Over 700,000 international students choose to pursue higher education in Canada from across the world. Among these a huge number of opts for engineering colleges in Canada. With a significant global reputation, 21 of these engineering schools rank among the top 500 engineering & technology schools in the world. 

Looking for Jobs in Canada? Find how to get work permit in Canada

Apart from the academic reputation, high-end technological facilities, another major reason for rising in applications of international students is engineering jobs in Canada. Computer Science Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering offer the most engineering jobs in Canada.

Read on to find out some of the top recruiters, universities with the highest ROI for engineering graduates, and some of the most popular specializations to pick for getting lucrative salaries with engineering jobs in Canada.

Highest Paying University for Engineering Jobs in Canada

Mentioned here is a list of the top 10 MEng programs available in Canadian Universities. Besides providing excellent education, these universities also boast themselves in the salary packages bagged by their graduates at various top organizations across the country. Given below are the details of the tuition fees and the returns offered through engineering jobs in Canada:

University Name Tuition Fee (CAD) Average Salary (CAD/year)
University of Toronto 60,440 69,000-77,000
University of Waterloo 61,300 72,000- 76,000
University of British Columbia 34,681 63,000- 79,000
University of Alberta 39,500 62,000- 88,000
McGill University 29,200 70,000- 130,000
University of Montreal 11,831- 23,662 65,000
Concordia University 9,720 68,000
University of Calgary 19,563- 22,799 77,000
University of Ontario Institute Technology 21,935- 31,468 89,000
University of Ottawa 25,554 68,000

Though the top-paying universities offer a great return on investment, depending on the level of higher education degree you choose, your salaries can vary. Here’s how your salaries will vary if you choose:

Top Recruiters for Engineering Jobs in Canada

Engineering graduates are highly sought after in many organizations. Here is a list of the top employers for engineering graduates in Canada along with the salary offers made.

Employers Average Salary/ Year (CAD)
WPS Global 54,000-114,000
Bombardier 61,000-110,000
SNC-Lavalin Inc 56,000-150,000
Hatch 56,000-123,000
CGI Group Inc 48,000-113,000
Geosyntcs Consultants 68,000
Lockheed Martin Corp 68,000
Bayer Crop Science 68,000
Matrox 68,000
Abbvie Inc 68,000

Top Engineering Start-ups offering Jobs in Canada

Some of the Canadian tech firms offering ground-breaking work in machine learning, disease prevention, and accessible banking, offer a huge number of opportunities to engineering graduates. Some of these are:

Company Location
Vention Montreal
BlueDot Toronto
WorkTango Ottawa & Toronto
Humi Toronto
Zafin Ottawa
Stradigi AI Montreal
Flybits Toronto
Koho Toronto
Overbond Toronto
Nulogy Corporation Toronto

Also Read- Immigrating to Canada

Top Specializations for Engineering Jobs in Canada

A wide variety of specializations are offered to international students choosing to study in Canada. Some of the popular specializations are:

The details of the specializations to choose as per the engineering jobs in Canada are discussed in detail below:

Computer Science Engineering Jobs in Canada for

Computer Science Engineers are highly sought after across the world and across industries. A brief insight into the Canadian labor market statistics for the next 10 years tells us that there will be a surplus of jobs as compared to employees. Approximately, 27,500 job vacancies are expected to become available in the next 10 years. Some of the jobs for computer science engineers in Canada are discussed below:

Job Role Recruiter Average Salary (CAD/year)
Software Engineer Clairvoyant Inc. 80,000- 90,000
Software Engineer Amazon, Canada 103,000- 172,000
Software Architect Amazon Web Services 91,998- 112,600
Systems Architect Localcoin 82,000
Computer Software Engineer Crop Tracker 65,000- 85,000

Electrical Engineering Jobs in Canada

As per the labor market projections of the Canadian Government, over the next 10 years, approximately 13,300 new job vacancies will become available in the electrical engineering sector. Some of the popular roles to occupy are:

Job Role Recruiter Salary (CAD/year)
Design and Development Engineer Net Pro Core Inc 50,000
Electronics Engineer Embedded Sense 54,000- 102,000
Engineer Instrumentation & Control Vidir Solutions Inc 80,000- 100,000
Design Engineer, Electrical Redrock Power Systems 80,000- 110,000
Electrical Design Engineer BOJACK Manufacturing 40,000- 50,000

Civil Engineering Jobs in Canada

Civil engineers working in Canada have different prob prospects based on where they are located in the country. On average, however, over the next 10 years, 18,900 jobs will become available. In comparison, the number of job seekers entering the market will be 26,500. Some of the popular engineering jobs for graduate with civil engineering in Canada are:

Job Role Recruiter Salary (CAD)
Civil Engineer BC Public Service 66,675- 87,323
Structural Engineer Art Engineering Inc 55,000- 65,000
Civil Engineer Capitol Steel Corp 40,000- 70,000
Municipal Engineer Parkwood Associates Inc 65,000- 90,000
Civil Engineer Urban Systems Inc 75,000

Mechanical Engineering Jobs in Canada (h3)

The Canadian Occupations Projections Systems predicts that over the next 10 years the ratio of job vacancies to job seekers will be relatively balanced. 11,300 new jobs will become available while 13,200 fresh graduates will enter the job market.

Job Role Recruiter Salary (CAD)
Building Systems Engineer VC Control Inc 60,000
Mechanical Design Engineer Redrock Power Systems 80,000- 110,000
Mechanical Engineer BMT 85,000- 115,000
Project Mechanical Engineer MPC 50,000- 80,000
Mechatronic Engineer MPC 50,000- 80,000

Aerospace Engineering Jobs in Canada

The Canadian Government has indicated that there will be a surplus of jobs in this sector over the next 10 years. Around 14,000 new jobs will become available across various recruiters. Some of these roles to explore are:

Job Role Recruiter Salary (CAD)
Aerospace Engineer Centre De Recrutement Des Forces Armées Canadiennes 45,540- 132,012
Aerospace Systems Engineer MTLS Aerostructure 85,280- 1,35,200

Apart from variables like level of education, university of choice, specialization chosen, role opted for, and sector & firm chosen, some of the other factors that can affect your pay scale are location and demand. Sections below discuss engineering jobs in Canada based on the location you choose to work in.

Highest Paying Provinces for Engineering Jobs in Canada

The average salary for Engineers varies according to their region of residence. Engineers looking for employment in the bigger cities such as Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto etc. can expect significantly higher salaries in comparison to rural districts.

Name of Province Average Salary Earned (CAD)/ Year
Ontario Software Developer: 68,489 Software Engineer:77,941
British Columbia Software Developer: 68k Software Engineer:77k
Alberta Software Developer: 65k
Nova Scotia Software Developer: 56k
Quebec Software Developer: 66k Software Engineer:70k Senior Programmer: 87k
Prince Edward Island Software Developer: 43k
Manitoba Software Developer: 60k
New Brunswick Software Developer: 55k
Nunavut Electrician: 103k Mining Engineer: 85k Environmental Technician: 60k
North West Territories Geotechnical Engineer: 64k

Some of the other factors affecting your payscale are sector and Gender

  • Public Sector- 122,000 CAD a year which is 4% more than the Private Sector- 117,000 CAD a year
  • Females in the engineering sector are offered 5% less (98,500 CAD a year) than males who are offered 103,000 CAD a year on average.

How to Find Engineering Jobs in Canada

There are multiple avenues available for international students seeking engineering jobs in Canada after graduation. The most common option is to of course apply for job vacancies using the various online job portals available in Canada. Students can also rely on

University organized job fairs and internship programs.

Online Portals for Engineering Jobs in Canada

Some of the most popularly used job search engines used by job seekers in Canada is mentioned here.

  • Engineers Canada: Association of engineers in Canada where you can register and look out for options.
  • JobBank: This is the official job posting website maintained by the Government of Canada. The website is offered to both French and English speakers. Job postings can be pitched to specific groups such as people with a specific skill set, or a socially backward class.
  • Jobillico: This online job portal originated in Quebec and has recently collaborated with Jobbank. It has over 2 million active job seekers on the website.
  • Talent Egg: This website is especially useful for fresh graduates looking for entry-level positions in Canada. Students looking for paid internships and summer jobs may also find the website useful!

Besides the local job portals, graduates looking for employment should also utilize the Canadian branches of global job posting websites such as Indeed, Monster.com. Glassdoor, Careerbuilder etc.

University Career Placement Programs

Universities in Canada organize round the year job fairs and corporate connect events to ensure students can network with suitable employers and get placed with them. Some such job fair events are mentioned below:

  • The University of Toronto Career Fair: This event is organized by the University of Toronto during the fall session of each year. Students from all the 3 campuses of the university can attend this event.
  • Partnership 4-Employment: This is a joint venture among the University of Waterloo, the Wilfrid Laurier University, University of Guelph and Conestoga College. 2 career fairs are organized each year to connect students and recent graduates from these universities with prospective employers.

University Internship & Co-op Programs: Many of the top universities in Canada have mandatory internship completion requirements. The universities assist students in finding suitable internship programs.

  • ESIP(University of Toronto): The Engineering Summer Internship Program is offered by the University of Toronto to engineering students in their 2nd or 3rd year of study. It is a co-op program in which students are placed with a suitable employer at a paid position for a period of 4 months.
  • Engineering Internship Program (McGill University): McGill University requires engineering students to mandatorily participate in a minimum of 8 months to a maximum of 16 months of internship. Students are eligible to be paid for full-time labour during their internship periods.
  • Co-op Internship Program (University of Saskatchewan): The College of Engineering at the University of Saskatchewan offers 4-16 months of paid internship experience programs to students to assist them in gaining experience and becoming industry-ready.

Post Graduation Work Permit for Canada

Students from other countries who complete an engineering degree in Canada have the opportunity to remain in Canada for an additional 3 years on a work visa extension.

Eligibility Criteria:

Students who complete a degree for a minimum of 2 years in Canada are eligible to apply for the 3-year work visa program. During this period graduates are allowed to legally work and reside in Canada.

Covid-19 Effect:

The Covid pandemic has prompted the Canadian Government to implement the following regulations with respect to granting of post-graduate work permits.

  • International students pursuing full-time education at a Canadian university who are currently out of the country and are attending classes online will be allowed to apply for the post-graduate work permit.
  • Students will be allowed to complete a maximum of 50% of the entire duration of their program via online mode. The IRCC will count this time towards granting the work permit.

Engineers are highly sought after by employers across Canada. Thus, students with a degree in Engineering can expect excellent job prospects since often the labour demand is not fulfilled by the existing supply of domestic employees.

FAQs

Ques. What Engineering jobs are in demand in Canada?

Ans. As per the recent job trends, some of the most sought-after engineering jobs in Canada include Electrical Engineer, Mechanical Engineer, Project Engineer and others.

Ques. How much can I earn as an engineer in Canada?

Ans. The average salary of an engineer in Canada is 71,065 CAD per year.

Ques. Which engineering stream should I opt for in Canada?

Ans. Some of the most popular engineering streams in Canada are Electrical Engineering, Computer Science Engineering and Mechanical Engineering.

Ques. Does Canada need more engineers?

Ans. Canada has a growing requirement for skilled engineers from other countries since the local workforce is currently unable to fill the surplus of jobs becoming available across engineering sectors.

Ques. What jobs can skilled immigrants get in Canada?

Ans. Some of the jobs skilled immigrants can fill include Engineering Project Manager, IT Project Manager, Software Engineer.

Ques. Which college should I opt for an engineering degree in Canada?

Ans. Some of the top colleges offering engineering degrees in Canada include the University of Toronto, the University of Waterloo, McGill University etc.