Application Procedures

Before you start, download the Applicant Checklist. Use this checklist as a reference when completing your application to ensure that you are submitting all required documents and that they are in the correct format. 

For applicants interested in the CBMG program, please indicate this on the application checklist.

For international MSc applicants, please secure your sponsoring faculty prior to submitting your application.

A minimum of two reference reports from professors or lab heads who know you, your work/study habits, and your research capabilities. At least one of the letters should be from a professor who has supervised you directly in a laboratory where you performed an independent research project.

Letters typically describe the relationship of the referee to you, the research project(s) you undertook, and a candid assessment of your intellectual capacity, aptitude for laboratory research, ability at interpreting and presenting scientific data, motivation, organizational habits, and communication and interpersonal skills. Any additional information that will inform the admissions committee regarding your suitability for postgraduate education and a career in research is welcome.

A third letter is optional but may be helpful. It can be from someone less familiar with your research skills - for example, a professor who knows you from a course, but not in a research capacity; a non-faculty researcher who has worked with you, a former employer or work term supervisor, etc. These letters should nonetheless address your attributes that are relevant to graduate study in Molecular Genetics.

An institutional email address is required for each of your referees. If you are submitting two references, it is imperative that both referees' institutional email addresses are provided. Should you choose to include three references, the department is open to considering one non-institutional email address. However, if you opt for a reference with a non-institutional email address, we kindly request that you reach out to us at mgy.info@utoronto.ca, providing the referee's name, title, institution, phone number, relationship to you, and a non-institutional email address.

All applications are reviewed electronically; therefore hard copies of reference letters cannot be accepted.

A Curriculum Vitae or Resume that briefly outlines all of your previous education, work experience, and interests, must also be submitted electronically through the online application system. Please save your file in MS Word or PDF format before uploading it to your online application. 

A letter of intent (submitted online). This letter should briefly describe your previous research experience and outline your future goals, and research interests (e.g., tell us which professors in our department you would be interested in working with and why). The Letter of Intent should be a maximum of 2 pages (normal Word formatting).

For applicants interested in the CBMG program, please describe your quantitative and computational interests and research experience. If you are interested in computational biology, but not in the CBMG direct-entry PhD program, please also describe these interests.

You will be asked to submit one electronic or scanned unofficial transcript from each post-secondary institution you have attended. Scanned copies must be up to date and must contain the transcript legend (usually printed on the back of a paper transcript). Transcripts submitted without a legend will not be accepted.

For transcripts that are not in English, an English translation must be provided. The admissions committee will make a decision about your application based on the scanned transcript.

Please ensure that the file is complete and readable before submitting it. If admitted, you will be required to submit an official transcript; verification of your paper or electronic transcript will be a condition that must be satisfied before registration.

As English is the primary language of instruction and communication at the University of Toronto, applicants must demonstrate an adequate level of proficiency in English, regardless of their citizenship status or country of origin. It is important that these students follow SGS policies on ELP testing requirements and take one of the required tests for admission to a graduate program.

Applicants from universities outside Canada where English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of their application. Please see the tests accepted for the English Proficiency requirement on the School of Graduate Studies website: https://www.sgs.utoronto.ca/future-students/admission-application-requirements/english-language-proficiency-testing/

Test scores are reported electronically to the university at your request. Use the institutional code 0982-00.