late to not grant you permission. Faculties are generally accommodating when it comes to exchanges, as other universities often have different course sequences.

Exchanges are also great for taking electives, or breadth requirements such as ADM courses. In short, the difficulty and content of courses vary quite a bit between institutions, and you could, if you so wish, exploit that difference to your advantage.

7. Do a shorter degree.

How is a Bachelor of Science Major in Computer Science different from an Honors BSc Computer Science? Do employers know the difference?

The Major in CS program is less demanding and expected to take only 3 years, Computer Engineering program is also a year shorter than Electrical Engineering with Computing. If there are fewer courses in a program, there is a lower chance of not getting an A+ in one.

Some other 3-year programs of this nature: BSc-General, BSocSc-General the new Multidisciplinary Program. 3-year programs used to be the norm, and it is still the norm in the UK.

8. Take project-based courses or presentation-based seminars.

They are not only more fun, they also often lead to nice portfolio items. But we’re not optimizing for learning here:

• SEG 3904: Innovation Research Project had a 10.0/10 average in Fall 2018. All 8 students who took that course got an A+.
• MAT 4376: Mathematical Genomics, a course with our legendary David Sankoff, consists of two 45-minute presentations, and had a 9.6/10 average.

Did badly on a midterm? Have a tough lab assignment? Some professors will let you replace it with a research project. Few students ever ask, thus profs generally respond positively.

9. Develop strong presentation skills.

In many engineering courses, the presentation of a project matters more than the technical aspects of the project. It is possible to ace SEG 3125: UI Design, with a last-minute project, presented charismatically. The converse is not true.

Consider honing your presentation skills by working on your ability to haggle for grades. Present your perspective to TAs and professors by arguing that questions were worded ambiguously or that your answer was misinterpreted by the grader. This is not only great practice for your presentation skills, it often also makes a grade point difference. It’s what you make of it; treat it as a game.

10. Take extra courses for the same price!

One of the perks of uOttawa that attracts students, especially international students, is the cost of doing 4 courses or more is the same price because of the full-time student status. If 6 to 8 courses are taken each semester, you could graduate quickly or would have more room to do another Co-op and Internship.

In fact, students with A-levels background are actually capable of doing 8+ courses in their first semester of first year because most of the materials are just recap.

Furthermore, even though you are not interested in taking the course right now but want to prepare for the future, a strategy could be taken by dropping the course before the deadline to obtain an understanding of the course syllabus, content, and building network.

If you face a schedule conflict, you can ask the undergraduate office faculty desk to approve the course registration. Also consider taking classes from the “easier” sections after reading reviews from RateMyProfessors.

11. Consider taking courses from the French Section.

Most of the first year and second year courses do offer a french option. Especially for international students looking to save tuition fees, if you do a minimum 3 courses per term in the French section, then you would qualify for Differential Tuition Fee Exemption, which basically means you pay the same fees as domestic students.

You may also request your exam to be written in English language even though you are registered in the French section. This makes very little difference especially for math and engineering courses.

12. Retake courses to improve grades.

There is no shame in retaking a course. At uOttawa, your tuition is the same, no matter how many courses you take. You can take and drop courses as many times as you’d like before the deadline. You can even retake a course in a different language (eg: French section) (and the material is often quite different). Ultimately, only your last (and likely best) attempt will be counted in your GPA.

13. Defer exams.

You may apply for exams to be deferred to the following semester if you have 3 courses in the span of 24 hours. The probability of occurrence is higher when you take 6+ courses, and it provides you the flexibility to divide and conquer your harder courses.

14. Switch program, reset!

Academic resets program provides an opportunity for students to exclude up to the first 10 courses GPA when switching programs. However, mandatory courses still need to be retaken.

15. Saving Tuition Fees and getting the early Co-op.

The Computer Science (CSI), Computer Engineering (CEG), Software Engineering (SEG), Electrical Engineering (ELG) program share essentially the same first year courses.

However, tuition for CSI is cheaper, and SEG students have the option to do Co-op an entire year earlier. Even if you are interested in CEG or ELG, consider being in CSI for the first semester and SEG for your second semester. Since the SEG program has mandatory Co-op, their Co-op fees are much lower as well (~$200 cheaper). The first Co-op experience is valuable. It is fairly easy to switch between programs.

16. Consider Co-op and Internship.

• Seeking different Co-op job options

  If applying jobs internally, the options are through the Co-op Navigator or through on campus programs eg: Work Study Navigator, NSERC. If you plan to apply externally, you may do so in parallel, however, beware in selecting interviews and ranking the internal jobs due to Co-op deadlines. Co-op resumes don’t have the best format, we recommend creating a LaTeX resume and setting up your LinkedIn profile.

• Dropping out from Co-op

  Co-op students are expected to complete 4 terms in their program, however, a minimum of 3 Co-op terms is required to get Co-op mention on your diploma when you graduate. In addition, students graduating with or without Co-op mention on their diploma hardly makes any difference to most employers. Co-op fees aren’t cheap as well (~$1000 per term) and the workshops were only helpful for preparing behavioral interview questions.

• Asking for Confidential Co-op Reports

  Co-op Reports can be confidential or non-confidential. The non-confidential option takes up a lot of time but is a good way to retain knowledge. On the other hand, the confidential option would be more informal and your employer may also opt in for a presentation. There are students who have never written a Co-op report when opting for a confidential option :P . Co-op affects your GPA if you have a failing grade on the report, thus a passing grade has a neutral effect.

• Taking courses during Co-op term

  Generally, you may take one Co-op course during the Co-op term. However, it is possible to take more than one Co-op course during the terms, especially if they are taken outside of uOttawa (Point 5) with prerequisites waived (Point 1) and challenge exams (Point 4). You would have more flexibility with courses before committing to a 8-16 months Co-op.

• Taking risks by being in Co-op for Multiple Terms

  There isn’t a best semester to be in Co-op. Consider taking time off to be in an internship or Co-op for multiple terms. It’s easier to work on side projects, build interviewing skills and be open to any work term when you don’t have school. We strongly discourage students from working with the same employer multiple times, especially if it’s the same role and team. You would be required to write a Co-op report with the same employer as well for every term. However, it is more difficult to find a fresh grad job compared to a Co-op. Keep in touch with your previous employer for any openings.

• Consider Co-op if you are an International Student

  Furthermore, Co-op is also attractive for international students. The Co-op office will issue a letter and you can apply for a Co-op Work Permit on the IRCC website. In addition, International students are also eligible for better credit cards (non-student tier) and higher credit limit once they have a work permit and job offer letter. This helps you to build better credit history in the long term.

  In terms of immigration pathways for permanent residency, Co-op experience could be counted towards Federal Skilled Worker Program and not count towards Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and Federal Skilled Trades Program (FSTP). However, your mileage may vary according to your prior experiences.

Conclusion

We guess it turns out gaming your degree for a 10.0/10.0 CGPA is really a head-fake for making the most out of your undergrad. By doing these optimizations, the end result is a customized degree focusing on courses and projects that make best use of your time and talents. You will become a good presenter capable of negotiating with professors. By splitting your degree across multiple institutions, you would have broadened your horizons. You’d have become a well-rounded person and a more holistic individual due to your respect for breadth courses. You would have a stronger academic understanding from retaking courses in which you did not excel.

Challenge exams and project-based work would have led you into an independent and practical learner. You would develop skills useful in industry that are often orthogonal to what is traditionally taught in class. The undergrad experience becomes a game driven by interest rather than a prescribed sequence — an approach that would continue to yield dividends long after graduation.

And from a practical point of view, the outcome could be that you finished your degree in less time or that you got recognized with a plaque or a medal at convocation. In the end, neither is the true reward. We don’t believe school should be about being trained for a job; instead, it should be more about becoming a well-rounded and articulate person. Ultimately, that’s the best way to have an impact, make a change and become a powerful person. By gamifying the process, it becomes easier to aim for this rather abstract goal. Finally, do try to have fun playing the game! Our college days might very well be our best days, and we believe that the bulk of the value in a degree is in the friendships formed along the way.

For the reader who stuck till the end, here are a few more ideas:

• Consider applying for SASS accommodations. An increasing portion of students find themselves qualifying for academic accommodations. A mere 5.9% of students at uOttawa are registered, which is lower than the provincial average. While we are not a recipient of SASS accommodations, we have seen first-hand the positive impact it can have on the academic outcomes of students that have started receiving it. Let there not be stigma around accommodations; if you believe you can qualify, consider putting together the documentation. Having 1.5-2x the time to do an exam has a meaningful impact on outcomes.
• Does the Engineering Ring really matter? Do you prefer to do more software over hardware? A lot of CEG students have dropped out from the program and have switched over to SEG or CSI once they realized they have not much interest in the program.
• 20 courses you didn’t know you could take at uOttawa! Check out this article

Check out Wei Hu’s version of the blog post to learn more!