Centennial College's Bachelor of Information Technology (Computer and Communications Networks), Honours, offered through the School of Engineering Technology and Applied Science, is one of a small number of full four-year degrees Centennial offers alongside its much larger catalogue of diplomas and Graduate Certificates. Centennial was Ontario's first public college, opened in 1966, and has long been one of Canada's most internationally recognized colleges — it held the highest number of international student study permits of any Canadian post-secondary institution in 2018. For applicants specifically weighing an IT degree, Centennial's Progress Campus in Scarborough puts students inside the eastern Greater Toronto Area's employer base, and — unlike most of Centennial's IT-adjacent diplomas and certificates — this is a full bachelor's degree with a materially different Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) outcome, covered in detail below.
This guide covers what the data actually shows: how admission works, real tuition figures, requirements, English-test rules, and what the degree means for post-graduation work eligibility.
Acceptance Rate
Centennial does not publish an official percentage-based acceptance rate. Like other Ontario colleges, admission runs through the Ontario College Application Service (OCAS) on a rolling, capacity-based basis: applications are reviewed continuously and offers extended until a program's seats fill, at which point that intake closes regardless of the published deadline. Third-party aggregators sometimes cite an estimate in the 60-70% range for Centennial overall, but this is not an official published figure and Centennial does not report a program-specific rate for this degree.
What this means practically: Centennial's Engineering Technology and IT-adjacent programs are consistently in demand, so applying early in the intake window matters more than trying to clear some published competitive threshold that doesn't exist.
Fees and Cost of Attendance
The Bachelor of Information Technology (Computer and Communications Networks), Honours, is billed at Centennial's degree-level international tuition rate. Approximate annual figures (per Centennial's published fee schedule):
| Cost Item | Amount (CAD/year) |
|---|---|
| International tuition | $17,500 |
| Estimated living expenses | $15,500 |
| Total estimated cost of attendance (international) | ~$33,000 |
| Application fee | $100 |
| Tuition deposit (non-refundable, due after offer) | Required, amount varies by program |
Over the four-year degree, total program cost runs to roughly $132,000 CAD before any scholarships or part-time work — well below the cost of a comparable Computer Science or IT degree at a Canadian university.
Admission Requirements
Centennial does not set a single college-wide GPA cutoff; this Bachelor of Information Technology program specifies its own secondary (or post-secondary, for advanced-standing applicants) prerequisite grades.
Required documents:
- Application submitted via the Ontario College Application Service (OCAS)
- Official secondary school transcripts (or post-secondary transcripts, for applicants applying with prior credentials)
- Proof of English language proficiency (IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, or Duolingo), unless exempt
- CAD $100 application fee
- Non-refundable tuition deposit once an offer is accepted, to secure your seat
GRE/GMAT: Not required — standard for Canadian college and applied-degree admission.
Intakes: Centennial runs Fall, Winter, and Summer intakes for a subset of programs, all on a rolling basis. Fall offers the widest program selection.
How to Get Into Centennial's Bachelor of Information Technology Program
-
Apply as early as possible in your target intake window. Because admission is rolling and capacity-based, submitting a complete application — transcripts, English score, and documents ready — early in the cycle is the single highest-leverage step.
-
Lock in your English test score well before you plan to apply. Degree-level admission requires the higher IELTS 6.5/TOEFL 88 tier (see below), which takes longer to prepare for than Centennial's diploma-level minimum.
-
Understand the difference between this degree and Centennial's diploma-level IT programs before choosing. This Honours bachelor's degree costs more and takes longer than a diploma, but carries a meaningfully different PGWP outcome (see below) — weigh that alongside cost and duration.
-
Budget for the tuition deposit as soon as you accept an offer; it's non-refundable and required to hold your seat, on top of the CAD $100 application fee.
-
If your English score falls short, ask about Centennial's English Language Learning pathway — a conditional-admission bridge program that leads into the degree once you clear the required level.
English Proficiency Requirement (IELTS/TOEFL)
This Bachelor of Information Technology program is billed at Centennial's degree/Graduate Certificate tier of English requirement — higher than the diploma-level minimum:
- IELTS Academic: minimum 6.5 overall, with no band below 6.0
- TOEFL iBT: minimum 88, with no individual skill below 22
- PTE Academic: 58 minimum; Duolingo English Test: 120 minimum
- Waiver: applicants with a prior credential completed and examined fully in English at an approved institution may be exempt; scores are valid for 2 years
- Conditional admission: Centennial's English Language Learning pathway is available for applicants below the requirement
For Centennial's full English-testing breakdown across diploma, degree, and Graduate Certificate tiers, see the Centennial College guide.
Career Outcomes
Centennial does not publish a program-specific graduation rate or average starting salary for this degree, consistent with its structure as a career-focused polytechnic rather than a research university. What the data does show:
- Centennial's technical and engineering-adjacent graduates are concentrated regionally with Greater Toronto Area manufacturing and engineering employers and national retail, media, and marketing agencies, per the college's published outcomes data
- Centennial's Progress Campus location in Scarborough puts IT graduates within reach of the broader Greater Toronto Area's dense technology employer base
A PGWP note specific to this program: because this is a full Bachelor's degree (Honours), it is not subject to IRCC's eligible-field-of-study restriction that applies to non-degree credentials for study permit applications submitted on or after November 1, 2024. It remains broadly Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)-eligible regardless of field, and a completed 4-year degree generally qualifies graduates for the maximum 3-year PGWP, subject to standard IRCC conditions. This is a meaningful distinction from Centennial's IT-adjacent diplomas and certificates, which — as non-degree credentials — only qualify for PGWP if their specific CIP code appears on IRCC's current eligible field-of-study list.
FAQ
Does Centennial publish an acceptance rate for this program? No. Centennial doesn't publish an official percentage-based acceptance rate for this or any program — admission is rolling and capacity-based through OCAS. Third-party estimates cite roughly 60-70% college-wide, but this is not an official figure.
How much does Centennial's Bachelor of Information Technology cost? International tuition is CAD $17,500/year, with total estimated cost of attendance (including living expenses) around CAD $33,000/year — roughly CAD $132,000 for the full four-year degree before scholarships.
What IELTS or TOEFL score do I need? IELTS Academic 6.5 overall (no band below 6.0), or TOEFL iBT 88 (no skill below 22) — Centennial's degree/Graduate Certificate-level minimum, higher than the diploma-level requirement.
Is this program a degree, and does that matter for PGWP? Yes, it's a four-year Bachelor's degree (Honours) — a full degree, not a diploma or certificate. This matters significantly: as a degree, it remains broadly PGWP-eligible regardless of field, unlike Centennial's IT-adjacent diplomas and certificates, which are non-degree credentials subject to IRCC's eligible-field-of-study restriction.
Does Centennial also offer joint IT degree pathways with the University of Toronto Scarborough? Centennial has developed joint-degree pathways with UTSC in fields like paramedicine, journalism, and environmental science; for Information Technology specifically, this Bachelor of Information Technology (Honours) is Centennial's own standalone degree offering.
Is there a pathway if my English score is below the requirement? Yes — Centennial's English Language Learning program is a structured conditional-admission bridge into the degree once you reach the required proficiency level.