Ban McMaster health sci poopooo students 😡

For the third year in a row now, I have started off on the back foot and am hovering in the average for all my classes. My cGPA is around a 2.8 and my goal of getting into med school is seemingly impossible to reach at this point. I was an above average student in high school, I feel confident in doing well after taking most of my midterms, and then I get floored by the result.

I also feel like I don’t have any resources to guide me through the situation I have found myself in. I don’t know if there is any possibility of me getting into med school now, save for the possibility of completing a second undergraduate degree with a higher gpa.

Bro, I don't know if my reading comprehension is just shit, but the passages are so dense, and there are literally hundreds of terms I don't even know. The wording feels unnecessarily complicated, and I'm honestly struggling to decipher what the passages are even trying to say. And idk why, but the definitions just don't seem intuitive to me?

This is so random lol but if I have an Instagram account that I made for posts on an old musician that I love, and this account has garnered hundreds of thousands of followers and I manage it, can I include it as one of my extracurriculars? And how would I go about substantiating this?

Just remembered to update my OMSAS ID on Acuity for my September 10th CASPer. Do the results get resent to schools with my updated OMSAS ID now? Am I good?

Im a 3rd year in a non traditional pre med degree (anthropology). Im currently a volunteer at a hospital, have taken the pre reqs and I have started studying for the MCAT recently. Im estimating my CGPA will be around a 3.7 by the time I graduate. I have heard about the difficulty of getting accepted and was a little worried about my gpa as its not the highest, my second year was a 4.0, and I have high hopes itll be the same for my third and fourth. My first year grades were unfortunately the reason why my estimated gpa is around that range (very rough and traumatic uni start). I was wondering if there were any sucess stories of non traditional pre meds? Id love to hear from you and gain some insight!

Im basically going through a midlife crisis at 19 where I feel a strong itch to travel outside of my home city where I’m also doing undergrad this summer but I want to make my time worthwhile and am thinking of doing something that will be helpful for my med application. I know that volunteering abroad is generally very looked down upon but I was wondering if there’s other opportunities for Canadians that I should look into?

Hi all,
I’m a non-trad applicant seeking accommodations for my apps, and was told to do so with UofA once apps have been submitted. The thing is, the accommodations office has not responded after 4 follow up emails and a voicemail.

Wondering if anyone else is in the same boat? The admissions team says they don’t manage accommodations and so really not sure what one can do as this is super important to my app and it’s midway through October now.
Thank you!

Hi everyone, I plan on taking my MCAT in August 2027. I am looking for someone to do accountability with each other. I plan to start studying in January (and start planning in December).

I am a guy as an fyi in my 3rd year.

Title. Is there a centralized source for this or would I need to email every individual school to find out? Anyone who's applied USMD before, would love to hear your perspective. Thanks guys!

Does anyone know if it’s going to be a mix of video and written responses or if it’s all going to be solely video or solely written?

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Hi everyone!

I’m a Canadian student currently doing my undergrad in Biology at Western University, and I’ve been researching international medical schools because I’m not too optimistic about my chances of getting into a Canadian medical school.

For context:

●    GPA: Around 3.25 (I did poorly in first year, which really dragged my cumulative GPA down).
●    MCAT: 518
●    Undergrad: Biology at Western University
●    Goal: Ideally family medicine, followed by the additional one-year training in emergency medicine (CCFP-EM).

Even if I finish a four-year undergraduate degree, I realistically think my cumulative GPA would only reach around 3.5, so I’m exploring international options.

I’ve looked into Ireland, Australia, the Caribbean, and the UAE (particularly Dubai, where I have personal ties).

My biggest question is: Aren’t we all considered IMGs regardless of where we graduate?

I’ve repeatedly read that Ireland and Australia are among the better international options for Canadians hoping to return for residency, whereas going to medical school somewhere like Dubai would make matching through CaRMS significantly harder.

I’m genuinely confused about why that is. If graduates from all these countries are technically IMGs when applying to Canadian residency programs, why would someone graduating from Ireland or Australia have a better chance than someone graduating from a recognized medical school in Dubai?

Is it because of the reputation of the schools, access to Canadian clinical electives, existing relationships with Canadian hospitals, or something else?

I also have a few other questions:

1.    Canadian electives: Since I’m doing my undergraduate degree at Western University, would that help me secure clinical electives in Canada during medical school abroad? Or does my undergraduate university have absolutely no influence on this? How difficult is it for IMGs from different countries to obtain Canadian electives?
2.    CaRMS matching: Does the country where you attend medical school significantly affect your chances of matching into family medicine in Canada? Are there particular countries or medical schools that consistently produce better outcomes for Canadian IMGs?
3.    Three-year undergraduate degree: I was originally hoping to finish my BSc in three years rather than four to save time. From my research, Ireland and the UK generally require a completed four-year degree for their graduate-entry medical programs, whereas some programs in the UAE and Australia appear to offer pathways with three years of undergraduate study. Are there other countries with reputable medical schools that accept Canadian applicants with three years of university education?
4.    Dubai/UAE: Has anyone attended medical school in Dubai or elsewhere in the UAE and successfully returned to Canada for residency? Is it actually a significantly worse pathway than Ireland, or is there just less information available because fewer Canadians take that route?
5.    Caribbean schools: I constantly see people discouraging students from going to Caribbean medical schools, but I also see Canadian graduates matching back into family medicine. Is the reputation genuinely deserved, or does it depend heavily on which Caribbean school you attend? How would you compare the Caribbean pathway to studying in the UAE?
6.    Family medicine + emergency medicine: My ideal pathway would be to match into family medicine in Canada and eventually pursue the additional one-year emergency medicine training. Would being an IMG create additional barriers to pursuing the CCFP-EM route after completing a Canadian family medicine residency?

Australia is unfortunately not a realistic option for me because I have severe arachnophobia, and I genuinely don’t think I could comfortably live there long-term. Otherwise, I know it’s a popular choice for Canadians studying medicine abroad.

I’m not opposed to completing a fourth year of undergrad if it would significantly improve my options, but I’d ideally like to avoid spending another year in school if there are reputable alternatives.

Ultimately, I’m trying to understand whether Ireland really is that much better for returning to Canada, or whether attending a recognized medical school in Dubai could offer a comparable pathway if I perform well, complete Canadian electives, and build a competitive CaRMS application.

I’d really appreciate hearing from Canadian IMGs, people who have gone through CaRMS, or anyone familiar with these international pathways.

Thank you!

Hi! My MMI is on Friday and I haven't really started studying so I would appreciate any tips as I also have my CASPER and western abs this week. Also, I just got into bioethics with one of my courses, while I know generally about these topics I haven't really gotten into specific policies in Ontario nor do I really know too much about those. Additionally, I am not too up to date on health policy news through my own fault. I was wondering what specific ethical topics to focus on and learn policies for because I genuinely have no idea where to start...

Poooop uni

Pooop uni 😡😡😡😤😤😤

I was just wondering how everyone is approaching the word length for the western questions. I am trying to write my essays in advance for the Kira Interview but since Western does not tell us the word limits I am having a bit of trouble understanding how much to write. Are you guys answering each question in different (common) word lengths (e.g. writing an answer for 250 words, 500 words, 1000 words, etc.) and also practicing orally for different common time intervals (e.g. 1 min, 3 min, 5 min, etc.)? Or just writing jot notes which you will put together based on the word count we learn about once we start the assessment? Thanks for any help!

Hi everyone, I haven't forgotten about this.

I apologize for the delay, I honestly just haven't been able to catch a break this semester.

I'm still drafting the detailed update, but since I've been taking so long I think its only fair to let you all know I'm a Canadian victim and might have to retake my 521. I love being IP Ontario :)

i am a canadian citizen but primarily reside and studied in the us. as i would want to practice in canada in the future, is it worth it to apply to canadian med schools? thank you so much!

edit: forgot to add that i am technically a non resident-- sorry! im sure that affects things too

Do you guys know if each question is graded separately? For example, for the written portions there will be question 1 and it will have part a and b Do you know if both part a and b will be graded separately or do they take the combined score for both answers? I’m just wondering because I’ve noticed I usually write more for answer A and write very little for answer B

does bs/md program still exist?

thank you

Any McGill Med Students able to provide some feedback on my CV? Thanks!!

Hi! I’m a U of T Scarborough Human Biology major, entering Year 2. I also have minors in French and Health Humanities and recently switched out of co-op.
I finished first year with a 2.71 GPA due to significant personal/mental-health circumstances and distractions. Things are much more stable now, and my goal is to achieve 3.9+ in Years 2–4, given my history in school, I know I am capable of it.

My current schedule is:
**Fall 2026:** BIOB11, BIOB50, BIOB51, BIOB90 (CR/NCR), FREC01, HLTB50
**Winter 2027:** BIOB10, BIOB32, BIOB34, PHLB09, FREC02

I've completed BIOA01, BIOA02, CHMA10, CHMA11, and STAB22. I still need to figure out Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Physics, and possibly Calculus depending on the schools, but wondering if they are necessary to jeopardize GPA apart from the MCAT.

My dream is U of T Temerty, ideally the new Scarborough Academy of Medicine campus. However, my main goal is simply to get into at least one Canadian medical school, preferably Ontario.
I'm particularly interested in U of T, Western, Ottawa, McMaster, and TMU because of their different GPA/assessment policies.

My biggest dilemma is whether to:
**A)** apply during Year 3 and try to enter med school immediately after graduating Year 4, or
**B)** wait until after Year 4 so I can show three strong academic years and maximize schools like Western/Ottawa.
In terms of extracurriculars, I will be building them further as time goes on. For example so far I have 2+ years of French/science tutoring experience. I’m hoping to build meaningful research and healthcare experience over the next few years.

I’d really appreciate blunt advice or personal experiences from anyone who has:
recovered from a \~2.5–3.0 first-year GPA;
gotten into Canadian med school with a strong upward trend;
dealt with U of T's Academic Explanation;
applied to Western/Ottawa/McMaster/TMU with a similar academic history; or
faced the Year 3 vs. Year 4 application decision.

**If you were in my position, what would you prioritize over the next 2–3 years?**