How to Apply

All applications to graduate school at the University of Toronto are made online through the School of Graduate Studies (SGS). Create your account and access your application at SGS Online Application. Please note there is an CDN $130 application fee. Applicants will only be able to submit the Supporting Documents after Payment of the Application Fee.

What drives your passion for research? Please submit a 1 to 2 page Letter of Intent. In the letter of intent, please describe why you wish to enter the Biochemistry Graduate Program, your career aspirations, and a brief description of research experience you may already have (summer work, honours project, co-op work, etc.), and any further background you would like to include. Please also indicate specific areas of research that are of interest to you, and if possible, specify Faculty members whose research aligns well with your interests.

International Applicants (Applicants who are not Citizens or Permanent Residents of Canada): In your letter of intent, you must include why you are interested in pursuing a PhD in a particular lab (the Sponsor - see further information below).

Applicants must provide an Academic CV (maximum 4 pages) that includes the following information:

1. Education
2. Honors and Awards
3. Experience (research, teaching, and/or professional)
4. Community involvement or leadership experience
5. Publications and conferences

Letters of reference are important in the evaluation process. We are particularly interested in receiving letters from research supervisors. If the applicant completed an undergraduate project/thesis course or did research in a co-op session or as a summer student, they should ask scientists who have supervised the research projects to write letters of reference on their behalf.

We require three letters of reference from people familiar with the applicant’s academic/research capabilities. To do this, applicants must submit an email address for each reference at the time of filling out the online application form.  Applicants should use institutional email addresses for their referees (gmail, Yahoo, hotmail etc. will be prohibited). Your reference request is sent to each referee by e-mail as soon as you enter their contact information. Please enter referee contact information only if you are certain of applying to any given program. 

Please do not enter more than 3 referees.  If you have already entered more than three referees, please choose which three you would like to keep, and remove any additional referees by clicking "exclude" next to their name in your application. 

Important Note: Applicants applying for the January 15th deadline must advise their referees of the early document deadline as the system will automatically indicate the March deadline in the instructions they receive.

As part of your application, you must upload scanned transcripts from all post-secondary institutions you have attended. Each transcript must include a grading legend. If you receive an offer of admission, you will be required to submit official transcripts directly from the issuing institution—either in a sealed envelope or as an official e-transcript.

Submission Requirements:

Deadline: Transcripts must be received by the application deadline to ensure your application is reviewed.

Format: Scanned copies of official transcripts or official e-transcripts are preferred. Unofficial university-issued transcripts are acceptable.

• Scanned copies of official transcripts or official e-transcripts are preferred.
• Unofficial transcripts issued by your institution are acceptable.
• Transcripts in languages other than English must include a certified English translation, combined into a single PDF with the original transcript.

Canadian Universities: A PDF from your online student record system is acceptable if it includes your name and the grading legend. It must be printed directly to PDF or scanned—screenshots and summaries are not accepted.  University of Toronto students are not required to include the grading legend.

Note: Admission offers are conditional upon receipt of official transcripts sent directly from your university registrar to the Department of Biochemistry.  Instructions for submitting official transcripts will be provided upon admission.

If you graduated from a non-Canadian institution where the language of instruction and examination was not English, you must demonstrate proficiency in English by submitting results from an approved English language test.

This requirement must be fulfilled at the time of application and is mandatory prior to registration. Test results must be no more than 24 months old at the time of submission.

Please review equivalent English-language facility test for minimal acceptable scores and exemptions to ensure you meet the criteria. University of Toronto Code: 0982

International applicants (students who are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada)* must find a sponsor before they submit their application. A sponsor is a Faculty member who provides a commitment of placement in the event that you are not able to secure a placement in a lab after the rotation process.

When reaching out to Faculty members prospective applicants should include a copy of your CV, Letter of Intent, and Transcripts. The Letter of Intent should include why you are interested in pursuing a PhD in a particular lab.

Once you have secured a Sponsor, please inform the Sponsor that they must submit a Sponsorship Form to Carrie Harber.

*Exception - Students who received their BSc degree from the University of Toronto*