1. After your application is submitted to the School of Graduate Studies (SGS)

After your graduate application is submitted online, it is processed by SGS and made available to the academic unit for review within one business day. An email will be sent to you acknowledging receipt of your application and advising you of the option to check your status online.

Each academic unit has its own method of assessing applications. For graduate programs with application deadlines, files are normally considered after the deadline has passed. Programs that admit applicants on a rolling basis may review a file as soon as it is received. Some research programs will require you to identify a supervisor. Most graduate programs require complete or fairly complete files for formal review, so we encourage you to upload all required supporting documents to the online application as soon as possible. For more information, please contact the academic unit responsible for the program you have applied to.

2. Checking your application status

Applicants may check their check your status online. Decisions on graduate applications are normally made within 2-3 months after an application deadline has passed unless otherwise stated on our website. The exact date will vary from program to program. If you have applied for admission to a research program, we would encourage you to contact potential supervisors in your area of interest after you apply.

3. Deferring or withdrawing your application

Upon submitting your application, you may defer it to another semester before a decision is made on your file. You should consider deferring your application if you will not be able to commence graduate studies in the semester you applied for or applied for the wrong semester. All requests for deferrals should be made to gradapply@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number). Please note that once an application is submitted, the program applied to cannot normally be adjusted. A new application is normally required to be considered for a different program of study. In exceptional cases where a program record is adjusted, those changes will not be reflected online but the applicant will be considered for the new graduate program.

If you wish to withdraw your application from consideration, please email gradapply@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number) and we will close your file. Please note that application fee cannot be refunded.

4. After a recommendation for admission (conditional and full admission)

Once an academic unit has formally reviewed an application, a formal recommendation is transmitted to SGS. Applications recommended for admission will be reviewed by SGS, which will in turn issue a decision letter by email to the applicant.

Applicants who are recommended for admission but missing required documents (e.g., proof of English proficiency, confirmation of degree completion, etc.) will be emailed a conditional admission letter and Program of Study form (which may reflect program requirements, names of supervisory committee members, and funding). Conditionally admitted applicants will be asked to accept or decline our offer admission through the online application within two weeks of receiving their admission decision. In some cases, applicants are offered conditional admission pending the completion of some Memorial University courses (e.g., prerequisites). In such cases, conditionally admitted applicants are advised to follow the instructions for admission subject to completion of a qualifying year. Conditionally admitted applicants should email any missing required documents to sgs@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number and that you have been conditionally admitted) so they can be fully admitted. If you require more time to make a decision, please let us know.

All other applicants recommended for full admission will be emailed a full admission letter and Program of Study form. Admitted applicants will be asked to accept or decline our offer of admission through the online application within two weeks of receiving their admission decision. If you require more time to make a decision, please email sgs@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number).

For fully admitted applicants, official documents (including official transcripts and confirmation of degree) are normally required by the end of one’s first semester of study. SGS will notify you at a later date when this is required.

5. Deferring your admission

If you have been admitted to a graduate program but are not able to commence in the semester reflected on your admission letter, you may wish to defer your admission to a later semester. Please note that such requests are considered on an individual basis. All requests for deferrals should be made by email to the appropriate academic unit. If your request is approved, you will receive a new admission letter and revised Program of Study form.

6. Admission to two programs

Applicants who apply for and are offered admission to two graduate programs will be required to decline one offer. Admitted applicants currently registered in an academic program will be asked to do one of the following by the start date of their new program: withdraw from their current program, complete their current program, or request the Associate Vice-President Academic and Dean of Graduate Studies for permission to pursue two programs concurrently.

7. After a recommendation for non-admission

Applicants who are not recommended for admission will receive notification by email. The notification include a letter and a form that will reflect the reason(s) for the decision, which may include unavailability of a supervisor, that an application that is not sufficiently competitive for this academic year, failure to meet minimum academic requirements, late application, or incomplete application. Applicants not accepted for admission may wish to contact the appropriate academic unit for more information.

For applicants not accepted for admission, academic units will recommend that the file be closed or offer the applicant reconsideration for the next entry semester. Applicants receiving a reconsideration offer can accept this offer by emailing gradapply@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number). SGS will reopen the original application for the next entry semester. Applicants whose files are reconsidered may wish to submit additional, updated documents (such as a current resume or transcript of courses taken after the initial application was submitted). You may do so by emailing gradapply@mun.ca (please reference your Memorial University student number). Applicants who wish to be considered for a different graduate program will be required to submit a new application online and pay another application fee.