Private schools in Canada with a semester system

Schools that offer fall, winter, or spring semester classes

Find a list of schools  

Some private schools in Canada only offer courses that go the full academic year, from September to June. Other private schools offer only semester classes that run approximately 3-4 months, starting in the fall, winter, or spring. And yet other schools offer a combination of full academic year courses and semester courses.

Which type of school is best for your child? This will depend on your child, as well as some of the other features of the school. To help get you started, though, let’s look at some of the main pros and cons of each approach. For more general advice on finding the right school for your child, read the Our Kids choosing guide.

Schools with only semester courses

Benefits:

• Your child won’t have to take too many courses at the same time. Typically, at the most, they’ll only have to take 4 or 5 courses at once. In a trimester system, where the school year is divided into 3 sessions (fall, winter, and spring), they may only have to take 3 courses at the same time.
• Taking fewer courses at the same time can help your child focus. It can also thereby improve their grades. This is especially the case for children with special needs, such as a learning disability, developmental disability, or advanced learning abilities.
• Your child should have plenty of semester classes to choose from (since this is the only course format).
• Your child might be able to join the school in the middle of the year.

Concerns:

• In semester courses, subjects can’t be studied in quite as much depth or breadth as courses that run the full academic year.
• Teachers may not get to know their students as well in a semester class. It may thus be more difficult for them to address each student’s unique learning needs.

Schools with both semester and full academic year courses

Benefits:

• Students can choose which format better suits them.
• Students can reduce their course load, by taking some semester classes. And, by taking some full-year classes, they can study some subjects in more breadth and depth.

Concerns:

• Reduced selection: there may not be enough semester or full-year classes to enable a student to choose their preferred format for each class. For instance, they may want to take math as a semester class, and science as a full-year class, but these options may not be available.

Schools with only full academic year courses

Benefits:

• Subjects can be studied in more depth and breadth.
• Teachers may get to know students better, and may be better able to address their unique learning needs.

Concerns:

• Some students struggle having to take too many subjects at once. This can sometimes interfere with focus and concentration.

Below, you can find a list of schools that offer semester classes. This includes schools that only have semester classes, as well as schools that have both semester classes and full academic year classes.