Updated October 18, 2019
University of Ottawa
Queen’s University
Northern Ontario School of Medicine
University of Toronto
McMaster University
Western University
General Information
The Ontario Faculties of Medicine and Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care have agreed to the following policies for the 2020 PGY1 match. It is important to note that individual residency programs may have additional specific criteria that are used to review applications. Please carefully review the program specific criteria as well as the provincial criteria listed below.
All matched applicants must meet the criteria for registration with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) for postgraduate medical education. http://www.cpso.on.ca/.
ANY DELAYS IN PROVIDING ALL REQUIRED DOCUMENTATION TO CPSO MAY RESULT IN A DELAY IN ISSUANCE OF A CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION AND A DELAY IN START OF POSTGRADUATE TRAINING BEYOND JULY 1ST.
For the purposes of clarity, Ontario has accepted the following definitions:
A Canadian Medical Graduate or U.S. Medical Graduate (CMG/USMG) is an individual who received their medical degree from a medical school accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) or the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). From here on in this will be referred to as a CMG.
An International Medical Graduate (IMG) is an individual who received their medical degree from a medical school that is not accredited by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS) or the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). From here on in this will be referred to as an IMG.
R-1 First Iteration
There will be two parallel streams – CMG and IMG – with designated positions for each stream. There will be no crossovers or transfers between the two streams.
Eligibility
You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.
All Candidates that have previous post-graduate training in the U.S. or Canada which would be creditable for Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada or College of Family Physicians of Canada certification are NOT ELIGIBLE for the first iteration. Physicians in practice are not eligible for the R-1 match.
Please be advised that graduates of Osteopathic Medical Schools will be eligible for IMG positions only, and will be required to complete both the MCCQE1 and NAC OSCE as standard Ontario entry criteria. For more information on accredited Osteopathic programs visit COM Accreditation.
Additional Eligibility Information for IMGs:
The National Assessment Collaboration (NAC) Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) is mandatory for all IMGs. The results are required by the file review opening date. For more information click on the following link National Assessment Collaboration | Medical Council of Canada.
For the 2020 CaRMS match IMGs must have written and passed the Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination Part 1(MCCQE1) or the Medical Council of Canada Evaluation Examination (MCCEE) Medical Council of Canada. The MCCQE1 is preferred in 2020 and will be mandatory for the 2021 CaRMS match. Exam results must be provided by the File Review Opening Date. Please review specific residency program descriptions for more information.
Required Documents for ALL Candidates
Legal Status
Proof of valid current citizenship or permanent resident status must be provided by submitting one of the following verifications to CaRMS by the Rank Order List deadline. Failure to provide valid proof will result in your application being removed. No other forms of verification are acceptable:
- Notarized/certified photocopy of Birth Certificate issued by an authority in Canada accompanied by photo ID (must be a Canadian government issued photo ID), or
- Notarized/certified photocopy of Canadian Passport, or
- Notarized/certified photocopy of confirmation of permanent residence accompanied by photo ID (must be a Canadian government issued photo ID), or
- Notarized/certified photocopy of Permanent Resident Card/Canadian Citizen Card — copies of both sides of card must be provided and legible.
Proof of Medical Diploma (MD)
A notarized/certified copy of medical school marks/transcripts and medical degree/diploma must be submitted. Documents that are not in English must be accompanied by a notarized translation. Students applying in the last year of medical
school will need to submit their most recent marks/transcripts, and will need to provide proof of their MD to CPSO prior to the start of residency training.
Additional Document Information for IMGs
IMGs must be graduates of an acceptable medical school on the World Directory of Medical Schools list. Candidate must submit to the Program a copy or printout of the website listing the medical school which clearly states that the language of instruction is English or French.
All IMGs need to have their documents verified through physiciansapply.ca. This process can take several months to complete. Individuals are advised to visit physiciansapply.ca at the point of application.
Language Requirements
Applicants must be able to communicate in the language of instruction and patient care of the matching school.
Must provide proof of English or French language proficiency through ONE of the following:
- International English Language Testing System (IELTS) with a minimum score of 7 in each component, or
- TOEFL-lbt — passing score of 93 including a minimum score of 24 on the speaking section, or
- A pass result in the French proficiency test administered by the Collège des Médecins du Québec, or
- Candidates for whom their primary and secondary, or medical school education was conducted in English or French, the Ontario medical schools will accept Language Proficiency Attestations as follows:
- Primary and Secondary Education: Mailed directly from the Senior Academic Administrators of both schools to the program confirming that all of the candidate’s primary and secondary education was conducted completely in English or French.
- Medical School: Mailed directly from the Dean of the candidate’s medical school confirming that the language of instruction and patient care was conducted completely in English or French, or
- World Directory of Medical Schools Language Option: If the instruction and the language of patient care at the undergraduate medical school was conducted completely in English or French, then a candidate must submit to the program a copy or printout of the World Directory of Medical Schools website listing the medical school which clearly states that the language of instruction is English or French.
Please review specific program descriptions for more information.
Return of Service
The Ministry requests all ROS agreements before June 1 of the year they were matched. All agreements should be returned to the Ministry prior to the start of residency training.
More information for IMG ROS can be found here: http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/hhrsd/physicians/international_medical_graduates.aspx
Information about the Ministry’s ROS programs is available at: http://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/hhrsd/physicians/ros.aspx
Pre-residency Orientation Programs
All IMG candidates accepted to all residency programs will be required to complete either the Pre-Residency Program (PRP) or the Pre-Residency Program for Family Medicine (PRPFM) prior to entering into a residency program. Matched IMGs will be expected to attend these programs in Toronto, several weeks in advance of the start of their residency program. In some cases, this may result in a delay of the start date of the residency. Additional information on the PRP and PRP FM programs can be found at the following link: Touchstone Institute.
Assessment Verification Period
All IMG candidates accepted to residency training programs will be required to undergo an Assessment Verification Period (AVP). This assessment period is normally 12 weeks in length and is required by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario to obtainan educational license to enter a residency program. CPSO – International Medical Graduates (IMGs).
IMGs that have failed an AVP and are reapplying through CaRMS are ineligible to apply for training in the same specialty in Ontario, but may apply to a different specialty in the first and/or second iteration. IMGs who have withdrawn from a program prior to completion of an AVP must declare so upon application.
R-1 Second Iteration
In the second iteration there will be two parallel streams – CMG and IMG – with designated positions for each stream. There will be no crossovers or transfers between the two streams. Only Residents currently register in Canadian accredited residency training programs are eligible to access the second iteration as a way of changing programs or specialties. Please review the national transfer guidelines for more information AFMC national transfer guidelines. Applicants who have completed Canadian Residency training and have their RCPSC/CFPC completion of training forms signed off are not eligible.
Additional Ontario Information
- Permanent Residents: Successful applicants who hold Permanent Resident status in Canada will be required to disclose their Country of Citizenship to the postgraduate medical education office in order to comply with current reporting requirements of the Ontario Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development.
- Matched Applicants: CaRMS will provide their electronic data file to the matched university’s postgraduate education office. The postgraduate office will share the information with the Ontario Physician Human Resource Data Centre, Canadian Post-MD Education Registry, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada, the Professional Association of Residents of Ontario, teaching hospitals and other training sites, Touchstone Institute and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
- Changes: The Ontario Faculties of Medicine and the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care reserve the right to make changes to the information published on the CaRMS website pertaining to Ontario postgraduate training without prior notice.
- Failure to meet or provide proof of any of the stated requirements may result in applicant file not being reviewed or removed.
