🐱 Space Cat Goes to School 🚀
Charting a course through the stars to the right program

Complete List of Doctor of Medicine (MD) Programs in Canada

Compiled March 2026

REALISTIC ASSESSMENT FOR SPACECAT’S PROFILE

Profile Summary: BA from Dalhousie, Ontario resident, weaker GPA, very high CASPer score, strong experiential background (shelter work).

The honest truth: MD programs in Canada are among the most competitive professional programs in the world, with overall acceptance rates typically between 5-15%. A weaker GPA is a significant barrier at most schools. However, SpaceCat’s profile has some real strengths:

Best-fit schools for this profile (ranked by realistic chance): 1. McMaster — lowest GPA minimum (3.0), formula is 32% GPA + 32% CASPer + 32% CARS. High CASPer can genuinely compensate for lower GPA. BEST OPTION. 2. Ottawa — no MCAT required, CASPer weighted, holistic review, minimum GPA 3.5 3. NOSM — GPA minimum 3.0, values lived experience and community engagement, but strongly favors Northern Ontario connections 4. TMU — new school, holistic admissions, no MCAT, no CASPer, GPA minimum 3.5, values diverse life experiences 5. Queen’s — GPA minimum 3.0, uses CASPer, holistic review, but competitive average is ~3.85

Schools that are likely out of reach with a weaker GPA: - University of Toronto (removed wGPA; minimum 3.6, competitive ~3.8+) - Western/Schulich (minimum 3.7 per year) - McGill (average admitted GPA 3.89, and only ~5 out-of-province seats) - Calgary (3.80 minimum for non-Alberta residents) - UBC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba — very few out-of-province seats AND high GPA requirements for out-of-province

Critical question: How weak is the GPA? If it’s 3.3-3.5, McMaster and NOSM are realistic targets. If it’s below 3.0, no Canadian MD program is feasible and SpaceCat should consider post-bacc or a second undergraduate degree to improve GPA, or explore other health professions.

BRITISH COLUMBIA (2 programs + 1 new)

1. University of British Columbia (UBC) — Faculty of Medicine

2. Simon Fraser University (SFU) — School of Medicine (NEW — first cohort August 2026)

ALBERTA (2 programs)

3. University of Alberta — Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry

4. University of Calgary — Cumming School of Medicine

SASKATCHEWAN (1 program)

5. University of Saskatchewan — College of Medicine

MANITOBA (1 program)

6. University of Manitoba — Max Rady College of Medicine

ONTARIO (7 programs — the best province for SpaceCat as an Ontario resident)

All Ontario schools use OMSAS (Ontario Medical School Application Service) through OUAC. Starting Fall 2026, all Ontario schools must allocate at least 95% of seats to Ontario residents.

7. McMaster University — Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine ★ BEST FIT

8. University of Toronto — Temerty Faculty of Medicine

9. University of Ottawa — Faculty of Medicine

10. Queen’s University — School of Medicine

11. Western University — Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry

12. NOSM University (Northern Ontario School of Medicine)

13. Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) — School of Medicine (NEW — first cohort September 2025)

QUEBEC (4 programs)

Note: Quebec schools heavily favor Quebec residents (95%+ seats). The three French-language schools are effectively inaccessible without fluent French. McGill is the only English-language option but reserves almost all seats for Quebec residents. An Ontario resident applying to Quebec schools faces extremely long odds.

14. McGill University — Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences

15. Universite de Montreal — Faculty of Medicine

16. Universite Laval — Faculty of Medicine

17. Universite de Sherbrooke — Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences

ATLANTIC PROVINCES (2 programs + 1 new partnership)

18. Dalhousie University — Faculty of Medicine

19. Memorial University of Newfoundland — Faculty of Medicine

20. University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) — Memorial University Regional Campus (NEW — first cohort August 2025)

SUMMARY TABLE

# School Province Duration MCAT CASPer Min GPA OOP Seats Realistic for SpaceCat?
1 UBC BC 4 yr Yes No 75%/85% OOP ~10% (~33) No — OOP + high GPA needed
2 SFU (NEW) BC 3 yr Optional No TBD TBD No — likely BC preference
3 U of Alberta AB 4 yr Yes Yes 3.3/3.5 OOP ~15% (~29) No — OOP + high GPA/MCAT
4 U of Calgary AB 3 yr Yes No 3.80 OOP ~15% No — 3.80 minimum
5 U of Sask SK 4 yr Yes Yes varies ~5% (~5) No — essentially closed
6 U of Manitoba MB 4 yr Yes Yes varies ~5% No — essentially closed
7 McMaster ON 3 yr CARS only Yes 3.0 90% ON YES — BEST OPTION ★
8 U of Toronto ON 4 yr Yes No 3.6 ON favored Unlikely — GPA barrier
9 Ottawa ON 4 yr No Yes 3.5 ON favored GOOD — if GPA ≥ 3.5
10 Queen’s ON 4 yr Yes Yes 3.0 ON favored POSSIBLE — holistic
11 Western ON 4 yr Yes Yes 3.7/yr ON favored Unlikely — 3.7 hard cutoff
12 NOSM ON 4 yr No No 3.0 Context score POSSIBLE — if rural ties
13 TMU (NEW) ON 4 yr No No 3.5 ON favored GOOD — holistic, new
14 McGill QC 4 yr No Yes ~3.89 avg ~5 seats No — near impossible OOP
15 U de Montreal QC 4-5 yr No Yes N/A ~5% No — French required
16 U Laval QC 4-5 yr No Yes N/A minimal No — French required
17 U Sherbrooke QC 4-5 yr No Yes N/A minimal No — French required
18 Dalhousie NS 4 yr Yes Yes 3.3/3.7 OOP 6 equity only No — OOP closed (general)
19 Memorial NL 4 yr Yes Yes 85% ~6 No — extremely competitive
20 UPEI-Memorial (NEW) PE 4 yr Yes Yes TBD 0 (PEI only) No — PEI residents only

Tier 1 — Apply to these (strongest fit): 1. McMaster — The single best option. 3.0 minimum GPA, CASPer weighted at 32%, only needs CARS. Study hard for CARS section. 2. Ottawa — No MCAT, CASPer required, GPA minimum 3.5. Strong if GPA clears the threshold. 3. TMU — No MCAT, no CASPer, holistic review, GPA minimum 3.5. New school = less established competition patterns.

Tier 2 — Apply if eligible (worth a shot): 4. NOSM — No MCAT, no CASPer, GPA minimum 3.0. But Context Score heavily favors Northern Ontario. Only apply if SpaceCat has any rural/northern/Indigenous/Francophone connections. 5. Queen’s — GPA minimum 3.0, CASPer required, MCAT required. Holistic review, but admitted average is 3.85.

Key action items: - Confirm exact GPA on OMSAS scale — this determines which schools are even possible - If GPA < 3.0: No Canadian MD program is accessible. Consider a second degree or post-bacc to raise GPA. - If GPA 3.0-3.49: McMaster and NOSM are the only realistic options. Consider also doing a 5th year or additional courses at a Canadian university to raise OMSAS GPA. - If GPA 3.5-3.69: McMaster, Ottawa, TMU, NOSM, and Queen’s are all in play. - Prepare intensively for MCAT CARS section (needed for McMaster) - CASPer is already a strength — leverage this at McMaster and Ottawa - Shelter work experience should be prominently featured in autobiographical sketches and will shine in MMI interviews

KEY APPLICATION SYSTEMS

System Schools Website
OMSAS All 7 Ontario schools https://www.ouac.on.ca/omsas/
UBC Direct UBC https://mdprogram.med.ubc.ca/
SFU Direct SFU https://www.sfu.ca/medicine.html
Alberta Direct U of Alberta https://www.ualberta.ca/medicine/
Calgary Direct U of Calgary https://cumming.ucalgary.ca/mdprogram/
USask Direct U of Saskatchewan https://medicine.usask.ca/
UManitoba Direct U of Manitoba https://umanitoba.ca/
McGill Minerva McGill https://www.mcgill.ca/medadmissions/
UdeM Direct U de Montreal https://medecine.umontreal.ca/
Laval Direct U Laval https://www.fmed.ulaval.ca/
Sherbrooke Direct U Sherbrooke https://www.usherbrooke.ca/medecine/
Dal Direct Dalhousie https://medicine.dal.ca/
Memorial Direct Memorial / UPEI https://www.mun.ca/medicine/

Sources