Admission Requirements
The most up-to-date requirements and notice of upcoming changes will be posted on the College of Medicine
website.
Residency & Citizenship
Saskatchewan Residents
Qualified applicants must be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants at the time of application.
Applicants normally must have resided in Saskatchewan for three years prior to September 1 of the year in which admission is being sought. However, applicants who have left the province but have previously lived in Saskatchewan for an accumulated period of 15 years (permanent residency) will be treated as residents. Applicants who have previously lived in Saskatchewan for an accumulated period of less than 15 years and do not qualify under the three year condition will receive credit of one year toward the three-year requirement for every five years residency in the province.
An exception to the three-year ruling may be made for members of the Armed Forces of Canada or RCMP, or for an applicant whose spouse, parent, or guardian has moved to Saskatchewan for reasons of employment or training. In these cases, the applicant
must have resided in Saskatchewan for at least 12 consecutive months directly preceding the time of application.
In support of claim to qualify as a resident of Saskatchewan, the Admissions Committee will take into account:
- Place of residence of parents, guardians or person who is the main source of income;
- Reasons for any break in continuity of residence, which will include attendance at an out-of-province educational institution, summer employment where applicable, and any other reason deemed to be relevant by the Admissions Committee;
- Filing of income tax return as a resident of Saskatchewan (where applicable) Driver's License, Hospitalization;
- Residency will date from when Driver's License and Hospitalization have been changed.
- Residency in the Yukon, Northwest or Nunavut Territories.
Admission of Aboriginal Students
Six first year spaces are reserved for persons of Canadian Aboriginal descent (three of these are limited to applicants meeting the Saskatchewan residency requirements). Applicants of Aboriginal descent will compete within this category, not against the entire applicant pool. Applicants should identify themselves on the application for admission. Further information about Aboriginal Programs at the U of S is outlined at the website. |
Out-of-Province Residents
Up to six positions of a total of 60 may be offered to out-of-province applicants.
Applicants must be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants and have lived in Canada at least three years at the time of application.
An overall average of 70% is required for the prerequisite courses. All the prerequisites, or their equivalents, must be completed by April 30, 2007. The prerequisite courses are as listed in the
University of Saskatchewan Calendar.An overall average of 80% for the
two best full under-graduate years is required for out-of-province students.
The two full years must be completed at the time of application. Those invited for an interview usually have an average of 87% or higher.
All applicants must meet the academic requirements outlined in this document.
No exceptions are made.Ontario applicants - Grade 13 or OAC English is not considered the equivalent of ENG 110.6. Introductory university level English is required (must contain literature and composition components).
Transcripts* - Copies of transcripts from all universities attended other than Saskatchewan universities must be attached to the application. In addition, official transcripts must be forwarded by the issuing university directly to the College of Medicine. Transcripts in a language other than English must have an official translation attached.
Calendar* - A calendar from the university attended (if non-Canadian) must be included with the application, if in the English language.
Applicants who have attended universities outside of Canada* are encouraged to check with the International Admissions Office within the Student and Enrolment Services Division before applying to determine whether credit will be granted for the courses taken. In cases where interpretation of marks of a student with at least two years of study from an international university is not possible, the individual will be required to complete one full year of study at an approved university with at least an 85% or the required two full years.
*Saskatchewan residents who have attended universities outside of Canada must also follow these rules.
Academic Requirements
The academic requirements for the College of Medicine are as follows:
Admission to the Arts & Science pre-medical program, i.e. graduation from Grade 12 in Saskatchewan with credit for English A30 and B30, Mathematics B30 and C30 (or Algebra 30 and Geometry-Trigonometry 30), Biology 30, Chemistry 30 and Physics 30. A minimum admission average of 70% is required.
PrerequisitesStudents must have completed a number of required courses before entering the College of Medicine. The required courses at the University of Saskatchewan are:
- BIOC 200.3 and 211.3
- BIOL 110.6 (general)
- CHEM 112.3 (general)
- CHEM 250.3 (organic)
- ENG 110.6 or any two of ENG 111.3, 112.3, 113.3, 114.3
- PHYS 111.6 (general)
- A full course equivalent (6 credit units) in the social sciences or humanities
All the prerequisites, or their equivalents, must be completed by April 30, 2007.
Students may schedule their prerequisite courses as they wish as part of full years of study or not, but they must attain an overall academic average of 70% in them to be considered for admission. If the average is below 70%, students may improve their average in the prerequisite courses by taking
higher level courses in the same subject areas.
The Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)All applicants are required to write the MCAT prior to the application deadline. The MCAT is currently offered twice a year, April and August. Please refer to the official MCAT
website for more information on the computer-based MCAT and additional test dates in 2007. A minimum score of 8 will be required in the sciences and verbal reasoning sections, and N in writing skills; however, either one 7 or an M will be accepted.
Scores must be available by the application deadline. The best MCAT scores obtained at any one sitting in the last five years will be used. (Earliest acceptable scores to apply for admission in 2007, will be April 2002).
Registration packages are available at the
website.
Average for AdmissionTo establish an academic average for consideration by the Admissions Committee, applicants must complete two full undergraduate years of study, taken between September and April. Sixty credit units (30 per year) at the University of Saskatchewan and The University of Regina, is considered a full load. Applicants must attain a minimum of 78% in the two-year average to be considered for admission (80% or higher for out of province). Courses taken during the summer (May to August) are not considered in the two-year average.
Applicants may improve their average for admission by taking an additional full year(s) of university study. However, all programs must lead to a degree or, where students already have (an) undergraduate degree(s), to a certificate** or to a degree in another discipline. It is not acceptable for students who have spent several years at university to take largely 100 level courses to improve their average, nor is it acceptable for students to repeat a course they have already taken and use the new grade for competitive purposes. If in doubt, students are advised to consult the Admissions Office.
**See the College of Arts & Science section of the
Calendar, under
Advanced and Honours Certificates.
Saskatchewan residents who have taken university education outside of Saskatchewan must follow the rules set out in Out-of-Province Residents regarding transcripts.During the university year, an applicant meeting the Saskatchewan residency requirement attending university in Saskatchewan may file an application for admission to Medicine assuming he/she will satisfactorily complete the April examinations. However, a Saskatchewan resident attending an out-of-province institute must have the two full years completed at the time of application.
Graduate Students In considering graduate students, their average may be based on the following, or their two best full undergraduate years, whichever works to their advantage:
Course-based graduate program, which may or may not include a research project. The average of all grades in the program will count as one full year combined with the best two full undergraduate years. The post-graduate program must be comparable to at least one full academic year (30 credit units).
Master’s thesis-based program. The average of all Master’s grades will count as one full year combined with the best two full undergraduate years.
Ph.D. thesis-based program. The average of all graduate grades will count as one full year combined with the best full undergraduate year.
For course-based graduate programs, the program must be completed and grades available by December 31, 2006, for those attending out-of-province institutes and by April 30, 2007, for those attending within Saskatchewan as Saskatchewan residents.
For thesis-based programs, proof of degree completion must be provided by December 31, 2006, for those attending out-of-province institutes and by April 30, 2007, for those attending within Saskatchewan as Saskatchewan residents.
Special CasesThe Admissions Committee may consider up to two special case entrants per year (Saskatchewan residents only). An example would be a single parent whose family responsibilities prevent them from attending university full time.
DeferralsApplicants admitted to first year Medicine may be allowed to defer entry for up to two years (Saskatchewan residents only). This is normally granted only to postgraduate students to allow them to complete a Master's or Ph.D. degree. Request for deferral must be submitted at the time of acceptance.
Criteria for Selection
Criteria for selection are academic performance and personal qualities.
Academic performance is based on applicants' two best full undergraduate years of study given that performance has been reasonably consistent or has improved. At the University of Saskatchewan, five full course equivalents taken between September and April are considered to be one full academic year.
Personal qualities are assessed primarily through by interview. The multiple mini interview will be used and held over two weekends in March. Information about candidates is not given to interviewers prior to the interview.
Three letters of reference are also considered. Appropriate references are undergraduate or graduate instructors or research supervisors. Family friends are not considered acceptable references.
The weighting of academic performance to personal qualities is 60:40.
Candidates for Medicine are selected by the Admissions Committee of the College of Medicine on the basis of rank order of competitiveness and consideration of information pertinent to individual applicants. The Committee treats applicants anonymously, i.e. Committee members are provided appropriate information about applicants but without their names.
Applicants will be notified of their acceptance by May 31, 2007.
Counselling of Applicants Seeking Admission to Medicine
The Admissions Office, College of Medicine is available to assist all applicants who seek counselling regarding admission to Medicine. It is policy, however, not to instruct applicants as to a specific course of action they should follow but to provide the information needed for them to make their own choice with respect to the alternatives available. The following points require special attention:
- No official of the College of Medicine can guarantee the admission of any applicant. Admission is determined by the Admissions Committee on the basis of an annual competition.
- All applicants are advised to supplement any personal inquiries with written inquiries so that an official response can be made. It is only these written responses which will be considered as evidence of official advice given.
- Applicants are encouraged to discuss their plans to apply for entrance to Medicine with those who can usefully advise them, but they should be aware that second and third hand information about admissions policies is often incorrect and should not be relied upon.
- Students should select their courses with a goal in mind. There should be several upper level courses in their second year and subsequent years.
- Since many applicants are not accepted into the College of Medicine, students should choose courses in their pre-medical program that could lead to a satisfactory alternate career.
Chances for Admission
The number of positions available in first year Medicine is limited to 60. Approximately 200 applications (in-province) are received, as well as approximately 300 applications from out of province.
Realistically, to be competitive academically, an overall two-year average of over 80% (87% for out-of-province applicants) is required.
Applicants with Disabilities and Admission to Medicine
While a disability should not preclude an applicant from consideration for admission, the disability must not prevent the applicant from communicating with patients and colleagues, from making observations and analyzing clinical data, and from making the medical judgements expected of a physician who has completed the educational program leading to the M.D. degree at this University.
Clinical Clerkship
The University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine has a distributive learning environment in which a number of clinical educational experiences take place in a number of Saskatchewan Health Regions and teaching hospitals (the “Academic Health Sciences Network”).
Students who are admitted to the undergraduate medical education program may be assigned to various sites for educational experiences. Specifically, it should be noted that the clinical clerkship experience (January of third year through April of fourth year) is a continuous one in which students will be assigned to a core set of rotations centered
either in the Saskatoon Health Region
or in the Regina/Qu’Appelle Health Region.
Application Forms
Application forms may be obtained from the
website.
The application deadline is December 1, 2006. There is a non-refundable application fee of $40 for Saskatchewan residents, and a non-refundable application fee is $75 for out-of-province applicants. In addition, a $25 transcript evaluation fee is required if an out-of-province university was attended or a $50 fee if an out-of-country institute was attended. Enquiries concerning admissions should be directed to the Admissions Secretary, College of Medicine, Tel: 306-966-8554, E-mail:
med.admissions@usask.ca.