• The accelerated option requires students to complete one of either IBEHS 4F04 (Biomedical Instrumentation and Measurement) or IBEHS 4QZ3 (Modelling of Biological Systems) with the additional 600 level evaluation components (i.e., either IBEHS 6F04 or IBEHS 6QZ3) by the end of their 4th or final year. 
• Applicants in their penultimate year of undergraduate studies must have an annual sessional average of 9.0 or B+  (i.e. in the 3^rd year) at the time of contacting the Director of the School of Biomedical Engineering to express their intention to apply for the accelerated MASc option.  Students need to maintain a 9.0 or B+ average in both their 4 and 5th year; until undergraduate degree completion.
• At the end of their penultimate year, students will need to complete the first term of their research project with their proposed supervisor (i.e., from May through August) prior to completion of their undergraduate degree.

Admission is very competitive, so meeting/surpassing the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission to this program. Many variables are considered when the School of Biomedical Engineering is making a decision to recommend an applicant for admission, some of which include: research fit; available funding; the applicant’s statement of interest; the applicant’s specific industry/research experience outlined in their resume/CV; and the applicant’s reference reports.

Please note a complete application consists of the following documents submitted with an online application.

Statement of Interest – Resume- Transcripts – Letters of Recommendation: 2 academic references submitted electronically by referees

Transcript

• Please attach this to the online application:
• Transcript of academic work completed to date. If the final transcript does not show that a completed degree has been conferred, a copy of your diploma is also required.
• Official copies of these documents will only be required if an offer of admissions is made.

Letters of recommendation

• Letters of Recommendation are submitted electronically. Please follow the directions that are provided once you have initiated your application.

Statement of Interest

• Please attach this to the online application
• Simply a few paragraphs indicating the type of research you are interested in pursuing.

Resume

• Please attach this to the online application
• In the same format as you would submit for an employment opportunity.

Students must apply to Graduate Studies by the end of the final year of their undergraduate program and are expected to begin in May of the year they graduate. They will need to follow the normal application procedures of Graduate Studies and must meet the requirements of both the School of Biomedical Engineering and the School of Graduate Studies. Entry into the MASc program under the accelerated option must occur less than one year upon completing one’s undergraduate degree and must meet the same requirements for admissions as other candidates.

The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) at McMaster University uses an online graduate application system; for instructions on how to apply, please visit the Graduate Studies website.

Deadlines

Academic Term	Application Opens	Domestic Application Deadline	International Application Deadline
January	February 15	October 31	July 1
May	June 1	February  30	October 1
September	October 1	June 30	March 15

Applications will be processed and circulated to Faculty members once all documents have been received. All documents must be received by the specified deadline dates noted above for each session. 

Application Checklist

1. Application for admission to School of Graduate Studies (SGS): https://graduate.mcmaster.ca/academic-services/how-apply
2. A PDF copy of your transcript (1)
3. English language proficiency certification requirement. Candidates must have the minimum requirements as stated in the Admission Requirements tab
   *please upload a copy of your Test Scores with your application package* 
4. Statement of Interest (1-2 page document which indicates your interest in pursuing graduate studies with the School of Biomedical Engineering)
5. Resume
6. Application fee ($110 by credit card through the online system)
7. Two confidential letters of recommendation from instructors most familiar with your academic work. Please note that McMaster University uses the Electronic Referencing System. By entering the email address of your referee through the online application, the system will automatically send an e-Reference request on your behalf. If for some reason you are unable to use the Electronic Referencing System, you can download the Reference form here.

“Recommendations must be provided directly from the instructors.”

APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE REVIEWED UNTIL
ALL MATERIALS ARE RECEIVED

Note: If you are offered admission to the program, documents must be official and will not be returned to applicants. All documentation submitted (as PDF’s) in support of your application for admission becomes the property of the University. Applications from one year are not held over to another year. If an unsuccessful applicant wishes to reapply, a new application package, including supporting documentation and application fee must be submitted. If an applicant is not accepted or fails to enroll following acceptance, the identifiable documentation will be destroyed at the end of the admissions cycle, in keeping with university policy.

• Students can also consider an accelerated “Direct to Ph.D.” option.  Applicants must have a sessional average of 11.0 or A (i.e., in their 3rd year) at the time of contacting the Director of the School of Biomedical Engineering to express their intention to apply for this option. Students will need to maintain an 11.0 or an A average until undergraduate degree completion. 
• At the end of their 4^th year, students will need to complete the first term of their research project with their proposed supervisor (i.e., from May through August) prior to completion of their undergraduate degree.
• The accelerated option requires students to complete one of either IBEHS-4FO4 (Biomedical Instrumentation and Measurement) or IBEHS-4QZ3 (Modelling of Biological Systems) with the additional 600 level evaluation components (i.e., either IBEHS-6QZ3 or IBEHS-6FO4) completed by the end of their 5th and final year. The program will petition the School of Graduate Studies for advanced credit upon entry to the Doctoral degree.
• Students will officially start in the accelerated Ph.D. program option in May (after completion of their 5^th year and once they have been cleared to graduate) and pursue research throughout the summer. 
• Students would follow the same schedule as the MASc. option, however, they would extend the degree by at least 2 extra years (for a total of 3 years, post-undergraduate studies). Such students would need an additional three 700 level courses beyond the one 600 level and one core course (total of 5 courses). This option would be available only to McMaster undergraduate students. Other students already possessing an accelerated Master’s degree, or any other type of Master’s degree, would not be accepted into this program.
• Enrolled students would take either core course Biomed 701 3 unit course (required by HESE students) in the Fall or Biomed 706 3 unit course (required for Engineering students) in the Winter.
• Enrolled students would be required to take 3 other courses, at the 700 level, which would be decided upon between them and their supervisory committee.

Graduate Students Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Application Questions

Is there a deadline to apply to your program? 

Yes, please review the “How to Apply” section under the program you are interested in.

Do I need to send you official transcripts?

No, we do not require any official transcripts unless an applicant is granted an offer of admission. Only PDF copies are required for application review.

Do I need a supervisor?

Yes, both the MASc and Ph.D. Accelerated programs require that all students work with a supervisor.  Vist the tab ‘ Tips on Finding  a  Supervisor’.

Do I need to find a supervisor myself?

Applicants are not required to find a supervisor themselves however it is necessary that you reach out to them yourself. All faculty members can see all completed applications. If a faculty member is interested, they will reach out to you. 

My application is complete, what do I do now?

Your completed application is sent for review by our admissions committee. If deemed admissible, your application will be made available to all faculty members. If selected, you will be contacted by an interested faculty member directly and any offers of admission will come from the School of Graduate Studies. This process normally takes 8-12 weeks from the time your application was marked as “complete”. However, in peak periods, this review can take longer than usual. Offers of admission will be made on an ongoing basis until all spaces are filled.

Tuition and Funding

How much is tuition?

Pending Board of Governors approval. All fees are subject to change.

2020/2021 Tuition

• MASc-  under Graduate Programs – Master’s, Canadian – $6307.20; Visa – $17,096.22 per year
• Ph.D. – under Graduate Programs – Ph.D., Canadian & Visa – $6307.20 per year

Will I receive a scholarship?
Full-time MASc students receive funding from the department/supervisor in the form of scholarships and/or teaching assistantships (funding is for 12 months for the accelerated option). Full-time Ph.D. students receive funding from the department/supervisor in the form of scholarships and/or teaching assistantships (36 months for the accelerated option).

Application Process

Can the application fee be waived?

No. Unfortunately, we cannot waive the application fee for any reason. Your application WILL NOT be processed without payment.

How can I determine the status of my application?

Please check the on-line application using your access ID number to see what documents have been received. Applications will not be reviewed until all materials are received.

My application is complete, what do I do now?

Your completed application is sent for review and available to all our faculty members. You will be notified as soon as possible, but in peak periods, this review can take up to 12 weeks.

Other

How long are the Accelerated MASc & Ph.D. programs?

The Accelerated MASc program is for 12 months and the Direct Accelerated Ph.D. option is 36 months.

Ph.D. accelerated program is 3 years and the regular Ph.D. program is 4 years. Students are funded during this period.

Is Co-op an option in any of your programs?

Students in the accelerated option are not eligible for a Co-op.

Are there other requirements that I need to know about?

All Master’s and Ph.D. students must present one departmental seminar, complete the CARP training and hold an annual Supervisory Committee meeting.  A list of the program’s requirements and milestones can be found in this file.

NOTE: a complete application is required for review; applications deemed incomplete will not be reviewed. To ensure that your application is complete, please review this checklist of the required documents that you must upload into your application before you apply. Details on each item are provided below.

• Official Academic Transcripts and Degree Certificates
• Statement of Interest
• Resume/CV
• ELP (TOEFL/IELTS) Scores (if applicable)
• Proof of Permanent Resident Status (if applicable)
• *References (read carefully)
• Official Academic Transcripts and Degree Certificates

Electronic academic transcripts for ALL post-secondary studies completed or in progress at the time of application must be included in your application. Transcripts must show all courses and marks (where applicable), along with the transcripts’ legends/keys/grading schemes. Transcripts from institutions where you completed courses on Letter of Permission and/or as part of Student Exchange Programs must also be included.

Specific instructions for McMaster documents, documents from other Canadian institutions, and documents from recognized international institutions are detailed below.

Documents from Canadian institutions: Transcripts must be submitted electronically (scanned final or in-progress transcripts that are uploaded to your online application)

Documents from recognized international institutions:

1. Electronic transcripts, degree certificates and ELP (TOEFL/IELTS) results must be uploaded to your application. **Please ensure that scans of all original documents AND translations are included in your application; otherwise, your application may be deemed incomplete.
2. Official, FINAL hard copies of transcripts, degree certificates and ELP results are not required until your arrival to McMaster University. Please do not mail incomplete or unofficial documents to the University. Your official, hardcopy documents must meet the following conditions in order to secure your study at McMaster University:

Original degree certificates and/or transcripts produced in English MUST include the date of degree conferral;
**Original degree certificates produced in another language MUST be issued by the previous institution, bearing the appropriate seal/signature, and be delivered to our office (ETB-406) in a sealed envelope when you arrive; additionally
**Original degree certificates produced in another language MUST be translated into English by a certified translator and include the date of degree conferral and the name of degree conferred, along with the translator’s seal;
**Original transcripts produced in another language MUST be issued by the previous institution and be delivered to our office (ETB-406) in a sealed envelope when you arrive; additionally
**Original transcripts produced in another language MUST be translated into English by a certified translator and include the translator’s seal.

**International students: If you are offered admission to the School of Biomedical Engineering you should be prepared to provide one original degree certificate (only if transcripts do not indicate a date of degree conferral) and one set of original, final transcripts to McMaster University when you arrive, along with a separate translation package; the translation package will NOT satisfy admission conditions on its own. Failure to provide all required documents upon arrival will jeopardize your study at McMaster University.

Statement of Interest: The statement of interest should be uploaded to your application as a PDF file; without it, your application will be deemed incomplete. This document should be a maximum of 2 pages and clearly communicate:

• Your research interests/focus, especially within the context of Biomedical Engineering.
• How your education and experience align with research areas in the School of Biomedical Engineering;
  any contributions you hope to make to research initiatives during your study and how you plan to make them (methods, approach); and
• evidence of your ability to work collaboratively and independently.

Resume/CV: Like with the statement of interest, your resume/CV should be uploaded to your application as a PDF file; without it, your application will be deemed incomplete.

English Language Proficiency Scores (if applicable): Your ELP scores should be uploaded to your application as a PDF file. If you are an international student who would NOT be eligible for admission without these scores, your application will be deemed incomplete if these scores are not included. (Please refer to the Admission Requirements tab if you are unclear about your eligibility.)

Proof of Permanent Resident/Landed Immigrant Status (if applicable): For permanent residents/landed immigrants only: if your VISA STATUS lists “Permanent Resident of Canada” or “Landed Immigrant”, you must upload a scan of your permanent residence card (front and back) or Record of Landing (IMM1000), respectively, to your application.

References: Before beginning your application, you should obtain the consent of two instructors who are familiar with your academic work to provide confidential reference reports. You are not required to submit reference letters as part of your application; however, you must list your references and their contact information on your application. By entering the email address of your references through your online application, McMaster’s Electronic Referencing (e-Reference) system will send your references an e-Reference request on your behalf.

IMPORTANT: the system will send the e-Reference request to your references ONLY AFTER YOU SUBMIT your online application. This means that you will need to have completed AND uploaded your scanned transcripts, degree certificates (if applicable), Statement of Interest, CV/resume, ELP results (if applicable), and proof of permanent residence (if applicable) to your online application BEFORE you can click “Submit”.

References may require 3-4 weeks to complete a reference report. References should be allowed time to complete their reference report. Please keep this in mind when you are working on your application.

If for some reason, you are unable to use the Electronic Referencing System, you can email biomedg@mcmaster.ca and request a copy of the form. Downloaded reference forms must be sent by the reference DIRECTLY to through e-mail (biomedg@mcmaster.ca).

For students applying to the Accelerated option, the School of Biomedical Engineering admits new students in May following the 4 month research summer work term. 

• Determine if you meet our minimum eligibility requirements; you can do this yourself by reviewing the Admission Requirements tab.
• After confirming your eligibility, you are advised to review the Application Deadline dates for your chosen program.
• The caveat for international applicants: we recognize that you may need a number of months to obtain a student visa after a final decision of admission is made; therefore, we recommend that you take that timing into consideration when you apply.
  In preparation for your application, you should decide on a list of prospective supervisors (as the application will allow you to indicate up to three).

It is recommended that you review the bios and research of our faculty members before applying to identify Areas of Research and projects that align with your interests and experience. At this point, you may wish to reach out to your chosen faculty member(s) by email to generate their interest. In your initial communication with faculty members, you should offer a brief introduction sharing your research interests, and explain how you expect your education and experience will contribute to their research. It is recommended that you attach your curriculum vitae for reference. Electronic transcripts may be attached for further support.

• After you have decided on a list of prospective supervisors, area(s) of research, and term of study, you can start to prepare your documents for your online application. To ensure that nothing is overlooked, please refer to the Documents Checklist tab.
• You are now ready to apply! For instructions on how to construct your application, please see the How to Apply tab.

Application Status

After you successfully submit your application, you will receive a confirmation email from The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) within a few days. (If you do not receive this email, please email biomedg@mcmaster.ca for assistance).

The confirmation email will contain important information about how to access Mosaic so that you can follow the status of your application and your checklist of required documents. Typically, documents in the “Initiated” stage indicate that your application has not been marked as complete. This should not be immediate cause for concern, as Mosaic checklist updates are performed manually (not automatically); therefore- given the volume of applications received–you may need to wait up to a month to see a status update.

If after a month from your application submission you notice that some documents have remained in the “Initiated” stage, you should understand this to mean that your application is incomplete. Prior to the application deadline, you may email the graduate administrator (biomedg@mcmaster.ca) to gain clarity on any documents in the “Initiated” stage; however, any arrangements to receive supplementary documents are at the discretion of the graduate administrator (as all supplementary documents are supposed to be submitted together).

• At the end of their 4^th year, students will need to complete the first term of their research project with their proposed supervisor (i.e. during May through August), prior to completion of their undergraduate degree.
• The accelerated option requires students to complete one of either IBEHS-4FO4 (Biomedical Instrumentation and Measurement) or IBEHS-4QZ3 (Modelling of Biological Systems) with the additional 600 level evaluation components (i.e. either IBEHS-6QZ3 or IBEHS-6FO4) by their 5^th and final year.
• Students will officially start their accelerated MASc in May (after completion of their 5^th year, and once they have been cleared to graduate) and pursue research through the summer.
• Students would take either core course Biomed 701 (required by HESE students) in the Fall or Biomed 706 (required for Engineering students) in the Winter.
• They would be required to take a third course, at the 700 level, which would be decided upon between them and their supervisor.

Additional information can be found in the Graduate Student Handbook

Here are some tips to find a supervisor for your graduate studies.

1. Visit the sBME faculty page to explore the supervisors within the School of Biomedical Engineering. Look for supervisors that are doing research in your field of interest. 
2. Contact the potential supervisor you are interested in before or after you have completed your application. Best methods of contact will depend on the professor, which include emails, phone calls, or in person meetings. Professors are busy and you might have to reach out a couple times before you get a response.
3. Set a meeting with your potential supervisor. It is important to meet with your supervisor to understand each other expectations.
4. Ask your potential supervisory if you can internship in their lab. This will help you get research experience and help you know if you will like the research.

Topic: BME – Accelerated Option for IBEHS Students

Accelerted Option Information Session Video Recording

Date: March 11, 2022

Meeting Recording:

https://mcmaster.zoom.us/rec/share/HbudKrHxKBAd7wvfUhxs1cZcgj7GdTp5fZyX_a4SehVsWMGqQY0HibZqnaD0YzCl.U8pslSr1_2Ev8WPJ

Access Passcode: wK10u$AP

Accelerated Information Session Slides