• Minimum 90% Grade 12 average in the five required courses, plus one additional Grade 12 course
• Completion of the mandatory online Level I Supplementary Application by the specified deadline date
• English U
• Biology U
• Chemistry U
• One of Grade 12 Mathematics of Data Management U (MDM4U), Advanced Functions U (MHF4U) or Calculus and Vectors U (MCV4U). For applicants who present more than one of these math courses, the highest grade at the time of review will be used to calculate the admission average.
• One non-math or non-science U or M credit (note: PSE4U Exercise Science will satisfy this course requirement)
• Note: Courses in technological education, science or mathematics are not acceptable. You can use the search feature to determine if your Grade 12 U/M course fulfills this requirement.
• One additional U or M credit to total six courses. 
• No additional documentation (i.e., CV/resume, reference letters) is accepted or considered for admission. 
• Supplementary Applications will be reviewed for those applicants who satisfy the grade and course requirements. A combination of the supplementary application ranking and Grade 12 marks with high rankings on both elements will determine if an applicant will receive an admission offer. 
• Admission offers will be made in early May. 

Learn more.

• Minimum 90% Grade 12 average
• Completion of the mandatory online Level I Supplementary Application by the specified deadline date
• English
• Math
• Biology
• Chemistry
• One non-math or non-science Note: Courses in technological education, science or mathematics are not acceptable.
• If you are attending a school outside of Canada, you must satisfy the admission requirements.
• No additional documentation (i.e., CV/resume, reference letters) is accepted or considered for admission
• Supplementary Applications will be reviewed for those applicants who satisfy the grade and course requirements. A combination of the Supplementary Application ranking and final/interim Grade 12 marks with high rankings on both elements will determine if an applicant will receive an admission offer.
• Admission offers will be made in early May

Learn more.

Unfortunately, if you missed the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) application deadline date, you will not be considered for this program.

Your Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) ranking of the BHSc (Hons) Program has no impact on our admissions decisions.

An applicant’s grades and their scores on the mandatory online Supplementary Application both factor into the admissions decisions. Supplementary Applications are reviewed for applicants who satisfy the admission requirements. Each Supplementary Application is scored by multiple reviewers and if there is significant disagreement between the initial reviewers an additional reviewer is added. Once the Supplementary Application scores are finalized, an iterative approach is used to determine which applicants will receive an offer of admission based on both the GPA and the Supplementary Application scores. Thus, it is possible to have a very high GPA and still not receive an offer of admission.

Given the large number of applications to the program (over 7,000 applicants), there are many more excellent applicants than we are able to accommodate in our incoming class. Not receiving an offer of admission does not mean we thought the application is weak. It simply that there are more excellent applicants than we are able to accept.

Yes, you may have read media stories about students with a 98%+ average who did not get an offer of admission to the program or have seen in various internet forums that there is no point in applying if you don’t have a GPA of at least 95%. However, we factor both the Supplementary Application score and the GPA into our decision-making, so applicants with a very high GPA may not get an offer of admission if their Supplementary Application score is weak, and applicants with a GPA in the low 90s and a strong Supplementary Application score can get an offer. In fact, we make offers of admission to applicants across the entire spectrum of grades from the low- to high-90s, so do not count yourself out if your average is in the low 90s.

The target enrolment in the BHSc (Honours) Program is 240 students in Level I and 20 students transferring into Level II. Target enrolments may vary from year to year.

Given the volume of applications to the program (over 7,000 applicants), the limited number of seats available and the number of talented and qualified applicants, we simply cannot accommodate everyone in the program due to sheer numbers.

If you are very interested in the BHSc (Hons) Program, but did not receive an offer of admission for Level I, we also have a limited number of spots available for transfer students into Level II.

Admissions decisions are final and we only reconsider applicants in cases where there are errors in the applicant’s high school transcripts. We will not review any additional information or conduct interviews. We do not disclose Supplementary Application scores or rankings to applicants, nor do we provide any feedback on individual applications.

The BHSc (Hons) Program aims to provide students an understanding of health from the integration of biological, psychosocial and health-systems based perspectives of illness and wellness. Life Sciences aims to provide students a foundation in traditional scientific disciplines, such as: biology, psychology, neuroscience, earth and environmental science. Applicants are encouraged to contact each program directly to obtain more information.

The BHSc (Honours) Program does not provide a program specific entrance award but you may be eligible for a McMaster University entrance award. Please review details and eligibility criteria on the Student Aid and Awards website.

In Level I, BHSc (Honours) students are required to complete 21 units of required courses and 9 units of elective courses, for a total of 30 units: 

• 6 units HTHSCI 1I06 (Cellular and Molecular Biology) 
• 6 units CHEM 1A03 and CHEM 1AA3 (Introductory Chemistry I and Introductory Chemistry II) 
• 6 units HTHSCI 1E06 (Inquiry) 
• 2 units HTHSCI 1G02 (Interdisciplinary Problem-Solving in Health) 
• 1 unit HTHSCI 1X01 (Praxis Pathways 1) 
• 1 course in WHMIS 1A00 (WHMIS, Health and Safety) 

Learn more..

We want students to not only do well academically but also to be well as whole people.   

There are multiple ways you can access support as you are transitioning into the program including, but not limited to: 

• The BHSc Buddy System: 
  • Managed by upper year BHSc students, matching first year students with upper year students who can help answer questions and understand more about how the BHSc (Hons) Program works
• Peer tutors and facilitators in your first year inquiry (HTHSCI 1E06) classes are valuable contacts when you need support
• Visit the BHSc (Hons) Program Office:
  • Our staff is eager to help you solve problems  
  • The BHSc (Hons) Program Office is in Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery (MDCL) 3300 and we are open Monday – Friday 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. 
  • We offer drop-in academic advising every Wednesday 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. 
  • If you cannot come to drop-in advising, you can make an appointment with one of our advisors via email
• Other on campus supports: 
  • The Office of Student Affairs has a large range of programs and services 
  • Student Accessibility Services 
  • Student Wellness Centre 
  • Student Success Centre 
  • Black Student Success Centre
  • International Student Services 
  • Student Aid & Awards
  • Indigenous students can access support through the Indigenous Health Learning Lodge (IHLL)

• Completion of the mandatory online Supplementary Application by the specified deadline date 
  • One full year of undergraduate university studies
  • Completion of six units (full course) of university Level I Biology and six units of Level I Chemistry. Minimum 10.0 (A-) on a 12.0 scale GPA/average
• McMaster University transfer applicants are required to complete a Level II program application on Mosaic, which is available in April, as well as the mandatory Supplementary Application
• Applicants from other post-secondary institutions must apply by April 1 via the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) and complete the mandatory Supplementary Application. 
• Deadline for external applicants to submit a final university transcript to McMaster University Admissions Office is June 1 
• Supplementary Applications will be reviewed for those applicants who satisfy the grade and course requirements. A combination of the Supplementary Application ranking and university grades with high rankings on both elements will determine if an applicant receives an admission offer.
• No additional documentation (i.e., CV/resume, reference letters) is accepted or considered for admission

Note: Transfer applicants are ineligible to apply to the BHSc Child Health Specialization

If you are currently in Level I of a undergraduate university program, you can apply to the BHSc (Hons) Program Level II as a transfer applicant, provided you satisfy the admission requirements.

We are going to stop you right there. There are a lot of things in online forums about the BHSc (Hons) Program that are inaccurate, not correct and outright nonsense. For example, some forums claim that if you do not have a 95% GPA or higher, there is no point in applying. This is false. Successful applicants span the entire eligible grade range from 90–100%.

Some of these forums have contributors who identify themselves as BHSc students or alums and give advice based on their insight or experience. Take these with multiple grains of salt. It is possible they are not. Also, even if they are, the information they provide is based on their own individual experience and perception and may not be representative of all students or may not be correct. The information they give may well be useful but just bear in mind it is not the definitive account of things.

Our website represents a repository of information about the program and if you have questions that cannot be answered here, you can contact us with your questions. You can visit us at the Ontario University Fair event each fall in Toronto, on campus during one of the fall or spring preview days or make arrangements to come by the office to chat. We would be happy to meet with you.