Opportunity Awaits Across York University’s Multi-Campus Network
York’s vision is to provide a diverse community of students with access to a high-quality, research-intensive learning environment, committed to enhancing the well-being of the communities we serve.
“Our world-class academic programs, accessible and flexible learning environment offering a multitude of experiential education opportunities, and leading, interdisciplinary research focused on solving society’s most complex challenges has created a university that is distinct in Canada,” says York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton.
A recent social and economic impact study makes clear why students choose York and what it has meant for them.
A lyric soprano singer and alumna Jonelle Sills (BFA/BEd 2016) credits York not only for stoking her passion, but also her success. “I can confidently say that if I didn’t have a York experience, I would not be where I am today.” A Dora Mavor Moore Award winner, she has garnered accolades for her performances in operas from Toronto to Vancouver and is now looking beyond Canada’s borders. As a further testament to her success, Sills is on CBC’s 2020 list of Canada’s 30 hot classical musicians under 30.
“Working with the solid music faculty helped me to build the foundation that has set me up to be a professional,” says Sills, who notes several of her former professors still attend her shows. “It’s a very supportive community from York; they were a big part of building me up.”
After moving from India to Canada, Ramesh Venkatesa Perumal chose to further update his nursing skills, becoming the first to graduate with a PhD from York’s School of Nursing. He is now a sessional assistant professor at the university mentoring other immigrants and newcomers to the profession.
“A patient doesn’t get to choose a nurse, but it becomes our responsibility to ensure they are provided the best care,” he says.
York attracts students from across Canada and the world and Sills has advice to all those incoming students. “Take advantage of this time and the plethora of resources that you have at your fingertips. One of the best resources are the faculty who are devoted to their craft and mentoring the next generation.”
That combination of academic excellence and a welcoming student-focused learning environment continues to build York’s reputation on the world stage, while continuing to shine here in Canada. York University remains one of the top five best comprehensive universities in all of Canada as listed in today’s Maclean’s 2025 University Rankings.
“This latest recognition by Maclean’s is a testament to our collective impact as a community, and together, we will continue to raise the bar guided by our values of excellence, progressivism, sustainability, social justice, and diversity, equity, and inclusion,” says Lenton.
York creates positive change locally and globally and continues to establish itself for its impact on students, and on creating a more sustainable and inclusive world. Out of more than 2,100 universities, York jumped five spots to rank 35th among the world’s top 40 post-secondary institutions in the 2024 Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings for advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
In the 2024 QS World University Rankings, York is among the top 100 in the world in three subject areas: education, English language and literature, and philosophy. Within Canada, it also received top five placement across 11 subjects.
A thriving comprehensive university, York offers three urban campuses in the Greater Toronto Area–Keele, Glendon and the newly opened campus in Markham, along with an international satellite location in Costa Rica–for an interconnected educational network to nurture tomorrow’s first-class leaders, innovators and creators. Add world-renowned academic experts, state-of-the-art facilities, innovative research, and a vibrant community, to that recipe of success. That’s where Ontario’s York University shines.
A focus on excellence and global engagement is at the centre of the Glendon Campus. Nestled on 35 hectares of gardens and forest—rare for its Midtown Toronto location—courses are offered in an immersive environment with more than 20 per cent of students choosing to study in three or more languages, including English, French, Spanish and Anishinaabemowin.
For teacher and entrepreneur Korina Thomas-Reynolds, attending York propelled her career forward. She graduated with an international bachelor of arts (iBA) in French studies at Glendon in 2018, follow by her master’s in education in 2020.
“At Glendon, I cherished the intimacy of small classrooms and the easy access to professors,” says Thomas-Reynolds, a Top 30 Alumni Under 30. She credits the education she received at York for fueling her desire to research and address the impacts of systemic racism as the founder of Roots to Routes Academy, an independent school for Black students. “I’m grateful to be in a position where I can use what I learned at York University to empower Black students.”
In addition to small class sizes, which promote strong connections between students, faculty and staff, the recent introduction of the core curriculum encourages Glendon students to strengthen their intercultural skills and work toward equity across cultures and borders while succeeding in the workplace.
The Keele Campus, the largest of York’s multiple campuses, is a thriving community hub of more than 54,000 students who can choose from a wide range of undergraduate, graduate and professional programs offered by faculty members who are leaders in their fields.
The campus is home to the prestigious Schulich School of Business, Osgoode Hall Law School, Lassonde School of Engineering, School of Arts, Media, Performance and Design, and the Faculties of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, Education, Science, Health, Environment and Urban Change, and Graduate Studies. Students have a myriad of opportunities to explore new ideas, gain invaluable hands-on experience and pursue their passions. A particular focus of the campus is to expand its use as a living lab to give students access to research projects being undertaken in collaboration with private industry and/or campus operations. With more than 76 hectares, including a pond, a pollinator garden, woodlots, a large green common in the centre and two subway stops, the Campus offers students a host of social spaces, clubs, athletics, walking paths and iconic buildings in which to study.
The first full cohort of students is now immersed in their academic studies, preparing for a bright future at the newly opened Markham Campus with its state-of-the-art teaching and learning spaces. Offering an intimate community student experience, the campus will grow to welcome more than 4,000 students over the next five years.
With a focus on leading-edge, tech-forward programs and research opportunities designed to harness innovation in a socially responsible manner, York’s newest campus encourages students’ entrepreneurial spirit and skills, readying them for success on a high-tech and fast evolving career path.
As part of the larger community, Markham Campus is surrounded by hundreds of corporate head offices and more than 1,500 high-tech and life science companies—like IBM Canada—alongside local startups. The campus is ideally situated to forge partnerships and collaborations with its business neighbours. York’s YSpace, an entrepreneurship and innovation hub, is committed to fostering collaborations that will further benefit students.
Markham Campus provides co-op opportunities for all incoming four-year undergraduate students and internships to graduate-degree program students, accelerating entry into their fields. For those enrolled in the digital technologies program, students will have access to work-integrated learning where they can directly and immediately apply what they learn in the program to their workplace. All students will gain real-world experience, making them more competitive in the job market and preparing them for success in the workplace. As a collaboratively co-designed program, it brings together technology experts from leading national organizations and York University’s Lassonde School of Engineering.
Learn more about York University’s network of campuses and opportunities at our upcoming open houses taking place on Nov. 2 (Keele), Nov. 9 (Glendon), and Nov. 16 (Markham): Click here to select your campus and RSVP.
Coming soon: School of Medicine
Stay tuned for York’s new School of Medicine opening its doors in 2028 to the first cohort of future doctors trained in real world settings and working with inter-professional health care teams. Not limited by conventional thinking, the School of Medicine will prepare the next generation of talented frontline primary care doctors, including family medicine, psychiatry, general internal medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, pediatrics, geriatrics and general surgery.
About 70 per cent of the new postgraduate training seats will be devoted to primary care with plans to launch a unique two-year pathway program to accelerate access to medicine and nursing through a proposed interprofessional degree program. Students will represent the diversity of the communities in which they live and thrive in a new, inter-professional, team-based health care environment, as they continue to adapt to evolving patient needs and improve community and population health.
The goal: the best health care possible and a future of positive change for all Ontarians.