Frequently Asked Questions

The online application opens on September 1 for an admission start date of September of the following year.

Deadlines vary by category of applicant. See Deadlines page.

Late applications are automatically refused. There are no exceptions.

Except for references, all supporting documents must be uploaded via the applicant portal by the appropriate deadline. In exceptional circumstances where applicants are unable to upload their documents online, they may be sent via post or courier, or submitted in person. In such cases the documents must be postmarked or delivered on or before the deadline. The Admissions Office checks postmarks on documents that arrive after the indicated deadline. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all required supporting documents reach the Admissions Office.

No, we do not offer correspondence, distance or internet courses. Students attend classes at the Faculty of Law in person, and are expected to be fully active in the Faculty and in the community.

No, we do not offer evening courses. All courses offered by the Faculty of Law are held Monday to Friday during the day. Although some courses may finish later, the majority of our courses are taught between 8:30 and 19:00.

We offer graduate certificates in law. These graduate programs provide advanced training to candidates who do not wish to undertake our Master's degree (LL.M.). They are particularly appropriate for judges, law professors and legal practitioners who wish to pursue advanced studies in areas such as comparative law, air & space law or human rights law. Please note that applicants to our Graduate Certificate Programs must already have a Bachelor of Laws degree or equivalent from an accredited university.

No, but we do offer law students the opportunity to pursue a minor offered by McGill's Faculties of Arts, Science, and the Desautels Faculty of Management. For more information, see the Minors, Majors and Honours page.

The Faculty allows a limited number of applicants not actively pursuing a law degree to register as Special Students. This status will only be granted to applicants who present a compelling reason for taking a particular law course – such as continuing legal education for professional development purposes relevant to their field of practice - and who demonstrate their capacity to undertake the study of law. Special Students are also only admitted when sufficient space is available in the applicable course. Special Students may take up to 6 credits per term, for a maximum of 12 credits in total.

No. The structure of the BCL/JD program is based on an integrated study of both the civil law and the common law.

No. The Faculty does not consider candidates applying to fulfill the requirements of the National Committee on Accreditation.

No. The Faculty does not accept applicants from High School programs. To be eligible, applicants must have a minimum of two years of university studies (60 credits), or hold a Diploma of Collegial Studies (DCS) from a Cegep or a Quebec French Baccalaureate.

Yes. Please refer to the Eligibility and Deadlines pages to determine in which category you should apply and which corresponding deadlines you must meet.

Following that, see our Admissions Policies and Admissions Process pages to learn how to complete the online application and what supporting documents are required to complete the application.

International candidates must make sure they will have valid immigration status to study in Canada at the time of registration.

No. The Faculty does not give preference to McGill graduates.

No. The Faculty does not give preference to Quebec residents. We seek to achieve a socially and culturally diverse community drawn from across Quebec, Canada and beyond.

As stated in our Admissions Policy, we believe our Faculty’s excellence is based on its diversity. We work hard to ensure a diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and aspirations in our incoming class.

For more information on the demographic makeup of our students, please visit the Class Profile page. You may also be interested in attending one of our Law School & Diversity recruitment events or getting in touch with one of our Student Ambassadors, who can tell you how diversity is lived here at McGill.

Applicants must provide the following: personal statement; CV; transcripts for all post-secondary studies; proof of French and English proficiency; and two references. See & Supporting documents.

Candidates who have taken, or will be taking, the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) are required to report the date(s) of sitting(s) and supply their LSAT identification number in the appropriate section of the online application. Failure to do so may negatively affect the assessment of your file.

In exceptional circumstances where uploading supporting documents is not possible, they may be mailed, couriered or delivered in person to the following address:

Law Admissions Office
Faculty of Law
McGill University
3644 Peel Street, Room 418
Montreal, Quebec
Canada H3A 1W9

See the ‘Mailing supporting documents’ section of the Supporting Documents page

During peak periods (i.e., close to the deadlines), intake volume is very high in the Admissions Office. There may be a delay of up to 48 hours between the receipt of a document and the date on which it is recorded in our information system.

Please see the ‘Admissions Checklist’ section of the Supporting Documents page for more.

No. Transcripts and other documents sent to McGill become the property of the University and will not be returned or forwarded to other institutions. For example, applicants who wish to obtain a copy of a reference should ask their referee directly.

Candidates wishing to make a referee substitution may do so until the Supporting Document deadline as long as the reference has not yet been submitted. In this case, please follow the instructions the Applicant Portal.

Please see the ‘References’ section of the Supporting Documents page for more information 

Once an application is complete, it is reviewed by the Admissions Committee. Reviewers carefully assess all documents in the application according to the Faculty's Admissions Policy, and in comparison to all other candidates in the applicant pool.

Engaging in a holistic review of all applications naturally takes some time. We strive to have final and waitlist decisions issued to all candidates by the end of June and in all cases, every effort is made to inform candidates of the final decision on their file at the earliest possible date.

Applicants on the waitlist may not receive a final word on their file until July or sometimes even the end of August.

In all cases, the decision of the Admissions Committee is final.

A candidate will be offered a place on the waitlist if the application file is admissible, but there are no available spots remaining in the class. There is no ranking of waitlisted candidacies. The status "Waiting List"  will be available in the Applicant Portal for all candidates placed on the waitlist.

Except for the circumstances described in our Admissions Policy, the Faculty of Law does not normally accept requests for deferred entry. Candidates are expected to start the program on the date and term they applied for and as indicated in their admission offer letter. Deferrals of admission are very exceptional within the Faculty of Law and generally permitted only for extenuating circumstances beyond one's control. They may exceptionally be granted for activities that are specific and time-bound that would add to the caliber of the student’s profile. Decisions on deferrals are made by the Assistant Dean, (Admissions and Recruitment) and are final.

Candidates wishing to submit a deferral request must follow the process below:

• The offer of admission must be accepted, and the $400 deposit paid.
• A written request for a one-year deferral must be submitted in the Applicant Portal outlining the reason for the request.
• Relevant supporting documentation (i.e., admission letter, employment contract, medical diagnosis, etc.) must be attached.

The evaluation of deferral requests is made according to the following criteria:

• Strength of application (likelihood that the candidate would be admitted to the BCL/JD program in subsequent admissions cycles).
• Substance of request: please note that deferrals of admission are very exceptional within the Faculty of Law and generally permitted only for extenuating circumstances beyond one’s control.

Note: Deferrals are not granted for financial reasons nor for completing conditions of admission.

Candidates wishing to request a deferral for non-extenuating circumstances (i.e., an academic program or employment opportunity) must do so by August 1 of the cycle for which they are admitted. Only deferrals for extenuating circumstances will be considered after August 1 until the University’s fall add/drop deadline.

The requirements for supporting documents may have changed. Applicants applying to the program for a second time should review the entire Supporting Documents page.

No. Interviews are not granted upon request of applicants. Interviews are convened on the recommendation of the Admissions Committee. For more information about interviews, please see the ‘How we make decisions’ section of the Admissions Policy page.

Admissions Office staff is knowledgeable about the admissions process and able to answer applicant questions.

In recent years, we have received in the range of 1300-1500 applications each year, for approximately 183 places in the incoming class. The number of applications we receive is roughly 7-8 times the number of available places. Admission to the program is therefore very competitive. You can find more information on our Class and Alumni Profiles page.

Applicants are not required to take the LSAT; however, if a candidate has taken or will be taking the LSAT, the score will be considered as part of the application. While the LSAT is not required, LSAT result provide the Admissions Committee with an additional and useful piece of information regarding the strength of your candidacy and suitability for law studies. The relative strength or weakness of an LSAT result is evaluated in light of the entire application.

The Faculty of Law is a bilingual learning environment. We believe it would be disadvantageous to the significant proportion of applicants and admitted students who indicate French as a first language to require, as a matter of eligibility, a test that is not offered in French.

While it is not required, it may nevertheless be advisable for many candidates to consider writing the LSAT. Admission to McGill’s Law program is highly competitive: there are roughly seven to eight times as many applicants as there are available places in the first-year class. Accordingly, candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for admission to a number of faculties of law. Almost all faculties of law outside Quebec require the LSAT.

The quality of McGill’s applicant pool is exceptionally strong. Among admitted students, the average entering CGPA in 2022 was 3.8 on a 4.0 scale (about an 85%). Applicants with academic records below this average CGPA or percentile are encouraged to consider writing the LSAT.

If you are considering writing the LSAT only to improve your application to McGill Law, it will be important to assess how the results could impact the strength of your application. It is also important to note that if you write the LSAT more than once, McGill Law takes your average score. Based on an average of incoming classes in recent years, the average LSAT result of those entering the McGill program is 165, with 10% of the entering class with a score between 150 and 160, 30% being between 160 and 164, and 60% being between 164 and 180.

See the ‘Education’ section of the Eligibility page.

Candidates should write the LSAT at the latest by November of the year prior to the year for which they seek admission. Candidates who register for the November LSAT should be aware that consideration of their file will be delayed until receipt of the score.

Candidates who do write the LSAT are strongly encouraged to do so by November of the year prior to the year for which they seek admission. Applications from candidates who register for the January LSAT will only be reviewed by the Admissions Committee when all required elements, including the January LSAT score, are received. Candidates who register for the January LSAT risk that, by the time the Committee reviews their application, there will no longer be a place to offer even if the Committee wishes to admit.

Yes. Applicants must report the date(s) of sitting(s) and supply their LSAT identification number in the appropriate places on their McGill Law application. The Admissions Office will then obtain test results directly from the Law School Admission Council (LSAC). Applicants whose service with the Law School Admissions Council has expired must reactivate their service in order to enable the Admissions Office to obtain their LSAT score.

There are no fixed cut-offs, and while the numerical aspects of the applicant's file are not decisive, students offered admission at McGill generally have outstanding academic records in addition to their other qualities. Accordingly, it is not possible to predict the probability of admissions using numerical indices. Please see our Admissions Policy page for information on ‘What we look for in our students’ and ‘How we make admissions decisions’.

For information purposes only, we publish the academic results of our most recent incoming class on in the ‘Education’ section of the Eligibility page.

The Faculty of Law may revoke an offer of admission or cancel an application at any time for material misrepresentation, including omissions, in an application.

Although the LSAT is not mandatory, every applicant who has taken or will be taking it must disclose the required test information and failure to do so is considered a material misrepresentation.

The Admissions Office conducts random verifications for LSAT scores throughout the admissions process and a systematic verification with respect to candidates who receive an offer of admission. These verifications have, in the past, resulted in revocation of offers of admission.

In order to ensure that all candidates are aware of the requirement to report the date(s) of sitting(s), the online application has been programmed to prompt candidates to submit LSAT information if they indicate that they are applying to another law faculty outside of Quebec, other than the Civil Law program at the University of Ottawa or a French Common Law program (Ottawa or Moncton). The obligation to disclose is applicable to all applicants.

An application to the Faculty of Law at McGill will not be processed unless and until the candidate authorizes the University to, among other things, "verify any information or statement provided as part of my application, realizing that an admission granted based on information in my application or supporting documents that is incorrect or untrue may be revoked at the sole discretion of the University." The Admissions Office has access to the Law School Admission Council database and the ability to verify whether a candidate has or has not registered for an LSAT sitting.

The Faculty’s admissions policy is to select applicants who are best suited to studying law in McGill’s uniquely comparative, transsystemic, and bilingual environment. Diversity and excellence are essential to our Faculty. Indeed, our Faculty’s excellence is based on its diversity.

While applicants granted admission generally have very strong academic records, the Admissions Committee looks for indicators of intellectual curiosity, community engagement, insight (cultural, economic, political, social and otherwise), leadership skills, ability to work with others, openness to diversity, maturity, ethical sense, judgement, and potential for development through opportunity or adversity, among other criteria.

The Committee conducts its assessment through a holistic evaluation of each applicant's file, including the applicant's academic record, linguistic abilities, personal statement, extracurricular, community or professional activities, and references.

The Admissions Committee seeks to achieve a plural learning community drawn from across Quebec, Canada and beyond, in which there is a wide range of career aspirations, backgrounds and life experiences.

Please see the Admissions Policy page for more.

The Faculty does not recommend any particular program of pre-law studies, a specific undergraduate degree nor a graduate degree. The admissions process has been developed with a view to building a class that represents a diversity of academic disciplines. This being said, in the evaluation of candidacies, the Admissions Committee seeks evidence of courses that develop critical, analytical and reasoning skills, as well as strong reading and writing abilities. A well-rounded, diverse, and challenging course of study will be looked upon favorably.

CGPA (Grade Point Average) is calculated based on all semesters of undergraduate study, even if you studied for 3 or 4 years and if you have completed the same course more than once.

Because the learning curve of legal studies is more similar to the learning curve of undergraduate studies, the emphasis in the assessment is on the applicant's undergraduate marks. However, graduate work will also be considered.

Only Advanced Standing and Transfer students may receive credit for their previous law studies. Courses completed in a certificate in law program will not be credited toward a McGill law degree. While students in the BCL/JD program are permitted to register for up to 6 non-law credits during the course of the program, these credits may not be transferred from their previous university studies.

It is only possible to transfer into our Law program if you are already enrolled in a Law program at another Canadian university. See details on the ‘Transfer’ category of applicants on our Eligibility page.

A candidate who is currently studying in a program other than law in a Canadian university must apply as a University candidate and may do so once he or she has completed a minimum of 60 credits. Candidates registered in a law certificate are not eligible to apply under the Transfer category. These candidates must apply in the University, Mature or CEGEP category. See our Eligibility page.

McGill's Faculty of Law has a policy of "passive bilingualism". In order to thrive in the faculty's bilingual environment, students should have substantial reading ability in both English and French, as there will be required readings in both languages. Students may use either language when asking or answering questions in class, writing exams, or when submitting written material. Exams are administered in the language in which a course is taught, but may contain extracts in either English or French. If the Committee has doubts about your language skills, you may be contacted for a language comprehension test.

Please see the ‘Language requirements’ section of the Eligibility page for more

Please visit see the McGill's Tuition and other charges page.

At a pace of 15 credits per term, most students complete the program in 3.5 years. It is possible, however, to complete the program in 3 years, either by completing credits during the summer term or taking a higher number of credits during the regular academic year, up to a maximum of 18 credits per term.

Students who pursue a Minor, Major or Honours program or a Joint degree will likely take at least 4 years to complete their degrees. Students must complete the BCL/JD program within five years of initial registration in the program.

Classes are scheduled from Monday to Friday. The majority of the courses require 3 hours of class time per week, and are usually split into two 90-minute blocks. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 13:00 to 14:30 are reserved for student activities and workshops and classes are not normally scheduled during those time periods. There are no evening classes.

The BCL/JD program is a full-time program with courses offered Monday to Friday during the day. Although some courses may finish later, the majority of our courses are held between 8:00 and 19:00. The Faculty does not offer evening classes, correspondence or distance courses, or internet courses. Students attend classes at the Faculty of Law in person, and are expected to be fully active in the Faculty and in the community.

As stated in the Faculty’s Academic Regulations, a candidate may seek permission to pursue studies on a part-time basis, either before admission (from the Admissions Committee which will consult the Associate Dean, Academic) or while studying in the Faculty (from the Associate Dean, Academic).

At the time of admission, the Faculty may grant permission in very exceptional circumstances for the duration of studies or for a limited period. Specifically, the student must demonstrate that full-time study is impossible for any of the following reasons, the validity of which shall be established to the satisfaction of the Associate Dean, Academic:

• disability, defined as a physical, mental, learning or sensory impairment that restricts the candidate’s ability to perform the daily activities necessary to pursue studies on a full-time basis at a postsecondary level, as attested by a professional in the relevant specialization;
• pregnancy and childbirth; and
• responsibility as a primary caregiver for an individual that the candidate regularly and continuously assists in carrying out a basic activity of daily living.

Applicants seeking admission to study on a part-time basis must submit a separate letter outlining the reason they need to study part-time, , accompanied by supporting documentation. The Admissions Committee evaluates applications for part-time study on the same basis as those for full-time study.

Students granted permission to register on a part-time basis must register for a minimum of nine credits per term, and must complete all the requirements of the BCL/JD program within seven academic years.

Candidates seeking admission on a part-time basis must fulfill all the standard eligibility requirements of the Faculty of Law.

No. The BCL/JD program begins in September. However, non-degree students may take courses starting in the Winter semester. See the ‘Applicant categories’ page.

Congratulations! Please visit the Newly Admitted Students page and feel free to contact the Assistant Dean or the Admissions office if you have any questions. Also, be sure to familiarise yourself with the services that will be available to you as a student. Please see the ‘Student Services’ section of the Beyond the Classroom page.

Yes. We allow refused candidates to re-apply to the program.

The Juris Doctor (JD) designation became effective in November 2019.

No. The JD will be a first degree in law, not a graduate degree. The change is strictly to the designation of the degree.