Applications high, success rates low: the stats tell the story
Gaining admission to medical school is a competitive process. In the table below, Success Rate indicates the percentage of applicants who received at least one offer of admission. Note that success rates for in-province applicants are generally higher than for out-of-province, because most medical schools reserve nearly all of their seats for local students. The grade point average (GPA)—or R score in Quebec’s CEGEP system—shows the average for successful applicants. The medical college admission test (MCAT) is a standardized test required for admission at many faculties.
|
Total Applicants
|
Total Admitted
|
Success Rate (%) |
Success Rate (%)
Rest of Canada |
Success Rate (%) Inter-national |
Average (4.0 scale) |
Average MCAT
| |
| Alberta | 1,149 | 156 | 29.4 | 9.9 | 16.7 | 3.8 | 10.71 |
| UBC | 1,809 | 254 | 22.1 | 8 | 0 | 3.71* | 10.6 |
| Calgary | 1,410 | 145 | 29.7 | 12 | 50 | 3.61 | 10.51 |
| Dalhousie | 692 | 110 | 38.4† | 13.7 | 54.5 | 3.7 | 10 |
| Laval | 1,816 | 164 | 21.4 | 10 | 12.8 | R score 33.3 (CEGEP) R score 30.9 (university) | Not required Not required |
| Manitoba | 948 | 106 | 35.9 | 5.7 | 0 | 4.16 (4.5 scale) | 10.57 |
| McGill (5-yr) | 440 | 88 | 23.9 | N/A | N/A | N/A | Not required |
|
(4-yr)
| 1,024 | 164 | 33.7 | 5.3 | 11.5 | 3.8* | 10.9 |
| McMaster | 4,733 | 181 | 6.5 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 3.89* | Not required |
| Memorial | 704 | 67 | 30.8 | 5.7 | 29.4 | 3.8 | 10 |
| Montréal (5-yr) | 1,627 | 207 | 24.8 | 3.8 | 0 | N/A | Not required |
|
(4-yr)
| 690 | 71 | 12 | 6.7 | 0 | N/A | Not required |
| Ottawa | 3,269 | 145 | 7.2 | 3.8 | 0 | 3.87* | Not required |
| Northern Ontario** | 1,892 | 58 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 0 | 3.72* | Not required |
| Queen’s†† | 2,200 | 95 | 8 | 7.2 | 0 | N/A | N/A |
| Saskatchewan | 591 | 84 | 35.9 | 7.6 | 0 | 89.3%* | 9.64 |
| Sherbrooke | 1,892 | 204 | 20.4 | 30.6 | 1.3 | N/A | Not required |
| Toronto | 2,731 | 222 | 11.5 | 8.8 | 2 | 3.88 | 11 |
| Western | 1,803 | 147 | 12.9 | 4.1 | 5.9 | N/A | N/A |
Statistics on applicants, admissions and success rates are for 2008-2009. MCAT scores are for students entering in fall 2009. GPA scores are for students entering in 2010, except those flagged with an asterisk, which are from 2009. ††All figures for Queen’s are from 2006-2007. †Includes all Maritime provinces. **Located at Lakehead and Laurentian universities. Note: higher international success rates at some universities may be misleading, given that at some institutions the number includes students who applied for positions available under contract with foreign governments or educational institutions.
Source: Office of Research and Information Services, Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada; MCAT scores obtained directly from Canadian medical schools.