Who Should Apply?
The concentration in Digital Health Innovation is aimed at existing and future health professionals, engineers, data scientists, computer scientists, informaticians, clinicians, and health sciences students. Training in innovation is highly relevant to these groups since medicine has always historically been a hotbed of invention and development of medical tools.
Admission Requirements
The minimum requirements for admission into the Digital Health Innovation Concentration include:
- Undergraduate degree from a Faculty of Medicine, Bioengineering, Biomedical Sciences, Computer Sciences, or BComm. Engineering
- Minimum GPA of 3.2
- Successful completion of Advanced Mathematics, Statistics, Calculus or equivalent at CGEP level or higher
Admission to graduate studies is competitive. Meeting the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee admission to the program.
Admission is also contingent upon finding a thesis supervisor. Prospective students should refer to the Researchers page to identify potential supervisors.
How to Apply?
McGill’s online application form for graduate program candidates is available at https://www.mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/how-apply.
Applicants must provide the following documents as part of their submission. These documents must be uploaded via uApply by the deadline stipulated by the department:
- Official Copies of Transcripts
Applicants must upload transcripts for all post-secondary education undertaken (Quebec students need not submit CEGEP transcripts).
Transcripts written in a language other than English or French must be accompanied by a certified translation.
All non-McGill transcripts must be accompanied by the issuing University’s grading scale in order to ensure that GPA equivalency is calculated correctly.
- Curriculum Vitae
Applicants are required to provide a resume that includes a listing of previous research experience and publications, if applicable.
- Personal Statement
Applicants must submit a personal statement in which they describe their background, research interests and reasons for wishing to undertake the desired program. Applicants should also address any academic ‘surprises’ in their personal statement. For example, if applicants have a low GPA for a particular term, an incomplete degree, or a change in program, they should provide an explanation so that any special circumstances can be considered by the admissions committee during their review. The personal statement should be no more than two (2) pages long.
- Two Letters of Reference
Applications must be accompanied by two (2) letters of reference. These letters must be current (not more than 6 months old), preferably on letterhead, and must be uploaded by the referee (see instructions at https://www.mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/how-apply/documents#letters).
Applicants should request references from academic or other professional employers who can attest to the applicant’s abilities and aptitudes. At least ONE of the letters MUST be from an academic who can evaluate their potential for graduate studies and research. If this is not possible, the applicant should contact the Department to which they are applying to see what alternate referees can be considered acceptable.
Letters should be from academic mentors/research supervisors. Normally, letters from other laboratory members (who are not the Principal Investigator) are not accepted. Thus, letters from Research Associates, post-doctoral fellows and lab peers are not accepted.
All referee e-mails must be institutional e-mails in order for their references to be deemed acceptable, i.e., we will NOT accept references from referees whose e-mails are @yahoo, @gmail, @hotmail, etc.... Any such reference WILL be rejected.
Letters from the proposed supervisor(s) for your application are not accepted.
- Confirmation of Supervision Form
Candidates must be aware that admission into the Digital Health Innovation program is contingent upon finding a thesis supervisor.
For students applying to Experimental Medicine, the Confirmation of Supervision form must be completed and signed by the student, the supervisor, and any co-supervisor(s) if applicable.
For students applying to Experimental Surgery, a letter of intent, provided on a letterhead from the student’s research supervisor, must be included. The letter must state that the supervisor is willing to accept the student and will provide space, equipment, and possibly financial support. If the student has a co-supervisor, this person will have to submit a confirmation letter as well.
- English Proficiency
All students must verify whether or not they meet the English language proficiency requirement of McGill (https://www.mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/international/apply/proficiency). If not, proof of English language proficiency must be provided at the time of application in order for the application to be complete.
Application Deadlines
Application deadlines for the Fall 2022 term are as follows:
For students applying to the Department of Experimental Medicine
- April 15, 2022 for new international students
- June 15, 2022 for Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada, and current McGill students (regardless of citizenship)
For students applying to the Department of Experimental Surgery
- April 2, 2022 for new international students
- June 8, 2022 for Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada, and current McGill students (regardless of citizenship)