Canada
Medical school admissions in Ontario
Ontario has 5 medical schools, in Toronto, Hamilton, London, Kingston, Ottawa. This page sets out how the province's process is structured. Requirements and seat allocations change between cycles, so confirm the current details on each school's own admissions page.
How you apply
Every Ontario medical school applies through OMSAS, a single shared application service run by the Ontario Universities' Application Centre. One OMSAS application feeds all of them, but each school then evaluates it on its own terms.
In-province and out-of-province eligibility
Ontario schools generally consider Ontario residents for the large majority of seats, with a smaller number available to applicants from other provinces. Some schools also run separate geographic categories, such as Southwestern Ontario or francophone streams.
What is specific to Ontario
- Ontario has the largest number of medical schools of any province, so an Ontario resident usually has the widest set of realistic options in the country.
- Because the schools share one portal but not one rubric, the same written file is read by very different systems. U of T, McMaster, Western, Queen's, and uOttawa each weight academics and experiences differently.
- uOttawa does not require the MCAT, which changes strategy for applicants whose MCAT is weaker than the rest of their file.
- McMaster uses only part of the MCAT rather than the total score.
Medical schools in Ontario
| School | City | MCAT | CASPer |
|---|---|---|---|
| U of T | Toronto | Threshold | Not required |
| McMaster | Hamilton | Threshold | Required |
| Western (Schulich) | London | Threshold | Not required |
| Queen's | Kingston | Threshold | Required |
| uOttawa | Ottawa | Not required | Not required |
Each school publishes its own requirements. Confirm them on the official admissions page before planning around them.
ConsulMD is an independent educational mentorship service. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any medical school, university, application service, or testing organization. Reviewers rely only on publicly available information and do not use confidential admissions materials.
Keep reading
- In-province vs out-of-province: where you are actually competitive
- The full Canadian application timeline
- How OMSAS works
- Preparing for CASPer
- How the MMI works
- Requirements at every Canadian medical school
- Mentorship and individual services
Other provinces
Applying in Ontario this cycle?
Start with a candidate intake enquiry. We will look at where you are eligible and what your file actually needs.