This guide is written for international students and their families who are considering the Durham Catholic District School Board（杜伦天主教育局）, a public Catholic school board in Ontario, Canada. It covers what kind of board this is, the elementary and secondary programs on offer, the entry requirements and application process for fee-paying international students, the published tuition schedule, and the practical arrangements around homestay, insurance and the school year. Every fact below was read from the board’s official website (dcdsb.ca) on August 5, 2026; where the site does not publish a figure, that is stated plainly. The board’s own descriptions of itself are reported as its own claims, and nothing here should be used for rankings or cross-board comparisons. Immigration and visa rules for studying in Canada are set by the Government of Canada, not by the board.
The Board at a Glance
The Durham Catholic District School Board is an English-language Catholic school board whose schools sit inside Durham Region, described on the official international education page as less than a 45-minute drive from Toronto, Canada’s largest city. The board’s Catholic Education Centre is at 650 Rossland Rd. W., Oshawa. The Our Schools page states that the board serves students in Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, Pickering, and the townships of Uxbridge, Scugog and Brock, and currently operates 38 elementary schools, 7 secondary schools and 9 alternative education and continuing education sites, with 22,888 elementary and secondary students (15,875 elementary and 7,013 secondary or alternative education). The board describes its schools as faith-based communities where Gospel teachings are woven into daily lessons and where students and families can take part in Masses, prayer services and liturgies with local parishes. Its own pages also state that international students of all faiths are welcome and that there is no faith requirement to apply — the board says it respects the different religious beliefs of international students.
Programs and Schools
The Durham Catholic District School Board runs elementary schools for kindergarten to Grade 8 and seven secondary schools for Grades 9 to 12. Elementary students typically spend the instructional day with the same teacher, with separate teachers for French, Music, Art and Health and Physical Education, and receive three report cards a year. Secondary students start each semester with four courses and receive four report cards a year (a mid-term and a final for each semester). To earn the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD), secondary students must complete at least 30 credits — the board’s Our Schools page specifies 18 compulsory credits plus religious education and optional credits, and its FAQ page describes 30 credits made up of 18 compulsory, 4 religious education and 8 optional — and pass the Grade 10 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT); the FAQ also mentions community involvement hours, citing 20 hours while noting that figure applied to the 2021-2022 school year only. The international program pages list the subjects offered across the board’s secondary schools: Accounting, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Technological Education, Drama, Economics, English, English as a Second Language (ESL), Family Studies, Geography, History, Law, Marketing, Mathematics, Music, Physical and Health Education, Physics and Visual Arts. Of the seven secondary schools, the board states that three offer French Immersion and two accept students in Grades 7 to 12. The seven schools, with their published addresses, are All Saints Catholic Secondary School (3001 Country Lane, Whitby), Archbishop Denis O’Connor Catholic High School (80 Mandrake Street, Ajax), Father Leo J. Austin Catholic Secondary School (1020 Dryden Blvd., Whitby), Monsignor John Pereyma Catholic Secondary School (316 Conant Street, Oshawa), Monsignor Paul Dwyer Catholic High School (700 Stevenson Road North, Oshawa), Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School (1375 Harwood Ave N, Ajax) and St. Mary Catholic Secondary School (1918 Whites Road, Pickering).
International Education: the Passport to Excellence Program
International students enter the Durham Catholic District School Board through the Passport to Excellence program, which the board describes as designed to help international students improve their English, make friends, prepare for the future and learn about Canadian culture. On its Why DCDSB page the board highlights in-school support from guidance counsellors and ESL teachers, free IELTS preparation for all secondary international students and free after-school tutoring on request, and an English immersion environment in which ESL instruction runs alongside the regular curriculum. Secondary graduates earn the OSSD, which the board notes is widely recognized for admission by post-secondary institutions around the world, and guidance teams at each secondary school support international students with course selection, post-secondary planning and career counselling. The board also describes a Settlement Workers in Schools (SWIS) program, with a settlement worker assigned to each school to provide information, referrals and multilingual support. On the cultural side, the board’s pages mention planned activities such as maple syrup festivals in the spring, live music and food festivals in the summer, fall fairs, and snow sports and ice fishing in the winter.
Entry Requirements and Application Steps
The Durham Catholic District School Board’s admissions page sets out the criteria for the Passport to Excellence program: acceptance is determined by the educational background and present academic standing shown in the applicant’s school transcripts, and by a recommendation from the student’s current school. The board now accepts only complete applications through its secure online application system — mailed, emailed or faxed applications are no longer accepted, and incomplete or unpaid applications are not processed. The published steps are: complete the online form and upload the required documents (a partial application is automatically deleted if not finished within 30 days); submit and pay the non-refundable application fee of $250.00 CDN; wait for acknowledgement and, in most cases, a decision within a few business days; receive a conditional acceptance letter and fee invoice once approved; pay the full tuition through the acceptable payment method; receive the official Letter of Acceptance and fee receipt; apply for the study permit from the Canadian Consulate or Embassy (the board states this is the international student’s own responsibility); and notify the board once the visa is approved and confirm the arrival date. Students choose up to 3 preferred schools in the online application, and the board notes that seats in the Passport to Excellence program are limited and that it reserves the right to place international students based on program availability. International students are usually placed into a grade by age, with home-country grade level and completed courses also considered, and credit transfer is handled through a Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition review by a guidance counsellor. The board does not publish a language minimum score on the pages checked on August 5, 2026, nor a single fixed application deadline — the online application system and the pages above are the current reference. The board also states it offers no scholarships or financial support to international students.
Costs and Fees
The tuition fee schedule published on the Durham Catholic District School Board admissions page (accessed August 5, 2026) lists the following figures in Canadian dollars: a non-refundable application fee of $250.00; two semesters of secondary school (maximum of 8 credits) at $16,200.00; one semester of secondary school (maximum of 4 credits) at $8,100.00; a full elementary year (10 months) at $15,200.00; a half elementary year (5 months) at $7,600.00; adult continuing education at $1,800.00 per credit; and summer school credit courses at $1,625.00 per credit. In addition, a Secondary Student Activity Fee of $75.00 per school year is mandatory for all secondary students and covers school activities, the student picture ID card, retreats and the yearbook; the FAQ page gives the same fee as $75.00 per school year, $40.00 per semester, or $37.50 for short-term students staying more than 4 weeks. Tuition can be paid internationally through Convera GlobalPay in the applicant’s home currency, or by wire transfer to the board’s Canadian bank account, with any bank transfer fees payable by the payer. Homestay fees are not part of the board’s tuition schedule: homestay is arranged through MLI Homestay, the board’s partner for host-family accommodation and custodianship services, and its fees are set by that service. The board’s schedule did not carry its own academic-year label on the page checked, so treat the official site’s current version as the binding one.
Homestay, Custodianship and Health
The Durham Catholic District School Board strongly recommends that international students use its homestay partnership with MLI Homestay, describing living with a Canadian family as an opportunity to learn English and Canadian culture; MLI Homestay also offers custodianship services for international students under 18. Students under 18 who do not travel with a parent or legal guardian must appoint a custodian in Canada, who must be a responsible adult at least 19 years old and a Canadian citizen or permanent resident. Parents and the custodian complete the Custodianship Declaration Form (available on the IRCC website) and submit the signed, notarized form to the board’s international education team. On health, the board requires all international students to have purchased medical insurance before arriving in Canada, and its Student Health and Wellness page notes the board can help students purchase coverage from Studyinsured, its student insurance provider, with benefits summaries, policy documents and claim instructions linked from that page. The FAQ also notes that students who need to see a doctor should check their insurance coverage first, and lists walk-in clinics, doctor’s offices and hospital emergency rooms as the care options in Canada, with 9-1-1 for life-threatening emergencies.
The School Year and What to Verify
The Durham Catholic District School Board’s 2026-2027 school year calendar, published on its official site, shows classes beginning for elementary and secondary students on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, with the last day of class on June 28, 2027 for secondary students and June 29, 2027 for elementary students. Statutory holidays listed include Labour Day (September 7, 2026), Thanksgiving (October 12, 2026), the Christmas vacation (December 21, 2026 to January 1, 2027), Family Day (February 15, 2027), March Break (March 15-19, 2027), Good Friday (March 26, 2027), Easter Monday (March 29, 2027) and Victoria Day (May 24, 2027), and scheduled secondary exam days fall in late January/early February and late June 2027. Secondary uniforms are compulsory, with McCarthy Uniforms named as the only uniform provider, and secondary international students must buy their uniform before the first day of school; elementary students are not required to wear a uniform. Before planning an application, it is worth confirming on the board’s current website: the latest tuition schedule, since the figures above are the version read on August 5, 2026; the exact documents the online application asks for; and the current Canadian study permit and visa requirements, which are set by the Government of Canada and are the student’s own responsibility to meet. For advice matched to your own academic background, target grade and budget, talk to this site’s study advisers before committing to an application plan.