Bishop’s University

    Graduate Admission

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    Thesis-Based Master’s

    The minimum requirements for admittance to the Master’s program are an undergraduate degree with a major in Computing Science or equivalent, and a high upper-second class standing.

    Candidates with high academic standing in an undergraduate degree other than computer science, who have some computer science background either academic or professional, may be admitted as graduate preparatory students. Preparatory students will be asked to complete up to one year of undergraduate courses to enhance their background.

    In addition to academic performance, a combination of factors is taken into consideration in assessing the eligibility of a candidate for admission into graduate programs. One such important factor is the availability of a faculty member competent and willing to supervise the academic program of studies and research of the candidate; a candidate will not be admitted to the program under any circumstance unless such a faculty member exists. Other factors include the performance of the candidate and the assessment provided by his/her referees as a measure of the likelihood that the candidate can successfully complete the course of studies and research.

    Course-Based Master’s

    The minimum requirements for admittance to the program are an undergraduate degree with a major in Computing Science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, or equivalent, as well as a 70% standing.  Note however that meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission, due to the competitive nature of the process (we have more than twice as many qualified candidates than seats in the program). We use instead a cut-off point which depends on the number and quality of all the received pre-application files.

    Candidates with insufficient academic background in Computer Science may be admitted as graduate preparatory students and will be asked to complete up to one year of undergraduate courses to enhance their background.

    Application procedure

    The application procedure for our graduate degrees is the following two-step process:

    1. Pre-apply by completely filling in the departmental form. Note that the form is different for the two options (course-based and thesis-based). If the form contains all the pertinent information then you will receive from the department a fairly accurate evaluation, which in most cases indicate that your official application will be successful. Pre-applications are free of charge.
    2. Once you receive a positive evaluation from the department you must go to the Bishop’s online application system and submit an official application (fees apply) in order to be granted official admission by the Admission Office.

    Note that the two steps above can also be completed at the same time. However, in this case the application fees will be charged irrespective of the departmental decision.

    Application deadlines

    Pre-applications will be evaluated on a rolling basis with no deadlines, and admission will be offered to the successful applicants at the earliest opportunity subject to the deadlines imposed to the official application by the Admissions Office.

    Successful applicants for the thesis-based option admitted for Fall (September) have the option of registering for the Spring term (May) instead but they need to apply well in advance of the deadline. International applicants in particular should account for the time it takes to obtain their student authorization from the Canadian and Quebec governments.

    English proficiency

    Proof of proficiency in English, such as your TOEFL score is required unless English is your first language or you have attended at least one year of university in an English language institution. We expect in principle a minimum TOEFL score of 580 (paper-based), 237 (computer-based), 90 (Internet-based), or a minimum IELTS score of 6.5. We also take into consideration other standardized tests of English proficiency. You also have the option of attending one of our partner language schools.

    Master’s Degree Requirements

    Contact information (administrative)

    Further inquiries should be directed to:

    Graduate Coordinator
    Dr. Stefan Bruda
    msc-info@cs.ubishops.ca