Your medical career starts here!
For the first time in Canada, high school students now have a direct route to medical school.
You can be guaranteed a spot at the School of Medicine at St. George's University (SGU) in Grenada, earning your Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree within six years of finishing high school.
You'll spend two years in the Medical Sciences program at Waterloo and then complete four years of clinical training through St. George's University. You'll earn a Bachelor of Medical Sciences (BMS) from Waterloo and your MD from SGU.
With millions of Canadians lacking a family doctor and more than 30,000 students applying to 3,100 spots at Canadian medical schools, innovative solutions to the country's doctor shortage are urgently needed. This new partnership provides an accelerated six-year pathway for students wishing to become a physician.
Note: This program is subject to formal approval.
How does the program work?
- You'll apply directly to SGU's MD program.
- If you're admitted, you'll automatically receive an offer of admission to Waterloo's Medical Sciences program.
- You'll spend two years at Waterloo, and then move to SGU’s Grenada campus to begin your medical training.
- After two years at SGU, you'll start two years of clinical training at one of SGU’s 75+ affiliated hospitals in the US, Canada, or UK.
- You'll finish your training, receive your MD degree, and join a global network of 23,000 SGU graduates practising in nearly every medical specialty.
An international leader in medical training
St. George’s University has trained more than 23,000 doctors who are now practising medicine in 50+ countries. More than 2,100 Canadian students have graduated from the SGU School of Medicine. SGU is the largest provider of new doctors into North American residencies for the past 11 years.
There are currently 24 Waterloo graduates enrolled in the MD program at SGU. For these students, it's an eight-year path to become a doctor. The new Medical Sciences/MD program provides a faster route to becoming a doctor, requiring only six years to obtain an MD from high school.
What are the benefits of the program?
- As an applicant from high school, you’ll have the confidence of knowing you’ve been accepted into medical school and have the momentum to pursue your MD.
- The Waterloo/SGU program is faster than the traditional path of completing a degree and then applying to an MD program.
- You'll have the support from advisors and a community of other students heading to medical school.
- Spend two years at one of Canada's top universities and then attend a global leader in medical training.
“As an international grad, I get asked by prospective students in information sessions all the time, ‘would I do it again’?” said Dr. Devlin. “And my answer would be ‘yes’ because my goal was to come back and be a physician in Canada, and SGU helped me to do that. It was my pathway to getting to where I wanted to be."
Daniel Devlin, MD ’19
Dr. Persaud says she quickly learned that in Ontario, there is much flexibility within family medicine. "You can choose to subspecialize or focus your practice if desired. Family medicine encompasses a broad range of topics and is ‘cradle to grave’ oriented. This allows me to provide comprehensive care for a wide array of patients. You always see something new in this field of medicine—it is rewarding and fascinating!"
Dr. Alicia Persaud, MD '20
Supporting your success
As a student in the program, you'll have an advisor at Waterloo and at SGU. You'll benefit from activities with your classmates, have access to a peer mentors, and be able to interact with SGU alumni and physicians.
The Office of Career Guidance at SGU will provide support beginning in second year of the MD program. This support continues after you graduate and enter residency. If you intend to return to Canada for your residency, you'll have access to resources such as a Canadian residency mentor who provides coaching on navigating the residency recruitment process.
Tuition fees
Because the two years at Waterloo are part of your medical education, tuition fees are set by St. George's University and you'll pay your fees to SGU.
Admissions
You'll apply directly through SGU’s streamlined admissions process. The admissions team considers your full background: academics, personal development, extracurriculars, and community involvement.
Review the admission requirements on SGU's School of Medicine website.
How to apply
- Submit your online application on the St. George's University website (no application fee required).
- Submit your documents to SGU.
- If you receive an offer of admission, congratulations! Submit your deposit to SGU to confirm your place.
- You'll then be sent a link to the Ontario Universities' Application Centre (OUAC) website where you'll apply to Waterloo's Medical Sciences program. The application fee is waived.
- Once we receive your application from the OUAC, we'll register you in the Medical Sciences program. Over the next weeks and months, we'll send you information about your first-year courses, options if you wish to live residence, and getting ready to start at Waterloo in September.
Once you apply, an SGU representative will contact you to guide you through the next steps.
Note: The University of Waterloo is now accepting applications for the proposed Bachelor of Medical Sciences (Waterloo) and Doctor of Medicine (SGU) degree program. Processing of these applications and admission of students will not occur until the program is approved by the Ontario Universities Council on Quality Assurance (Quality Council).
The University will acknowledge and store applications, but will be unable to evaluate or act on them in any way until the program has been formally approved by the Quality Council. In the unlikely case that the program is not approved, the application fee will be refunded*. Please contact science@uwaterloo.ca for more information.
*Refunds are provided by the Department/School.
Related programs
Have questions or want to know if SGU is the right fit for you?
- Email admission@sgu.edu to start the conversation!
- Visit the SGU School of Medicine website.
- Attend an SGU information session.
- Questions about the Medical Sciences program at Waterloo? Email science@uwaterloo.ca
Program is subject to approval
Prospective students are advised that offers of admission to a new program may be made only after the university's own quality assurance processes have been completed and the Ontario Universities Council on Quality Assurance (Quality Council) has approved the program.