UofC " This Is Now

The number of positions for students at the University of Calgary medical school is currently limited to 135 Canadian students. This number may increase slightly over the next several years due to a physician shortage. As a provincial university, the University of Calgary has a primary obligation to Canadian citizens residing in Alberta. Although priority will be given to Alberta residents, the faculty also invites applications from residents of other provinces.

The Faculty of Medicine has a policy on the admission of candidates who are neither Canadian citizens nor landed immigrants. The faculty does not accept applications from individual international students. Seats for international students are currently limited to students from institutions or countries that have formal, contractual agreements with the Faculty of Medicine.

In selecting medical students, no consideration is given to the gender, race, religion, or socio-economic status of the applicant. Nor is the vocation of his or her parent, guardian, or spouse a consideration in the selection process.

Physical disabilities must not prevent the student, upon graduation, from communicating with patients, making observations, gathering and analyzing data necessary to arrive at medical judgments, and from performing the therapeutic interventions expected of a physician who has completed the educational program leading to an MD degree.

The Faculty of Medicine will not normally accept applications from students who have withdrawn, who have been required to withdraw, or who have been expelled from any school or college of medicine.

Students must have completed a minimum of two full years of university-level courses at the time of admission. Most students will have completed a baccalaureate degree before admission to the Faculty of Medicine. Exceptional and academically well-qualified students who wish to be considered for acceptance with only two years of university education may apply between their first and second years of university.

Note: The Faculty of Medicine's definition of a full year is described in the Office of Admissions' Applicant Manual. Refer to the manual for the most accurate information on requirements. The brochure is available on the University of Calgary webpage.

The Faculty of Medicine does not require that students undertake a formal premedical program. Rather, it recommends the following courses, which should provide students with the necessary background for medical studies. As completion of these courses does not guarantee admission, students should ensure that the courses they choose satisfy the degree requirements of the undergraduate faculty in which they are registered.

Applicants should satisfy the Admissions Committee that they are well prepared academically for entry into the Faculty of Medicine. Such preparation will ordinarily include a full university course in each of the following:

• General chemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Biochemistry
• English
• General biology
• Mammalian physiology or comparative physiology
• Physics

Applicants should also have a university half-course equivalent in each of the following:

• Psychology or sociology or anthropology
• Calculus or statistics

University of Calgary students should consider the following courses:

• Chemistry 201 and 203 (General Chemistry)
• Chemistry 351 and 353 (Organic Chemistry)
• Biochemistry 393 and 443 (Chemistry 351 is the prerequisite and 353 or 355 is the prerequisite or corequisite for Biochemistry 393.)
• One of Psychology 205, Sociology 201, Anthropology 201
• Two of English 231, 233, 235, 237, 239 or one of 202 or 240
• Biology 231 and 233
• Zoology 361 and 363 or 461 and 463 (Physiology) (Biology 331, and one of Chemistry 351 or Biochemistry 341 or 393 or 441 are prerequisites and either Chemistry 353 or 355 are prerequisites or corequisites for Zoology 461).
• Physics 211 (or 221) and 223
• Mathematics 249 or 251 or 281 or Statistics 211 or 213

The Admissions Committee will consider applications from students who have completed other educational or training programs, for example, honours in physical science, engineering, or in the humanities.

All applicants must write the Medical College Admission Test at least one year before the year for which they are applying. MCAT scores will then be available to the Admissions Committee when considering applications. Applicants should contact the MCAT Program Office (www.aamc.org/mcat) for details about the test and they must instruct the organization to forward their MCAT results to the Faculty of Medicine Admissions Committee.

Applicants to the Faculty of Medicine should also be aware that the MCAT was revised in 1991. The results of previous examinations will not be considered.

Applications for the MD program are available on the website. Applicants may obtain an application by visiting www.medicine.ucalgary.ca/med/undergrad/ume/admissions. All applications must be submitted online. The deadline for receipt by the Office of Admissions of the on-line application, all official transcripts, official MCAT scores, three letters of reference, and the application fee of $120.00 is October 15.

Applicants should note that the Office of Admissions will not accept facsimile transmission copies of transcripts. The work of the committee is greatly facilitated when candidates submit their applications early in the process, preferably well before the deadlines. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application is complete and that all necessary forms and the application fee are received by the Office of Admissions by the deadline. Completed applications include the following information: a list of courses taken and grades obtained; MCAT scores and the date of writing (if available); an essay; a brief description of extracurricular, volunteer and employment activities and three letters of reference

Note: A complete application contains all the information described in the Office of Admissions' Application Manual.

Applicants will be notified in February regarding whether or not they will be invited to attend a series of short interviews. The interviews take place at the University of Calgary in February or March.

Applicants must attend the interviews at their own expense. On the day of the interviews, candidates are required to write an on-site essay on a topic assigned by the Admissions Committee. Applicants must take part in a series of short, back-to-back interviews, which the committee will use to assess the candidates' non-cognitive qualifications.

Applicants will be notified of the Admissions Committee's decision on May 15. All applicants accepted into the Faculty of Medicine will be required to forward a deposit within 15 days of notification of admission. Failure to do so may result in the position being assigned to an applicant on the waiting list. The deposit is applied to first year fees. An applicant who accepts a position and later withdraws his or her acceptance will forfeit the deposit.

All medical students must commence a program of immunization before registration day. The Faculty of Medicine reserves the right to refuse admission to any candidate whose condition of health indicates that medical studies could be prejudicial to his or her well-being.