International graduate student requirements
Each year the University of Manitoba welcomes graduate students from around the world to live and learn in Winnipeg, Canada. We invite you to join us.
Provincial Attestation Letter (PAL)
On September 18, 2024, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced the following for graduate student applicants: “The 2025–2026 study permit intake cap will include master’s and doctoral students who will now have to submit a provincial or territorial attestation letter. We will be reserving approximately 12% of allocation spaces for these students in recognition of the benefits they bring to the Canadian labour market.”
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada news release
Graduate students applying for study permits through IRCC beginning in January 2025 must submit a PAL. However, we have been informed that admitted students who submit their study permit applications before January 2025 are not required to provide a PAL. These students should ensure their applications are submitted to IRCC before the January 2025 deadline.
We will update this section as more information becomes available.
General admission requirements
To study as a graduate student at the University of Manitoba:
- You must demonstrate English language proficiency
AND - You must have, as a minimum, an Honours (four-year bachelor's) degree or equivalent from a recognized college or university.
Some of our departments may have higher standards and additional criteria. These may include admissions tests such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Aptitude Test (GMAT), a statement of research interests or experience in the field.
Please visit the program page for your department for more details on application requirements and the academic achievement equivalent for your country.
English language proficiency requirements
English is the language of instruction and communication at the University of Manitoba. Where an English language test score is required as a basis for admission, documented proof of English language proficiency must be submitted with your application for admission.
International degree equivalencies
The Faculty of Graduate Studies sets an academic achievement equivalent for universities and colleges both inside and outside of Canada.
International GPA calculations
All applicants require a minimum GPA of 3.0 (B) or equivalent in their last 60 credit hours of study. Because credit systems vary, credits are counted only for Canadian and U.S. admissions, all other GPAs will be calculated based on the most recent two years of full time study.
If a transcript does not indicate semesters or years, the whole degree program will be used in the calculation. Note that the last two years of study may be split between degrees or institutions (e.g., one year of master’s work plus the last year of bachelor’s work).
To calculate the GPA, convert each grade to the equivalent University of Manitoba grade and then calculate as you would a UM GPA. This method is used in order to create a more equal opportunity of admission for applicants.
If the applicant completed four courses in China with final scores of 96 per cent, 83 per cent, 72 per cent and 71 per cent, they would have the equivalent University of Manitoba grades of one A+, one B and two Cs. The GPA would then be calculated as if calculating a University of Manitoba application.
Calculating a weighted GPA
Since credit hours systems differ across the world, the two years of full-time study are based on semesters, they are not determined by credit hours for international applicants.
A weighted GPA can be calculated for international applicants based on the last two years of full-time study, as long as the transcripts includes credit hours for each course.
If transcripts do not indicate credit hours for all courses, the GPA would be calculated with each course valued at one credit hour.
Grade scales
If a transcript includes the institution's grade scale, this scale must be used in the GPA calculation. If this information is not on the transcript and cannot be found on the institution's website, equivalency tables can be found under the International Equivalency Criteria page.
If an international transcript provides letter grades for a student (e.g., A, B, C, etc.,) these grades are considered equivalent to the same University of Manitoba grade. For example, an A would be equal to an A, a B to a B, and so on.
The University of Manitoba does not award "minus" grades. When a grade scale includes an "A" and "A-", but no "A+" on the scale, the "A" can be treated as equivalent to "A+" on the UM scale, and the "A-" is equivalent to an "A."
Calculating GPAs for entrance scholarships
To be considered for the International Graduate Student Entrance Scholarship, students will need to achieve a minimum GPA of 3.5 on a 4.5 scale in their last two full years of study. Entrance GPAs are calculated based on the transcripts received at time of admission.
When an admission GPA cannot be calculated on a 4.5 scale (e.g., if there are no "plus" or "minus" grades on the original scale), convert the final GPA out of 4.0 to the equivalent out of 4.5.; i.e., x/4.0 = y/4.5. This calculation will only be used to determine eligibility for the International Graduate Student Entrance Scholarship. This conversion is not used to determine admissibility of an applicant.
Please note, not all grade scales can be converted to 4.5; for example, grade scales that include an A as the highest grade with B+ as the second highest grade possible (no A- in the scale).
For further examples of GPA calculations, please refer to the sample transcripts found under the Examples of Calculating International GPAs.
If a country is not listed under University of Manitoba International Equivalency Criteria, please contact graduate.admissions@umanitoba.ca for assistance.
China GPA calculation example
- Determine the last two full years of study.
- Convert percentages to grades based on the scale on the transcript. If not available, use University of Manitoba International Equivalency Criteria.
- If there are credits or units (do not use hours) available, determine how many credits and units were received for each grade. This step should only be used if all the courses in the last two full years of study have credits. If they do not, weight each course equally and determine the number of courses that were assigned each grade.
- Multiply the total credit for each grade (or the total number of courses for each grade) by the grade point to arrive at the weighted grade point.
- Add the weighted grade points and divide by the total number of credits or courses. This will be the student’s GPA for their last two years of study.
| Grades | Total credits for each grade | Grade point value | Weighted grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 0 | 4.5 | 0 |
| A | 1 + 2 = 3 | 4.0 | 12 |
| B+ | 0.5 + 0.5 + 0.4 + 1.6 + 0.2 + 6 + 0.2 + 0.2 + 0.2 + 0.2 + 0.4 + 2 + 1 =13.4 | 3.5 | 46.9 |
| B | 1 + 0.8 + 1.5 + 1.5 = 4.8 | 3.0 | 14.4 |
| C+ | 5 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 1 + 6 = 21 | 2.5 | 52.5 |
| C | 0 | 2.0 | 0 |
| D | 0 | 1.0 | 0 |
| F | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Total weighted grade points / total number of credits
125.8 / 42.2 = 2.98
Ghana GPA calculation example
- Determine the last two full years of study.
- Convert percentages to grades based on scale on transcript, split scale to allow for +’s if applicable.
- If there are credits or units (do not use hours) available, determine how many credits/units were received for each grade.
NB: This step should only be used if all the courses in the last two full years of study have credits. If they do not, weight each course equally and determine the number of courses that were assigned each grade. - Multiply the total credit for each grade (or the total number of courses for each grade) by the grade point to arrive at the weighted grade point.
- Add the weighted grade points and divide by the total number of credits or courses. This will be the student’s GPA for their last two years of study.
| Grades | Total credits for each grade | Grade point value | Weighted grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 3 + 3 = 6 | 4.5 | 27 |
| A | 3+3+3+3+2+3+3+3+3+3+3+3+3+3+3+6=50 | 4.0 | 200 |
| B+ | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 12 | 3.5 | 42 |
| B | 0 | 3.0 | 0 |
| C+ | 2 | 2.5 | 5 |
| C | 0 | 2.0 | 0 |
| D | 0 | 1.0 | 0 |
| F | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Total weighted grade points divided by total number of credits:
274 / 70 = 3.91 total weighted grade point average
India GPA calculation example
- Determine the last two full years of study.
- Convert marks to percentages. For example, if the maximum marks available for a course/exam is 150 and the student received 70 marks, divide the 70 by 150 and then multiply by 100 to arrive at their percentage, which would be 47%.
- Convert the percentages to grades using the scale on the transcript, splitting the scale to allow for +'s if applicable.
- If there are credits or units (do not use hours) available, determine how many credits/units were received for each grade. This step should only be used if all the courses in the last two full years of study have credits. If they do not, weight each course equally and determine the number of courses that were assigned each grade.
- Multiply the total credit for each grade (or the total number of courses for each grade) by the grade point to arrive at the weighted grade point.
- Add the weighted grade points and divide by the total number of credits or courses. This will be the student’s GPA for their last two years of study.
| Grades | Total courses for each grade | Grade point value | Weighted grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 0 | 4.5 | 0 |
| A | 2 + 2 + 2 +2 +2 + 2 = 12 | 4.0 | 48 |
| B+ | 0 | 3.5 | 0 |
| B | 2 + 2 + 3 = 7 | 3.0 | 21 |
| C+ | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 18 | 2.5 | 45 |
| C | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 27 | 2.0 | 54 |
| D | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 24 | 1.0 | 24 |
| F | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Total weighted grade points divided by total number of credits:
192 / 88 = 2.18 total weighted grade point average
Iran GPA calculation example
- Determine the last two full years of study. This applicant holds a master’s degree and a bachelor’s degree, so we will use the master’s as year one and the last year of the bachelor’s as year two.
- Convert marks to grades based on scale on transcript. If not available, use University of Manitoba International Equivalency Criteria.
- If there are credits or units (do not use hours) available, determine how many credits/units were received for each grade. This step should only be used if all the courses in the last two full years of study have credits. If they do not, weight each course equally and determine the number of courses that were assigned each grade.
- Each degree will have their own calculation done and be combined for the final GPA.
- Multiply the total credit for each grade (or the total number of courses for each grade) by the grade point to arrive at the weighted grade point.
- Add the weighted grade points and divide by the total number of credits or courses.
- Multiply each GPA by 50 per cent and then add the result together. This will be the student’s GPA for their last two years of study.
Bachelor's degree calculation
| Grades | Total credits for each grade | Grade point value | Weighted grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 1 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 3 = 8 | 4.5 | 36 |
| A | 1 + 1 + 1 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 9 | 4.0 | 36 |
| B+ | 1 + 2 = 3 | 3.5 | 10.5 |
| B | 3 + 1 = 4 | 3.0 | 12 |
| C+ | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 2 = 14 | 2.5 | 35 |
| C | 3 | 2.0 | 6 |
| D | 0 | 1.0 | 0 |
| F | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Bachelor's degree total weighted grade points / total number of credits
135.5/ 41 = 3.30
Master's degree calculation
| Grades | Total credits for each grade | GPA | Weighted grade points |
|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 2 + 3 + 6 = 11 | 4.5 | 49.5 |
| A | 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 + 3 = 15 | 4.0 | 60 |
| B+ | 0 | 3.5 | 0 |
| B | 0 | 3.0 | 0 |
| C+ | 3 | 2.5 | 7.5 |
| C | 0 | 2.0 | 0 |
| D | 0 | 1.0 | 0 |
| F | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Master's degree total weighted grade points / total number of credits
117/ 29 = 4.03
Overall GPA calculation
Bachelor's GPA:
3.30 X 50% = 1.65
+
Master's GPA:
4.03 X 50% = 2.02
= 3.67
If you are an international student and have been admitted to the University of Manitoba, and you require a written estimate of tuition and living expenses, contact the International Centre (IC) office at international@umanitoba.ca.