The 10 Best Medical Schools in Canada (2026)

Every year, more than 15,000 Canadians compete for fewer than 3,000 seats across the country's 17 accredited MD programs. The math is unforgiving, and the stakes are high. Whether you are a Canadian undergraduate mapping your first application cycle, an out-of-province applicant trying to build a realistic school list, or an international student exploring whether Canadian med schools are even accessible to you, the decisions you make now will define the next decade of your career.

This guide covers the top 10 medical schools in Canada with fully verified 2026-2027 admissions data, honest school-by-school assessments that go well beyond rankings, and a complete breakdown of how Canadian medical school admissions actually work. It also covers the other seven accredited programs, a step-by-step application timeline, and expert tactical advice that most competitors either skip or water down.

Province of residence, GPA thresholds, MCAT policy, and program fit matter more here than any single ranking table. This article gives you all four.

Read: MD Application Deadlines of the Top 50 Medical Schools

Top 10 Medical Schools in Canada

1. University of Toronto (Temerty Faculty of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~8.3%
• Mean GPA: 3.93 out of 4.00
• MCAT: 125 minimum per section (124 allowed in one section)
• Tuition: ~$23,090 CAD domestic / ~$91,760 to $94,000+ CAD international
• Interview format: Modified Personal Interview (MPI)
• CASPer: Not required

The Toronto Faculty of Medicine sits 9th globally according to Times Higher Education 2026 rankings and 2nd nationally in Maclean's. Its Foundations curriculum runs alongside affiliations with University Health Network, SickKids Hospital, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, and Mount Sinai Hospital, giving students access to more than 20 major teaching hospitals across one of the most concentrated academic health networks in North America.

What separates U of T from other top Canadian medical schools is not name recognition alone but clinical depth. Students in the preclerkship years rotate through subspecialties that most programs reserve for fellowship training. The MD/PhD track places students inside research groups that collectively bring in over $500 million in annual research funding, spanning transplant biology, biomedical engineering, oncology, and neuroscience. For future doctors who want to combine clinical medicine with serious research careers, few medical schools in Canada match this infrastructure.

The application runs through OMSAS with a 32-activity sketch, two Brief Personal Essays, and three reference letters. The Modified Personal Interview is U of T's proprietary format and rewards concise, evidence-backed storytelling over the broad scenario responses the MMI demands. If Ontario is your home province, U of T belongs on your list. If it is not, it remains one of the three most out-of-province-friendly programs in the country.

See their full programs here.

2. McGill University (Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences)

• Acceptance rate: ~7.5%
• Mean GPA: 3.89 out of 4.00
• MCAT: Eliminated as of the 2024 admissions cycle for Canadian university graduates. Still required only for applicants holding non-Canadian degrees.
• Tuition: ~$6,050 CAD Quebec resident / ~$59,778 to $73,000 CAD non-Quebec
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Required

The McGill University Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences opened in 1829, making it the oldest medical school in Canada. It currently ranks 26th globally in medicine and 1st nationally, a distinction backed by deep research partnerships with the McGill University Health Centre, Jewish General Hospital, and Montreal Children's Hospital.

The bilingual clinical environment is a genuine differentiator, not a marketing line. Students work with both English and French-speaking patients throughout their rotations at the Montreal Faculty, which prepares them to practice medicine across Canada's most linguistically diverse patient populations. The Montreal faculty setting also creates unique access to global health initiatives through affiliations with international research bodies and francophone health networks across three continents. McGill's elimination of the MCAT for Canadian graduates changed the application math significantly: where most schools use test scores as a first filter, McGill now evaluates Canadian applicants through GPA, CASPer, and the MMI, placing higher weight on communication skills and ethical reasoning than raw standardized test performance.

For Quebec residents, the tuition figure of approximately $6,050 per year makes McGill one of the most financially accessible top-ranked programs in the country. For non-Quebec Canadian applicants, the $59,000 to $73,000 range remains competitive with Ontario schools. Admissions committees at McGill also look for meaningful volunteer work, community health involvement, and a demonstrable commitment to serving diverse patient populations.

See their full programs here.

3. University of British Columbia (Faculty of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~13.6%
• Mean GPA: ~87th percentile on UBC's percentage scale (approximately 3.80 or above on a 4.0 scale for competitive applicants). Qualifying students can have their lowest grades dropped from the GPA calculation.
• MCAT: 124 minimum per section
• Tuition: ~$20,000 CAD domestic
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Not required

The British Columbia Faculty of Medicine runs one of the most structurally distinctive MD programs among all Canadian medical schools. Rather than concentrating all 288 students in Vancouver, the program distributes its cohort across four regional campuses: Vancouver, the Southern Medical Program in Kelowna, the Island Medical Program in Victoria, and the Northern Medical Program in Prince George. This distributed model is designed to train doctors who will practice in the communities where they trained, directly addressing British Columbia's persistent shortage of physicians outside the Lower Mainland.

Early clinical exposure begins in the first semester rather than being deferred to year three. Indigenous health perspectives are woven throughout the four-year curriculum rather than treated as supplementary content, reflecting UBC's genuine commitment to training physicians capable of serving Indigenous communities with real cultural competency. For students interested in rural medicine, community health, or northern practice, the British Columbia faculty structure is built for those goals in a way that few other Canadian schools can structurally replicate.

The regional campus model also means that students outside Vancouver have a realistic path to training closer to home, with smaller cohort sizes in non-Vancouver sites and clinical placements ranging from dense urban health networks to remote rural settings across the province.

See their full programs here.

4. McMaster University (Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~6.7%
• Mean GPA: 3.88 out of 4.00
• MCAT: CARS section only. Competitive threshold: 129+.
• Tuition: ~$25,500 CAD domestic / ~$96,000 CAD international
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Required

McMaster University pioneered Problem-Based Learning in medical education, a model now adopted by medical programs worldwide. Rather than delivering content through traditional lectures, the curriculum places students in small groups of 8 to 10 to work through real patient cases together, building clinical reasoning and communication skills from the very first week of training. The approach produces graduates who think in diagnostic frameworks, and McMaster's residency match outcomes reflect that.

The three-year accelerated MD program runs year-round without summer breaks. Students who complete the program enter their residency program a full year earlier than peers in four-year programs, which means they begin earning a resident's salary and accumulating postgraduate experience 12 months ahead of the typical Canadian graduate. The CARS-only MCAT policy is deliberate: McMaster values verbal reasoning and analytical reading as proxies for the communication skills and clinical thinking a physician needs across a career.

With an acceptance rate of 6.7%, McMaster is among the most selective programs in the country, but its application profile differs from most Ontario med schools. CASPer carries significant weight. The MMI is rigorous. Admissions committees look specifically for early clinical exposure in applicants' activity profiles. Volunteer work and patient care experience in diverse settings matter here more than many applicants realize. For Ontario-based applicants with a strong CARS score and a patient-centered activity record, McMaster belongs near the top of any school list.

See their full programs here.

5. University of Ottawa (Faculty of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~5.7%
• MCAT: Not required
• Tuition: ~$25,487 CAD domestic
• Interview format: Panel interview
• CASPer: Required

The Ottawa Faculty of Medicine delivers one of only two fully bilingual MD programs in Canada, running the entire curriculum in both English and French. That bilingual structure is not an elective feature. Students develop professional fluency in both languages across clinical settings, which directly prepares them to serve Canada's anglophone and francophone patient populations in any province or territory.

Ottawa ranks 100th globally and 5th nationally in medicine. Its panel interview format distinguishes it from the MMI-dominant landscape at most Canadian schools. Where the MMI tests rapid ethical reasoning across disconnected stations, Ottawa's panel format rewards narrative depth and the ability to articulate a coherent personal and professional identity across a sustained conversation with evaluators. Applicants who perform well here have typically spent time building a clear, specific answer to why they want to study medicine and why Ottawa's mandate aligns with their own.

Ottawa's no-MCAT policy, combined with a strong emphasis on CASPer and the panel interview, creates a distinctive application profile. Diversity initiatives, community health involvement, and a demonstrated commitment to primary care and family medicine are themes that consistently resonate with Ottawa's admissions committees. The school's social accountability mandate runs through its entire selection process. Students who can connect their background and experiences directly to the healthcare needs of underserved or rural communities tend to stand out in Ottawa's review process.

See their full programs here.

6. Queen's University (Faculty of Health Sciences)

• Acceptance rate: ~2.6% (the most competitive acceptance rate in Canada)
• Mean GPA: ~3.87 on OMSAS scale
• Tuition: ~$22,350 CAD domestic
• MCAT: Required
• Interview format: Combined MMI and panel
• CASPer: Required International seats - Up to 5 per entering class

The Queen's University Faculty of Health Sciences admits one of the smallest cohorts of any major Canadian medical school, roughly 100 students per year. That small cohort drives a 2.6% acceptance rate that is the lowest in the country and produces a distinctly collegial learning culture in Kingston, Ontario. With fewer students, the relationship between students and faculty is closer and more collaborative than at larger programs, and students gain earlier and deeper access to research opportunities and clinical mentorship.

The combined MMI and panel interview format demands preparation on two separate fronts simultaneously. The MMI tests ethical reasoning and communication skills under timed pressure across multiple stations. The panel portion requires the narrative depth and coherent self-presentation that most applicants only prepare for at schools that use panel formats exclusively. This dual format is one of the most demanding interview structures in Canadian med school admissions.

Queen's also allocates up to 5 international spots per entering class, which is small in absolute terms but represents one of the more consistent international pathways at an English-language Canadian program. A mean admitted GPA of approximately 3.87 places Queen's in the same competitive tier as McMaster and UBC. A strong candidate at Queen's is strong across every component of the application. Admissions committees here look for evidence of community health involvement, research experience, and a health sciences background that is broad and genuinely engaged.

See their full programs here.

7. University of Alberta (Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry)

• Acceptance rate: ~12.4%
• Mean GPA: 3.81 out of 4.00 (minimum 3.3 in-province / 3.5 out-of-province)
• MCAT: 124 minimum per section. 128+ CARS required for out-of-province applicants.
• Tuition: ~$15,877 CAD domestic
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Required

The Alberta Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry trains approximately 162 students per year in Edmonton, with a regional campus in Grande Prairie that specifically prepares doctors for northern Alberta communities. The program has an explicit and well-resourced focus on rural medicine, Indigenous health, and patient-centered care across communities that face geographic barriers to healthcare. That focus shapes both the curriculum and the selection process: admissions committees at Alberta look for applicants who can articulate a genuine connection to community service.

The humanities prerequisite is worth understanding. Alberta requires 6 units of humanities coursework alongside biology, organic chemistry, chemistry, biochemistry, and statistics. That requirement signals how the faculty of medicine thinks about physician preparation across the whole person. The MD/PhD combined track is available for students aiming at academic medicine careers that blend clinical practice with research in health sciences, biomedical engineering, or related fields.

For in-province applicants, the GPA minimum of 3.3 is the most accessible threshold of any research-intensive school in Western Canada. Out-of-province applicants face a higher bar at 3.5 and a steeper MCAT requirement at 128+ CARS. Alberta's tuition of approximately $15,877 per year makes it one of the more affordable programs in western Canada for domestic students who want access to a major research-intensive university environment.

See their full programs here.

8. University of Calgary (Cumming School of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~15%
• Mean GPA: 3.87 out of 4.00 (minimum 3.2 in-province / 3.8 out-of-province)
• MCAT: 128 CARS required for non-Albertan applicants
• Tuition: ~$17,685 CAD domestic
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Not required

The Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary runs Canada's other three-year accelerated MD program alongside McMaster. Students complete the program year-round without summer breaks and enter their residency program a full year ahead of peers in traditional four-year programs. The curriculum integrates basic science, clinical skills, and professional development from the opening weeks, rather than treating them as distinct sequential phases.

The 10-entry activity cap on the Calgary application is one of the most strategically demanding elements in Canadian medical school admissions. Where OMSAS schools allow up to 32 entries, the Cumming School forces applicants to select exactly 10. That constraint demands genuine prioritization. A list padded with brief volunteering or minimal shadowing fails here. Each entry needs to demonstrate commitment, growth, or a specific skill developed over time. Applicants who map each of their 10 entries to the CanMEDS roles and can speak to concrete outcomes rather than just participation consistently perform better.

Calgary's in-province to out-of-province GPA gap is the starkest in Canada: 3.2 versus 3.8. If you are not an Albertan, you need a near-perfect GPA and a CARS score of 128 or above before you apply. For Alberta residents, Calgary's accessible minimum GPA combined with a 15% acceptance rate makes it one of the more realistic pathways to an MD in Western Canada.

See their full programs here.

9. University of Western Ontario (Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry)

• Acceptance rate: ~10.5%
• Mean GPA: 3.70 out of 4.00
• MCAT: Required
• Tuition: ~$23,986 to $26,444 CAD domestic / ~$45,000 CAD international
• Interview format: Panel interview
• CASPer: Not required

The Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University is one of two major Ontario medical schools using a panel interview format rather than the MMI. Where the MMI tests quick scenario-based reasoning across disconnected stations, the Western University panel rewards applicants who can build and sustain a coherent narrative about their motivations, experiences, and long-term goals across an extended conversation with evaluators.

Schulich's curriculum emphasizes clinical excellence and research opportunities through collaborations with London Health Sciences Centre, St. Joseph's Health Care London, and a network of affiliated research institutes across southwestern Ontario. Students gain early exposure to patient care across specialties, including family medicine and primary care, and the program's location in London, Ontario, creates a distinct mid-sized city clinical environment that differs meaningfully from training in Toronto or Ottawa.

The lower mean GPA of 3.70 relative to Ontario peers makes Western a more accessible target for strong Ontario applicants whose academic profile sits slightly below the Toronto or McMaster averages. The panel interview, however, demands a different and more intensive type of preparation than MMI practice. Applicants who rely on standard MMI prep materials and apply those frameworks to a panel format typically underperform. Prepare specifically for a sustained narrative under sustained questioning.

See their full programs here.

10. University of Manitoba (Max Rady College of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~14.7%
• Minimum GPA: 3.3 on a 4.5 scale
• MCAT: Required
• Tuition: ~$14,250 CAD domestic
• Interview format: MMI
• CASPer: Required

The Max Rady College of Medicine at the University of Manitoba trains physicians primarily to serve Manitoba and western Canada, with a deep institutional commitment to Indigenous health and community-based medical practice. Located in Winnipeg, the program draws on clinical affiliations with Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg, St. Boniface Hospital, and a network of community health sites across the province. Students encounter diverse patient populations from early in their training, including significant exposure to First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities across Manitoba.

Indigenous health perspectives are embedded across the full curriculum, not treated as supplementary or optional content. Manitoba has developed formal relationships with Indigenous communities across the province to ensure that students graduate with genuine competency rather than superficial exposure to these patient populations. For indigenous applicants and students with backgrounds connected to northern or remote community care, Manitoba's program culture is among the most deliberately aligned in Canada.

At approximately $14,250 in annual tuition, Manitoba is among the most affordable medical schools in Canada for domestic students. Province-heavy preference means that out-of-province applicants face a significantly narrower path. But for Manitoba residents, the combination of accessible tuition, a 14.7% acceptance rate, and a curriculum built around community health and rural medicine makes Max Rady one of the strongest and most realistic targets in the country.

See their full programs here.

To get into your chosen medical school above, explore these guides to sharpen your interview prep, build your activity list, and strengthen every part of your application:

• Med School Interview Prep: How to Practice, Prepare, & Stand Out
• Good Questions to Ask Medical School Interviewers (With Examples)
• 100+ Common Medical School Interview Questions to Prep For
• Medical School Letter of Intent: What It Is & How to Write One (With Examples)
• How to Craft the Perfect Medical School Interview "Thank You" Letter

How Canadian Medical School Admissions Actually Work

Canadian medical school admissions operate on a different logic than the US system, and misunderstanding that logic is the fastest way to waste an application cycle. Before you build your school list, you need to understand four things: how province of residence gates access, which application systems you are navigating, what CASPer and the MMI actually test, and whether international applicants have any realistic path at all.

Province of Residence Is the Single Biggest Admission Factor

Canadian medical schools are publicly funded, and in exchange for that funding, provincial governments expect them to train doctors who will practice in that province. That mandate shapes everything. Most Canadian medical schools reserve the majority of their seats for in-province residents, and a few are effectively closed to outsiders.

Saskatchewan, Memorial, the three French-language Quebec schools (Montréal, Laval, Sherbrooke), NOSM, and Dalhousie (for Maritime residents) heavily favor in-province applicants. If you do not live there, do not spend the application fee. The Canadian schools most open to out-of-province applicants are U of T, McGill, and McMaster. Those are your realistic targets if you are applying from outside your home province.

The GPA math makes the bias explicit. Alberta requires a 3.3 GPA for in-province applicants but 3.5 for out-of-province applicants. Calgary is starker: 3.2 in-province versus 3.8 out-of-province. Same school, radically different bar.

One structural point worth internalizing: class sizes are capped by hospital staffing and clinical placement capacity. That is why acceptance rates stay flat even as Canada's physician shortage deepens.

If you are an Ontario resident, your realistic list is the six OMSAS schools plus one or two out-of-province stretch picks. If you are an out-of-province applicant, the math narrows sharply. Prioritize the three most open schools and verify every GPA and MCAT cutoff directly before you apply.

The Application Systems and Deadlines

Ontario uses OMSAS (Ontario Medical School Application Service), the centralized portal for all six Ontario schools. The cycle opens in July, applications are due in early October, interview offers go out in January, and final offers land in May. Every non-Ontario school runs its own portal on its own timeline, so if you are applying broadly, you are managing multiple systems simultaneously.

Deadlines by school for the 2026-2027 cycle:

• July: Dalhousie
• September: UBC, Memorial, McGill
• October: Calgary, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta
• November: Sherbrooke, Montréal, Laval

Build your calendar around the earliest deadline. Dalhousie in July forces you to have MCAT scores, referees, and polished essays locked down before most applicants have even started their primary applications elsewhere.

A few format quirks matter. OMSAS lets you enter up to 32 activities. Calgary allows only 10, which requires a fundamentally different prioritization strategy. UBC offers early decision, but it carries no competitive advantage, so do not apply early, thinking it helps your odds.

CASPer, MMI, and the CanMEDS Framework

CASPer is an online, scenario-based situational judgment test that measures ethical reasoning, empathy, and professionalism. It is part of the Altus Suite (CASPer + Snapshot + Duet) and is required by more than 12 Canadian schools, including Ottawa, McMaster, and Dalhousie. Two prep approaches that actually work: practice articulating a clear ethical framework under time pressure (five minutes per scenario disappears fast), and review sample scenarios to build pattern recognition rather than memorizing content. There is nothing to memorize.

Interview formats vary more than most applicants realize:

• MMI (6 to 10 stations): the most common Canadian format
• Modified MMI: Montréal, Laval, and Sherbrooke use 12 stations with 7-minute responses
• Panel interviews: Western and Ottawa
• Combined formats: Queen's and Memorial
• Modified Personal Interview (MPI): U of T's proprietary format

Your prep approach must match the format. MMI prep is about rapid ethical framework application across unrelated scenarios. Panel prep is about narrative coherence and depth. Conflating the two is one of the most common and costly interview preparation mistakes.

Underneath all of this sits the CanMEDS framework, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada's seven physician roles: Medical Expert, Communicator, Collaborator, Leader, Health Advocate, Scholar, and Professional. Most Canadian schools use CanMEDS to evaluate applicants explicitly, so map your activities and essays to these seven roles before you submit. If your application demonstrates six of seven roles and ignores Health Advocate entirely, you have a visible gap. Fix it before you apply.

Can International Students Apply to Canadian Medical Schools?

The honest answer is: barely. Only four to seven Canadian schools accept non-contract international students, most commonly McGill, Université de Montréal, Université Laval, and Université de Sherbrooke, with U of T and Queen's appearing on some sources' lists.

The numbers tell the story. Per AFMC data, only a handful of non-contract foreign students enroll in the first year across all of Canada in any given cycle. Seat counts per school are in the single digits: McGill admits up to 2 international students, U of T up to 2, Queen's up to 5. International tuition runs $60,000 to $96,000+ CAD per year versus $6,000 to $26,000 for domestic students.

Three of the schools that nominally accept international students, Laval, Sherbrooke, and Montréal, teach exclusively in French, which eliminates most non-Canadian applicants who lack full professional French fluency. Americans can technically apply to U of T, McGill, and McMaster, but the odds are extremely low. If Canadian medicine is your goal and you are a US citizen, establishing Canadian residency through marriage, work, or extended study is usually a more realistic long-term path than the direct application route.

It is also worth noting that Canadian medical schools are publicly funded institutions. They are built to train physicians for the Canadian healthcare system, and their seat allocations reflect that mandate at every level.

The Other 9 Accredited Canadian Medical Schools

Canada currently has 19 accredited MD programs across 8 provinces. Of these, 17 are long-established programs, Toronto Metropolitan University admitted its first cohort in 2025-2026, and Simon Fraser University began its first cohort in August 2026. In addition to the top 10 above, nine programs round out the full landscape and, in several cases, offer the most realistic path for applicants with specific provincial, linguistic, or rural ties.

1. Université de Montréal (Faculté de Médecine)

• Acceptance rate: ~23%.
• Minimum GPA: Based on R-score (Quebec CEGEP system) or equivalent university GPA for non-CEGEP applicants.
• MCAT: Not required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$4,000 to $6,000 CAD for Quebec residents / higher for out-of-province and international applicants.
• Interview format: Modified MMI, 12 stations, jointly administered with Université Laval and Université de Sherbrooke.

Université de Montréal's Faculty of Medicine is one of the largest French-language medical programs in North America, training physicians exclusively in French for practice across Quebec and francophone communities nationwide. The shared MMI process with Laval and Sherbrooke means applicants to multiple Quebec French-language programs sit a single coordinated interview rather than separate formats at each school, which reduces scheduling burden and rewards consistent preparation. For Quebec residents fluent in French, the combination of a 23% acceptance rate and among the lowest domestic tuition in the country makes Montréal one of the most accessible routes to an MD in Canada.

See their full programs here.

2. Dalhousie University (Faculty of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: 12.4%.
• Mean GPA: 3.81 (minimum 3.3 for Maritime applicants / 3.7 for non-Maritime applicants).
• MCAT: Required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$22,510 CAD domestic.
• Interview format: MMI.

The Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine requires a demonstrated Maritime connection for most seats, making it one of the most regionally protected programs in the country. The application includes five 250-word secondary essays alongside the MMI, a combination that rewards applicants who can demonstrate commitment to Atlantic Canada across multiple formats.

See their full programs here.

3. Memorial University of Newfoundland (Faculty of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: 14.9%.
• Mean GPA: 3.85.
• MCAT: Required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$14,250 CAD domestic, among the lowest in Canada.
• Interview format: Combined MMI and panel.

The Newfoundland Faculty of Medicine carries a strong provincial-resident preference and uses a combined MMI and panel interview that weighs fit for rural and Atlantic practice alongside academic metrics. The regional campus at UPEI reserves 20 seats for Prince Edward Island residents, accredited through Memorial. For students with deep roots in Atlantic or rural Canada, this program offers both accessible tuition and a curriculum built around the communities they came from.

See their full programs here.

4. University of Saskatchewan (College of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: ~12.12%, one of the highest in-province admit rates in the country.
• Mean GPA: 3.85.
• MCAT: Required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$20,246 CAD domestic.
• Interview format: MMI.

The Saskatchewan College of Medicine reserves more than 90% of seats for Saskatchewan residents, so out-of-province applicants face extremely limited access. For Saskatchewan residents, the combination of a high in-province acceptance rate, a clear GPA threshold, and affordable tuition makes this one of the most straightforward pathways to an MD in western Canada. The program has a strong focus on primary care and training physicians for rural and underserved communities across the province.

See their full programs here.

5. Université Laval (Faculté de Médecine)

• Acceptance rate: 24%, the highest of any Canadian medical school.
• Minimum GPA: 33 R-score (Quebec CEGEP system).
• MCAT: Not required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$4,157 to $34,561 CAD depending on residency and nationality.
• Interview format: Modified MMI, 12 stations, jointly administered with Université de Montréal and Université de Sherbrooke.

Laval University accepts international students and uses a shared modified MMI process across Quebec's three French-language programs, streamlining the interview experience for applicants applying to multiple Quebec schools. Instruction is French-only throughout the program. For Quebec CEGEP graduates with strong R-scores, Laval offers the most accessible acceptance rate of any accredited Canadian medical school.

See their full programs here.

6. Université de Sherbrooke (Faculté de Médecine)

• Acceptance rate: 12.5%.
• Minimum GPA: Based on R-score or university GPA equivalent (no fixed published minimum in English).
• MCAT: Not required.
• CASPer: Required.
• Tuition: ~$15,000 to $19,000 CAD domestic.
• Interview format: Modified MMI, 12 stations with 7-minute responses, jointly administered with Laval and Université de Montréal.

Instruction is French-only throughout. Sherbrooke's extended MMI format, with 12 stations and 7-minute response windows rather than the standard 8-station 5-minute structure, favors applicants who can sustain detailed reasoning and demonstrate strong communication skills under sustained pressure rather than rapid scenario pivots. Applicants who prepare for a standard MMI and do not adapt to the longer station format are consistently underprepared here.

See their full programs here.

7. Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM University)

• Acceptance rate: 3.7%.
• Minimum GPA: 3.8.
• MCAT: Not required.
• CASPer: Not required.
• Tuition: ~$19,500 CAD domestic.
• Interview format: MMI.

The Northern Ontario School of Medicine requires a demonstrated connection to rural, remote, or northern Canadian communities, or a Francophone identity. Its entire mandate centers on training physicians who will practice in underserved northern regions, and the selection process reflects that mandate at every stage. Research opportunities, clinical placements, and the program's entire culture are built around community health in northern Ontario rather than tertiary urban medicine. For applicants with genuine northern Ontario or rural roots, NOSM offers a pathway to medical practice that no urban-focused Canadian school replicates.

See their full programs here.

8. Toronto Metropolitan University (School of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: No data yet (first cohort admitted 2025-2026).
• Minimum GPA: 3.5 on OMSAS scale.
• MCAT: Not required.
• CASPer: Not required.
• Tuition: To be confirmed (expected to align with Ontario school norms).
• Interview format: To be confirmed.

TMU's program is built around equity, diversity, and urban community health, training future doctors specifically for underserved communities in Canada's largest city. Its location within Toronto Metropolitan University and its social accountability mandate distinguish it from the longer-established Ontario programs. As acceptance rate and outcomes data accumulate over the next two to three cycles, TMU will become a more fully evaluable option for Ontario applicants interested in community-driven urban medical practice.

See their full programs here.

9. Simon Fraser University (School of Medicine)

• Acceptance rate: No data yet (first cohort begins August 2026).
• Minimum GPA: 3.67 on a 4.33 scale (other pathways available).
• MCAT: Required (other options available).
• CASPer: Not required.
• Tuition: To be confirmed.
• Interview format: To be confirmed.

SFU's program emphasizes Indigenous health, rural medicine, and training physicians for British Columbia's underserved regions outside the Lower Mainland. With its first cohort beginning in August 2026, SFU represents one of the newest additions to Canadian medical education, and full admissions data will not be available until the program completes its first full cycle. Applicants interested in Western Canada and a curriculum with an explicit Indigenous health and rural medicine focus should monitor SFU's admissions updates closely as its first cohort progresses.

See their full programs here.

Start Preparing for Medical Education in Canada Today

Applying to medical schools in Canada is a 24-month project. Here is the timeline for the 2026-2027 cycle.

• 18 to 24 months before applying: Lock in prerequisite coursework. Most schools require two semesters each of Biology, Chemistry, and Physics, plus one or more Math courses and two English courses. You will need a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution before matriculating at any Canadian medical school. Alberta additionally requires humanities units, biochemistry, and statistics. Treat suggested prerequisites as mandatory.
• 12 to 15 months before: Take the MCAT, unless you are applying only to MCAT-optional schools (McGill as of 2024 for Canadian graduates, Ottawa, McMaster's non-CARS sections, NOSM, and the three Quebec French schools). Aim for 128+ CARS if Calgary or McMaster are on your list.
• June to July: Finalize your activity list (map each entry to a CanMEDS role), request reference letters, and draft your personal statement or secondary essays. This is also when you should honestly evaluate your province of residence and its impact on your list.
• July to November: Submit applications per the deadline calendar above. Complete CASPer on your assigned date. Do not miss Dalhousie's July deadline.
• January to May: Interview season covers MMI, panel, or modified MMI, depending on the school. Final offers roll out by late spring.

If you do not receive an offer, use the summer to diagnose the single weakest part of your application, whether that is GPA, MCAT scores, CASPer performance, or interview execution, and address that one thing specifically before reapplying.

5 Expert Tips for Canadian Med School Applicants

1. How to Handle CASPer the Week Of

Do not cram content because CASPer tests reasoning. In the final week, run 2 to 3 timed mock scenarios per day (5 minutes each) to build pacing, and practice articulating a clear ethical framework out loud (stakeholders, competing values, decision, acknowledgment of tradeoffs) so that typing under pressure feels natural. On test day, write in complete sentences rather than bullet points. Scorers read for reasoning flow.

2. Reference Letter Strategy for OMSAS's 3-Letter Cap

OMSAS allows only three references, so every letter has to earn its slot. The strongest combinations typically include one academic (a professor who taught you in a small class or supervised research), one clinical or experiential (a physician shadowing contact or hospital volunteer coordinator), and one who can speak to your character over time (a long-term employer, mentor, or coach). Avoid submitting three academic letters. Admissions committees read that as a thin experiential profile and a missed opportunity to demonstrate commitment to patient care.

3. How to Write the Activity List Without Padding

Most applicants lead with job titles. Strong applicants lead with outcomes.

Weak entry: "Emergency Department Volunteer, Toronto General Hospital. Volunteered in the ED for 8 months, helping patients and staff."

Strong entry: "Emergency Department Volunteer, Toronto General Hospital. Collaborated with charge nurses to improve patient flow documentation across a 40-bed unit over 8 months, developing communication protocols now used during peak shift transitions. CanMEDS roles: Collaborator, Communicator."

OMSAS allows up to 32 activity entries. Use as many as you have legitimately earned, but do not pad. Map each activity to one or two CanMEDS roles and check that your full list covers all seven roles. If Health Advocate or Scholar is empty, that is a visible gap to any Canadian admissions committee. Lead with what you did and what it produced.

4. MCAT Decision Tree for Canadian Schools

Your CARS score should shape your school list before anything else shapes it.

• CARS 129 or above: All MCAT-requiring schools are realistic. Prioritize McMaster and Calgary if their other requirements fit your profile.
• CARS 128: Strong for Alberta out-of-province, Calgary, and most Ontario schools. You are a viable candidate at every MCAT-requiring school on the list.
• CARS 127 or below: Focus on schools with no MCAT requirement (McGill for Canadian graduates, Ottawa, NOSM, Université de Montréal, Laval, Sherbrooke, TMU) or schools where CARS is not the dominant filter. Retaking is usually the better move if McMaster or Calgary are your primary targets.
• If no MCAT planned: Your list narrows to McGill (Canadian graduates), Ottawa, NOSM, TMU, and the Quebec French programs. McMaster still requires the CARS section, so it does not disappear from consideration entirely, but you would need to sit that one section.

Verify every school's current MCAT policy directly with admissions before you plan your test timeline. Policies change, and McGill's 2024 shift is proof of that.

5. If You Reapply, Diagnose the Single Weakest Link

Canadian reapplicants who improve their outcomes almost always fix one specific thing rather than attempting to improve everything simultaneously. Pull your scores and any feedback you received: if your GPA falls below the out-of-province threshold for your target schools, a graduate degree or a second undergraduate year is the only real structural fix. If CASPer or MMI performance was the weak point, shift your full year's prep budget toward that specific skill. A broadly stronger application without a specific diagnosis usually produces the same result the second time around.

Final Thoughts: Build Your List Around Residency, Not Reputation

The province of residence shapes Canadian med school admissions more than your GPA or MCAT scores do. Build your school list around residency rules first, then layer in GPA, MCAT, and program fit second. If you are applying from outside Ontario or Quebec, the three most out-of-province-friendly options (U of T, McGill, and McMaster) are your realistic stretch picks.

Before you write a single essay, pull the current cycle's GPA and MCAT cutoffs for every school on your list and remove the ones you do not qualify for. Then build your application around the schools where your profile is most competitive.

The best medical schools in Canada are ultimately the ones where you are genuinely competitive and where you will genuinely thrive. For most Canadian students, that means honest self-assessment before prestige chasing. The healthcare system this country needs most is one stocked with well-trained, well-matched physicians, and the admissions process for most Canadian medical schools is actually designed around that reality.

Work 1:1 with a top medical school admissions coach, including former admissions committee members, current MDs trained at Canadian programs, and specialists in OMSAS, CASPer, and the MMI formats used across the country. Whether you are building your school list for the first time, preparing for interview season, or diagnosing why a previous cycle did not go as planned, working with a coach who knows Canadian medical education from the inside is the highest-leverage move most applicants never make. Browse Leland's medical school coaches here. You can also join medical school bootcamps and free events for more helpful insights!

See: The 10 Highest-Rated Med School Coaches

Read next:

• 20+ Medical Schools in New England: New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, & More
• 25 Popular Medical Residency Programs
• Top 10 Medical Schools in the U.S.
• MCAT Score Range & Average of the T50 Medical Schools
• The Best 50+ Free Resources for the MCAT Exam
• Medical School Requirements: What You Need to Get In

FAQs

What is the highest-ranked medical school in Canada?

• The University of Toronto's Temerty Faculty of Medicine holds the top domestic position, ranking 9th globally in medicine according to Times Higher Education 2026 and 2nd nationally in Maclean's. McGill ranks 26th globally and 1st nationally in Maclean's, making both schools legitimate claimants depending on the ranking methodology used. For most Canadian applicants, program fit and province of residence matter more than which school holds the top spot in any given year.

What is the hardest med school to get into in Canada?

• By acceptance rate, Queen's University is the most competitive in Canada at 2.6%, followed by NOSM at 3.7% and Ottawa at approximately 5.7%. McGill, at approximately 7.5%, and Toronto, at approximately 8.3%, are also among the most selective, though both are more out-of-province-friendly than the regional schools above.

What MCAT score do I need for Canadian medical schools?

• Cutoffs vary sharply by school rather than clustering around a single range. McMaster weighs only CARS (129+ required). U of T requires 125 per section. Alberta requires 124 per section with 128+ CARS for out-of-province applicants. Calgary requires 128 CARS for non-Albertans. Several schools do not require the MCAT at all: McGill (eliminated for Canadian graduates in 2024), Ottawa, NOSM, Université de Montréal, Université Laval, and Université de Sherbrooke.

Is a 3.7 GPA good enough for medical school in Canada?

• A 3.7 GPA clears the minimum threshold at most Canadian schools but falls below the admitted mean at the most competitive programs. The mean admitted GPA at U of T is 3.93, at McGill it is 3.89, and at McMaster it is 3.88. A 3.7 is genuinely competitive for Dalhousie, Memorial, and Saskatchewan if you are an in-province applicant. For Ontario schools, it represents a thin academic profile unless your MCAT scores, CASPer performance, and activity record are exceptionally strong. Do not rely on a 3.7 as your primary credential if Ontario schools are your primary targets.

How many medical schools are in Canada?

• Canada has 17 accredited MD programs across 8 provinces, with two new programs launching in August 2026 at Toronto Metropolitan University and Simon Fraser University, and a third expected to open in 2028.

What is the easiest medical school to get into in Canada?

• No Canadian medical school is straightforward to get into, but in-province applicants have the best statistical odds at Université Laval (24% acceptance rate) and Université de Montréal (23%). Among English-language programs, Manitoba (approximately 14.7%) and Saskatchewan (approximately 12.12%) have the most accessible acceptance rates for in-province applicants. Province of residence remains the single most powerful factor in Canadian medical school admissions, more than GPA, more than test scores, and more than extracurriculars.

Can Americans or international students apply to Canadian medical schools?

• Yes, but access is extremely limited. Only 4 to 7 schools accept non-contract international students, most commonly McGill, Université de Montréal, Université Laval, Université de Sherbrooke, and, in some cases, U of T and Queen's. Seat counts sit in the single digits per school. International tuition runs $60,000 to $96,000+ CAD per year. The three Quebec French-language schools also require full professional French fluency.

How much does medical school cost in Canada?

• Domestic tuition ranges from approximately $4,157 to $26,444 CAD per year, depending on the school and province of residence. Quebec residents pay the least, with Université de Montréal charging approximately $4,000 to $6,000 per year and McGill approximately $6,050 for Quebec residents. International students pay up to $96,000+ CAD per year. Add living costs of approximately $15,000 to $25,000 per year, depending on the city, with Toronto and Vancouver at the higher end.

How long is medical school in Canada?

• Most Canadian MD programs are four years. McMaster and Calgary offer three-year accelerated programs that run through the summers. Total time from the start of your undergraduate studies to full licensure is typically 8 to 12 years, depending on residency program length: two years for family medicine and up to six years for subspecialties such as neurosurgery or cardiac surgery.

What is CASPer, and do I need it for Canadian medical schools?

• CASPer is an online scenario-based test measuring ethical reasoning, empathy, and professionalism. It is part of the Altus Suite (CASPer + Snapshot + Duet) and is required by more than 12 Canadian schools, including Ottawa, McMaster, and Dalhousie. Unlike the MCAT, it cannot be crammed. The most effective preparation is practicing ethical scenarios under timed conditions and developing a clear reasoning framework that you can articulate fluently before test day.