How the Ontario Best 6 Works (and How to Use It)
Why most programs judge you on six courses, not all of them — and how to plan around it.
Almost every Ontario university program calculates your admission average from your best six Grade 12 U/M courses. Understand how that calculation actually works and you can plan your course load to protect your average instead of gambling on a heavy semester.
What 'Best 6' actually means
Your Best 6 is your top six Grade 12 university (U) or university/college (M) level courses, averaged together. Programs build that six differently. Some simply take your top six U/M courses, while many (notably engineering, sciences and business) require specific prerequisite courses to be among the six.
Why it's good news for you
Because it's your top six, your average is defined by your strengths. A weaker seventh course won't drag you down. That's the entire reason a strong student with one rough subject can still hit a high admission average — and it's why the Grade Tracker projects from your top six, not your overall course load.
Which courses count
To be eligible, a course must be a Grade 12 U or M level course. Grade 11 courses don't count toward your final admission average. That's a common misunderstanding — students worry about Grade 11 marks, but for many programs it's the Grade 12 courses (plus, during application season, the in-progress Grade 12 marks and sometimes final Grade 11 courses for early offers) that feed the calculation.
Calculating it yourself
Take your six highest Grade 12 U/M course marks, add them up, and divide by six. The Grade Tracker here does this automatically, including a projection of what your Grade 12 average will be based on current course grades. It also runs the 'What-If' calculator so you can see how a higher mark in one course would move your overall average.
Planning around it
Since it's your best six, choose courses where you can genuinely excel. It's often smarter to take seven strong courses and let the weakest fall off than to overload with eight or nine and risk your average. Universities also see which prerequisite courses make up your six — for competitive programs, excelling in the required courses is what separates top applicants.
Key Takeaways
- Admission average = average of your top six Grade 12 U/M courses.
- Grade 11 marks feed early offers but Grade 12 marks define the final average.
- Excellence in your six best courses beats an overloaded transcript.
- Track your Best 6 projection in the Grade Tracker and protect your required courses.