General information

These quick facts are based on data collected in June 2024 unless dates indicate otherwise.

• Established 1967
• Multi-campus college in Central Ontario:
  • Barrie
  • Midland
  • Muskoka (Bracebridge)
  • Orangeville
  • Orillia
  • Owen Sound
  • South Georgian Bay (Collingwood)
• Georgian is the first ― and only ― college in Canada designated a changemaker college by Ashoka U for our role as a leader in social innovation and changemaking in higher education.
• Key performance indicators (2022-23):
  • Georgian’s graduate employment rate – 90.3% – continues to be above the provincial average, which we’ve exceeded for 25 years.
  • This means 90.3% of our alumni found work within six months of graduation.
• Recognized leader in student work experience:
  • 100% of our programs emphasize practical, hands-on learning and most offer a formal work-integrated opportunity, ranging from paid co-op terms to internships and field placements.
  • In addition to traditional co-op, students can apply for an Entrepreneurial Co-op (eCo-op) where they can start a business, or an Innovation Co-op (iCo-op) where they’ll work with peers from various disciplines to create products or services that meet community needs.
  • 6,200+ co-op employer partners.
• 110,000 alumni (June 2024).
• 13,544 full-time students, including over 7,000 international students from 123 countries speaking more than 57 languages. (June 2024 audit)
• Approximately 2,309 full- and part-time employees, including student employees. (June 2024)
• Economic impact: total annual impact in catchment area is $1.7 billion, which is 5.3% of the region’s GRP or 1 out of every 15 jobs in the region supported by Georgian’s presence (source: Lightcast 2022-23). Learn more.
• Downtown Barrie Arch and Helen Brown Design and Digital Arts Centre.
• Barrie Campus home to Peter B. Moore Advanced Technology Centre ― the first in our region providing students and industry partners with access to research, incubator, changemaker and fabrication space.
• Career and Employment Community Services locations in Barrie, Orillia and Orangeville.
• On-campus residences in Barrie, Orillia and Owen Sound; variety of off-campus housing options.
• Wiidookdaading Indigenous Resource Centres in Barrie, Midland, Orillia and Owen Sound.
• $6.7 million in bursaries, awards and scholarships available each year.
• Board of Governors consists of:
  • 12 appointees from cross-section of communities.
  • Georgian President and CEO.
  • Vice President (Board Secretary).
  • Representative each for students, faculty, support staff and administrators.

Academics

• 130+ market-driven programs

• Continuing Education
• Corporate training
• Academic upgrading and career preparation
• Apprenticeship and skills training
• Micro-credentials
• 100 programs have 850 transfer agreements with 50 institutions
• Average class size: 25 students
• Academic areas:
  • Automotive Business
  • Business and Management
  • Community Safety
  • Computer Studies
  • Design and Visual Arts
  • Engineering and Environmental Technologies
  • Health, Wellness and Sciences
  • Hospitality, Tourism and Recreation
  • Human Services
  • Indigenous Studies
  • Liberal Arts
  • Marine Studies
  • Skilled Trades

Our students

• Average age: 23
• 79% are 25 and younger, 43% are 19 or younger
• 50.1% identify female, 49.6% male and 0.3% another gender identity
• 6.2% of the full-time student population self-identify as Indigenous (as of winter 2024 enrolment)

• 32.2% directly from high school; 67.8% non-direct
• Traditional catchment area of Simcoe, Muskoka, Bruce, Dufferin and Grey accounts for 55.7% of domestic enrolment
• GTA (Toronto, York, Durham, Halton and Peel) accounts for 22.7% of domestic enrolment

Georgian connects students to the skills they need, mindset to succeed, and confidence to thrive. We produce graduates who are fully connected to their potential, industry, community and the world.

President and CEO Kevin Weaver unveiled a renewed Coat of Arms on Oct. 5, 2022. The re-design was undertaken in the spirit of Truth and Reconciliation and acknowledgement the college is situated on the Treaty Land and traditional territory of the Anishnaabeg.

The Coat of Arms was created in 1968 and is used for official communications that originate in the President’s Office and the Office of the Registrar, including on each Georgian credential.

The new design includes several Indigenous elements:

• The centre wave includes the colours or the Métis sash
• The image of the white pine tree and roots intertwined on the back of a turtle reflects the belief among First Nations that the world was created and exists on the back of a giant turtle
• The wind-blown white pine, known as the Tree of Peace in People of the Longhouse culture is representative of the trees in the Georgian Bay region and its roots symbolize how peace can grow if nurtured

In addition, a fourth book was added to the college’s existing academic areas to represent the significance of health programming. The other three books represent applied arts, business and technology.

Special thanks to Georgian’s Indigenous Studies and Services team, under the leadership of Greg McGregor, members of the Anishnaabe Education and Training Circle and Indigenous artist and Georgian graduate Chantelle Marchand for the careful thought that went into this project.