Graduate Admissions

Academic Requirements

• Master of Science

Applicants must hold a B.Sc. degree (or equivalent) from a recognized institution and are expected to have attained a high academic standing equivalent to or better than the CGPA of 3.2 at McGill University. To find information about degree requirements for international students, please go to International Degree Equivalency.

Applicants should have a solid educational background in the areas of physical and biological sciences. This background need not include a heavy concentration in microbiology and immunology, as appropriate courses may be taken in this Department during graduate residence. Although it is convenient to have applicants trained in microbiology prior to their arrival, it is recognized that students educated in other institutional programs with widely differing contents may add strength to our own graduate program.

• Doctor of Philosophy

Students who have satisfactorily completed a M.Sc. degree in microbiology and immunology, a biological science, or biochemistry, or highly qualified students enrolled in the departmental M.Sc. program, may be accepted into the Ph.D. program, provided they meet its standards (a high academic standing equivalent to or better than the CGPA of 3.2 at McGill University).

Required Documents

Application documents must be uploaded on Apply , the McGill online system for graduate admissions.

For Instructions, please visit:  www.mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/apply/submitting-your-documents

• Two letters of reference
  On the online application form you must provide the names and email addresses of at least two professors who are familiar with your academic work. McGill will contact these referees and invite them to upload references on your behalf. Letters must be from academic or other professional employers who can evaluate your potential for graduate study and/or speak knowledgeably about your accomplishments. Applicants must provide a valid institutional e-mail address for each referee.
  Note: For MIMM Honours students, one of the two reference letters required can come from the prospective supervisor (in addition to the MIMM supervisor confirmation form).
• Transcripts  
  Transcripts from all the university-level institutions attended to date. Uploaded copies are considered unofficial transcripts. If you receive an offer of admission, official copies of all your transcripts will be required. Transcripts in languages other than English or French must be accompanied by English or French translation provided by the institution issuing the transcript or by a certified translator. 
• The Supervisor Confirmation Form
  Applicants must identify a research supervisor among the Department's faculty members as part of the admission process. You may find information about our academic staff on the Professors at Lyman Duff and Associate Members pages. As per McGill policies and guidelines on graduate student advising and supervision, adjunct members may not act as sole supervisors but may serve as co-supervisors, with the unit's and GPS approval. After approval, a letter of agreement, signed by the co-supervisors and the supervisee, must be submitted to GPS. If problems arise, the McGill supervisor will be held accountable to McGill policies and regulations. Note that the Graduate Program Director may serve as co-supervisor if needed.
  Consider carefully the research interests of individual faculty members and contact them to discuss possible projects. Visit see the section on Finding a Supervisor for more information. Note that applications will not be considered unless the Supervisor Confirmation Form is uploaded in the application portal.
  How to upload the Supervisor Confirmation Form to your online application?
  • Supervisor(s) should fill out and sign the Supervisor Confirmation Form and send it back to the applicant by email.
  • The applicant must review and sign the form.
  • It is the applicant’s responsibility to upload the form in the application portal. 
  • Supervisor Confirmation Form
• Proof of proficiency in English
  All international students whose mother tongue is not English are required to submit proof of proficiency in English. For more details on options, requirements, and the list of exemptions visit the English language proficiency webpage. Applicants must ensure that the official test results are sent directly to McGill University (Institution code: 0935) by the testing center.
• CV (For Summer 2022 applications and onwards)
• Personal Statement (For Summer 2022 applications and onwards)
  One page long to indicate your interest to the program

Finding a Supervisor

Finding a supervisor might be the most important but challenging part of the admission process. As a graduate student, you will work under a supervisor for the selected program (M.Sc. and Ph.D.). The supervisor plays a crucial role in proposing and guiding your research project.

Only Faculty members and Associate members at the Department of Microbiology and Immunology may serve as a supervisor. The list of Professors who are eligible to supervise graduate students can be found at the Faculty Members and Associate Members pages. As per McGill policies and guidelines on graduate student advising and supervision, adjunct members may not act as sole supervisors but may serve as co-supervisors, with the unit's and GPS's approval. If problems arise, the McGill supervisor will be held accountable to McGill policies and regulations. The Graduate Program Director may serve as co-supervisor if needed.

When looking for a supervisor, start by carefully reading the information on the Professors’ pages. After that, you should be able to determine who is working in the field that interests you. If you cannot find sufficient information on the McGill website, look up some of the Professors' publications. Once you narrow your list down to a couple of researchers, please contact them directly by e-mail. In your email, you should specify your experience, educational background and your achievements in a brief Curriculum Vitae. Describe what type of research you would like to do and why you have chosen them for your supervisor. Explain why you would be an excellent addition to the lab and demonstrate which points from your CV prove that you can succeed in an academic environment. You may add your scanned transcript to demonstrate that your grades fulfill the Departmental admission requirements.

Professors receive many requests. If someone does not reply, it most likely means that they are not recruiting graduate students for this term. Our spam-protected messaging system works fine and all e-mails sent through this system are delivered directly to the intended recipient. It is the applicant’s responsibility to find a supervisor and obtain their agreement to supervise their graduate research.

Fund Your Studies

All newly admitted graduate students are guaranteed a minimum stipend per year. Departmental and/or external scholarships may supplement and/or contribute to the minimum stipend. For more information, visit Financial Support, Graduate studies fee tables and Cost of Attendance pages.