Born in Toronto, Ontario, he was the son of writer Harry Lutz Symons and Dorothy Sarah Bull, and the brother of writer Scott Symons.
[2] He attended Upper Canada College until 1942, and graduated from the University of Toronto Schools.
[4] He served as chairman of the Ontario Human Rights Commission from 1975 to 1978, where he "helped lead major advancements, particularly for the LGBT community".
[5] Between 1980 and 1986 he served two three-year terms as chairman of the board of the United World Colleges.
[4] His contributions to university leadership, Canadian studies, Commonwealth studies, United World Colleges, the Association of Commonwealth Universities, and other fields were discussed in Ralph Heintzman (ed), Tom Symons: A Canadian Life, published by University of Ottawa Press.