Admission

All MSc and PhD candidates admitted to the Department of Biology are expected to have or to make up a background knowledge of basic biology of at least equivalent to that of a BSc student graduating from this department.

GPA and degree requirements

Admission to the MSc program requires a bachelor’s degree, preferably in Biology or Biochemistry or related field, with a minimum grade point of 6.5 on the University of Victoria 9-point scale (= B+/A-), or its equivalent, in the second half of a BSc (last two years or equivalent).  Please note that our minimum GPA requirement is higher than the Faculty of Graduate Studies' minimum requirement.

Admission to the PhD program will normally require an MSc in Biology or Biochemistry or related field, with a minimum GPA of 7.0 (=A-, 1st class standing) on the University of Victoria 9-point scale.

Supervisor requirement

In order to be admitted into the program, students must be accepted by a supervisor (i.e. regular faculty member). To identify potential supervisors, prospective students are strongly encouraged to directly contact faculty members whose research interests are aligned with theirs. Faculty members’ research interests and contact information can be found here. Students that are supervised by UVic adjunct faculty members require co-supervision by UVic regular faculty members.

Additional requirements

• Applicants whose first language is not English, and who have not resided in a designated English-speaking country for three years immediately prior to the entry-point applied for, must provide proof of English language proficiency.
• The GRE is NOT required.