List of Ontario students' associations
Ontario has two main kinds of student groups: university-wide unions and faculty-based societies. University-wide unions represent all students (or all full-time students) at a university. Some universities also have faculty-specific student societies, such as the Arts and Science Students’ Union (ASSU) at the University of Toronto and the Arts and Science Undergraduate Society (ASUS) at Queen’s University.
Federated universities and colleges are linked to larger universities but run their own affairs. Their student unions come together in the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance, which includes Brock University, Laurentian University, McMaster University, Queen’s University, Trent University Durham Campus, the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University, and the University of Western Ontario.
The Canadian Federation of Students—Ontario represents 35 student unions in Ontario.
Faculty Student Societies are the oldest form of student governance in Canada. The University of Toronto’s UCLIT is one of the earliest, founded in 1854. These societies focus on student life, well-being, professional development, and fellowship within a faculty, rather than on running university administration. They usually charge a membership levy through tuition. They support traditional student experiences like frosh weeks, formals, graduation galas, and mascot activities, and some have internal “houses” to build closer student communities.
Several colleges are part of the College Student Alliance, including Cambrian, Centennial, Conestoga, Confederation, Durham, Fleming, Georgian, Northern, Sault, St. Clair, and St. Lawrence.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 12:13 (CET).