How to apply

How to apply

Admission to the Master's Specialization in Bioethics takes place in two stages.

• First, the applicant is considered for graduate study by selecting one of the four base disciplines: the Faculty of Religious Studies, the Department of Philosophy, the Faculty of Law or the Faculty of Medicine (through the Division of Experimental Medicine).
• Second, the applicants recommended for admission to the Bioethics Master's Specialization are then considered by the Admissions Committee of the Bioethics Specialization, which makes the final selection. The Committee may call the applicants for an interview.

Applicants must satisfy the normal conditions for acceptance for graduate study into the base Faculty or Department, and the applications themselves must conform to the application requirements of those Faculties or Departments.

All applications must contain:

1. a completed application form for the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research at McGill University (as of January 2003, applicants are asked to complete on-line application forms at http://www.mcgill.ca/applying/graduate/);
2. an up-to-date curriculum vitae;
3. 2 original copies of all relevant transcripts. Photocopies cannot be accepted;
4. a short statement (2-3 pages, typed double-spaced) explaining why you wish to study bioethics at McGill, any relevant background, education, experience or involvement in the field, and in addition, how this fits in with your interest in the base discipline in which you are applying;
5. three letters of recommendation from qualified individuals familiar with your work. These must each be received in a sealed envelope with the individual's signature on the sealed flap. Photocopies cannot be accepted;
6. a sample of written work (15-20 pages, typed, double-spaced);
7. international students whose mother tongue is not English and who have not completed an undergraduate degree from a recognized institution where English is the language of instruction must pass the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) with a minimum score of 550 (213 on computer-based tests, Internet-Based Test (iBT): a minimum overall score of 86 with each component score not less than 20). The TOEFL Institution Code for McGill University is 0935.

In addition to this, for applicants for whom English is a mother tongue, the Department of Philosophy requires the results of the Graduate Record Examination.

All students must check with their base Faculty or Department to ensure that they complete their application in compliance with the requirements of that Faculty/Department, and to see whether their background qualifies them for admission into graduate studies in that Faculty/Department.

Applicants must send their application and all additional material to:

Chair, Master's Specialization in Bioethics
Biomedical Ethics Unit
Faculty of Medicine
3647 Peel Street
Montreal, Quebec H3A 1X1

All letters and accompanying documents must be received by January 15.

Potential students may also refer to the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies Handbook http://www.cags.ca/pdf/CAGSHandbook05.pdf

Please check the current course calendar for an overview of the Bioethics Academic Unit http://coursecalendar.mcgill.ca/