Lakehead University

About Us

Lakehead University teaches students how to think, not what to think, and shapes changemakers who address real-world problems.

A comprehensive regional university with campuses in Northwestern Ontario and Simcoe County, Lakehead is advancing sustainability in human and ecological health, social justice and equity, Indigenous rights, secure livelihoods, and workplace well-being.

Our Thunder Bay campus, located beside Lake Superior and the boreal forest, offers cutting-edge laboratories, libraries, learning spaces, recreational facilities, and student-centred lounges in a small but culturally diverse city with an increasingly vibrant arts, culture, food, and entertainment scene.

Our Orillia campus set in Ontario’s scenic Lake Country has year-round recreational and cultural opportunities and a unique interdisciplinary arts and science program with majors including business, criminology, education, environmental sustainability, and media studies.

Lakehead provides excellent academic and career advising, tutoring, and accessibility services. Over 1,920 international students at Lakehead are supported through visa and immigration assistance, peer mentoring, wellness services, and financial assistance. Lakehead’s beautiful International Centre is a dedicated space where students find friendship and connection.

High-Quality Programs Prepare Students for Success

Lakehead offers diverse programs for domestic and international students including English as a Second Language and bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD degrees in: Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Health and Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, Social Sciences and Humanities, and Science and Environmental Studies. 

Lakehead is recognized internationally for teaching excellence—100% of senior-year students participate in experiential learning and 97.4% of graduates are employed two years after graduating.

Exceptional Research

Lakehead is consistently ranked one of the top three Undergraduate Research Universities in Canada. Our researchers have a global network of collaborators from approximately 30 countries and every student—from first-year undergraduates to postgrads—has dynamic research opportunities.

Lakehead’s research fields include social justice, sustainability, health care, biotechnology, biophysics, material science, clean-water technologies, and Indigenous and pan-northern issues.

Our research institutes are helping solve critical global challenges, including our internationally acclaimed Biorefining Research Institute and the Center for Healthy Ecosystems and Environmentally Conscious Economic Development.

Key Facts:

• Undergraduate and community-based research opportunities across all disciplines
• World-class research facilities
• $27M in external research funding
• 24 Research Chairs