Medical universities in Canada are among the world’s premier institutions and have produced some of history’s greatest physicians, researchers, and scientists. Furthermore, they have made major advancements to medicine like insulin use, cardiac pacemaker technology, telemedicine usage, etc. Thus it comes as no surprise that Canadian medical schools are extremely competitive and require extensive applications just to gain admission.
As with other graduate studies and professional programs, Canadian medical schools pay particular attention to students’ undergraduate performance as measured by GPAs. Though every institution calculates and weighs GPAs differently, there are some general trends worth keeping in mind when selecting a Canadian medical school as your destination of choice.
Most Canadian medical schools don’t set GPA cutoffs explicitly, yet have specific expectations that students must fulfill to be considered for admission. Most schools expect in-province applicants will possess at least 3.3, while out-of-province and international applicants must meet or surpass an increased standard.
The MCAT is another key quantitative component of Canadian medical school applications and schools can vary significantly in how they weight its scores. Most schools in Quebec utilize what’s known as a Cote de rendement collegial (CRC) or R score which takes into account both individual performance and class-standing.