McGill's School of Computer Science sits inside a university that placed 30th in the QS World University Rankings 2027, the highest of any Canadian institution, and Computer Science is one of the most sought-after majors within McGill's large Faculty of Science, alongside Life Sciences and Physiology. For applicants comparing McGill Computer Science against Waterloo, Toronto, or UBC, the pitch is a downtown Montreal campus, McGill's globally recognized brand, and a bilingual city with a growing tech and AI research scene (Mila, the Quebec AI Institute, has deep McGill ties), all without the SAT/ACT or US-style application process, since McGill runs its own independent Quebec-based admissions system.
This guide walks through what it takes to get into McGill Computer Science at both levels: acceptance rate realities, cost, requirements, English-test rules, and career outcomes.
Acceptance Rate: What McGill Actually Publishes
McGill does not publish a program-specific acceptance rate for Computer Science at either level. Here is what is actually known, and how to read it honestly:
- McGill undergraduate (university-wide): McGill's official Fall 2025 Admissions Profile reports a combined acceptance rate of 47.5% (18,132 offers out of 38,135 applicants). This blends highly competitive professional programs (Medicine, Law, Dentistry, Architecture) with less competitive ones, and McGill does not publish a Computer Science-specific rate; third-party aggregators (not official McGill sources) cite considerably lower figures, in the roughly 10-15% range, for some Engineering streams, which gives a directional sense that a popular Science major like Computer Science likely runs meaningfully more selective than the blended 47.5% headline.
- McGill graduate (university-wide): McGill's Fall 2025 Admissions Profile also publishes an official graduate acceptance rate of 40% (5,024 offers out of 12,538 applicants), again a blended figure across every department. McGill does not publish a Computer Science-specific graduate rate.
Bottom line: treat the 47.5% undergraduate and 40% graduate figures as honest, university-wide proxies only, not Computer Science-specific numbers. Because McGill does not admit directly to Computer Science with its own published rate, and because Computer Science is one of the Faculty of Science's most sought-after majors, applicants should expect real competition for space even though McGill's headline rates look comparatively high next to many US peers.
Fees and Cost of Attendance
McGill's Faculty of Science bills a single tuition rate for the Bachelor of Science (BSc), which houses Computer Science as one of its most popular majors; the School of Computer Science's Master of Science (Thesis) has its own separate, considerably lower international rate. Approximate annual figures (2026-27, converted from CAD at roughly 1 CAD = 0.706 USD):
| Cost Item | BSc, Faculty of Science (International, USD/year) | MSc (Thesis), Computer Science (International, USD/year) |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $45,739 | $15,072 |
| Living expenses (Montreal/Quebec CAQ threshold) | $17,380 | $17,380 |
| Total estimated cost of attendance | ~$63,119 | ~$32,452 |
McGill's BSc figure is faculty-wide, not Computer Science-specific, since McGill does not break out tuition by major within the same degree. The MSc figure, by contrast, is genuinely Computer Science-specific: McGill's School of Computer Science bills international thesis-stream master's students a flat international residency fee (CAD $10,674.30/term, roughly CAD $21,348.60/year), a notably lower rate than most McGill professional master's programs. PhD students in Computer Science are billed an even lower international residency fee and are typically covered by a minimum departmental funding guarantee. McGill's application fee is $99 at both levels.
Admission Requirements
Undergraduate (BSc, Computer Science major, Faculty of Science):
- McGill's own online Undergraduate Admissions Applicant Portal (no shared Common App, UCAS, or OUAC-style system)
- Official transcripts/mark sheets for the applicant's specific secondary curriculum, assessed on that curriculum's own numeric or letter scale (McGill does not use the SAT, ACT, or a 4.0 GPA)
- Mathematics plus two of biology/chemistry/physics as prerequisite subjects for Science admission
- English language proficiency test scores unless exempt
- McGill's own India-specific guidance cites a minimum of 75% on the CBSE/Senior School Certificate as a floor, with competitive Science and Engineering-adjacent programs commonly expecting notably higher; McGill does not publish one fixed universal cutoff, and thresholds shift year to year with applicant volume
Graduate (MSc/PhD, School of Computer Science):
- Statement of purpose, research proposal, or letter of intent
- Two to three references, generally including academic references
- Official transcripts from all previously attended post-secondary institutions
- CV/resume
- English language proficiency test scores (IELTS Academic or TOEFL iBT; PTE and Duolingo are not accepted for graduate admission)
- The GRE is not required for the large majority of McGill graduate programs, including most of Computer Science, one of the clearest department-specific policies McGill publishes
Deadlines for McGill graduate programs are rolling and program-specific; not all programs admit in every term (Fall, Winter, or Summer).
How to Get Into McGill's Computer Science Program
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Prioritize a strong, well-documented Mathematics record. McGill's Faculty of Science requires mathematics as a prerequisite subject, and Computer Science applicants specifically benefit from a transcript that shows sustained strength in math and, where available, computing or programming coursework, since McGill's admission review is grade-based rather than holistic in the US sense.
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Understand that McGill assesses your specific curriculum on its own terms. There is no single "McGill GPA"; applicants are judged against their own secondary system's numeric or letter scale, so international applicants should confirm McGill's published country-specific equivalency guidance (for example, its India-specific 75%+ CBSE floor) rather than trying to convert to a US-style GPA.
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Graduate applicants: skip GRE prep and redirect that time. Since most Computer Science graduate admissions at McGill do not require the GRE, that preparation time is better spent strengthening the Statement of Purpose and securing specific, substantive academic references from people who supervised real technical work.
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Name specific McGill CS faculty and research groups in a graduate Statement of Purpose. McGill's School of Computer Science has close institutional ties to Mila, Quebec's AI research institute; naming specific research areas or supervisors genuinely relevant to an applicant's interests signals real fit rather than a generic Canada-focused application.
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Budget for the CAQ before assuming your study permit is straightforward. Because McGill sits in Quebec, almost all non-Canadian applicants need a Certificat d'acceptation du Quebec (CAQ) before applying for a federal IRCC study permit, a Quebec-specific step with no equivalent at universities in Ontario, British Columbia, or most other provinces; apply for it as soon as an offer is accepted, since it adds a genuine processing step most other Canadian applications don't have.
English Proficiency Requirement (IELTS/TOEFL)
McGill applies its standard university-wide thresholds to Computer Science, since it does not set a program-specific English requirement for this major:
- Undergraduate: IELTS Academic 6.5 overall, no component below 6.0, or TOEFL iBT 90 overall (higher for B.Ed. TESL and B.Com., not applicable to Computer Science), with a minimum component score of 21 in each of Reading, Listening, Writing, and Speaking. PTE (65) and Duolingo (125) are also accepted at the undergraduate level.
- Graduate: IELTS Academic 6.5 overall, or TOEFL iBT 86 overall with no component below 20. PTE and Duolingo are not accepted for graduate admission, unlike undergraduate.
- Waiver: four or more consecutive years of full-time education in a country where English is the acknowledged primary language, an IB Group 1 English score of 5+, an A-Level English grade of C or better, or a GCSE/O-Level English grade of B/5 or better can each satisfy the requirement without a separate test.
For the complete breakdown, see McGill IELTS requirements and McGill TOEFL requirements.
Career Outcomes
McGill does not publish outcomes data broken out specifically for Computer Science graduates, and its graduate-level outcomes data (employment rate, salary, and recruiters) is not published at all. The undergraduate university-wide figures are the only proxy available:
- Undergraduate graduation rate: 87% (six-year rate for the 2018 entering cohort, one of the highest in Canada's U15 research-university group)
- Top recruiters (undergraduate, university-wide): Deloitte, Google, McKinsey & Company, RBC, Amazon, Bombardier
- McGill does not publish an employment-rate or average starting-salary figure for either undergraduate or graduate outcomes in the data used here
Google and Amazon appearing directly in McGill's undergraduate recruiter list is a meaningful, if not Computer Science-exclusive, signal, since both are core technology employers actively hiring from McGill's Computer Science program specifically, alongside Montreal's own growing AI and tech ecosystem tied to Mila.
FAQ
Does McGill publish a separate acceptance rate for Computer Science? No. McGill's officially published rates are university-wide: 47.5% for undergraduate (Fall 2025 Admissions Profile) and 40% for graduate. Both figures blend every faculty and department, including far more and far less competitive programs than Computer Science, so treat them as directional proxies only.
How much does McGill's Computer Science degree cost? The undergraduate BSc (Faculty of Science, which includes Computer Science as a major) costs $45,739/year in international tuition, with an estimated total cost of attendance around $63,119/year. The MSc (Thesis) in Computer Science, run through the School of Computer Science specifically, is considerably cheaper at roughly $15,072/year in tuition, with a total estimated cost of attendance around $32,452/year.
Is the GRE required for McGill's Computer Science graduate programs? No. Most McGill graduate programs, including the large majority of Computer Science, do not require the GRE. This differs from a small number of other McGill departments (such as Economics), which require the GRE only from applicants without a Canadian or US undergraduate degree.
What IELTS or TOEFL score do I need for McGill Computer Science? Undergraduate applicants need IELTS 6.5 overall (no component below 6.0) or TOEFL 90 overall. Graduate applicants need IELTS 6.5 overall or TOEFL 86 overall, though PTE and Duolingo are not accepted at the graduate level, unlike undergraduate.
Does McGill use the Common App, UCAS, or OUAC for Computer Science applicants? No. All McGill undergraduate applicants, regardless of program, apply through McGill's own Undergraduate Admissions Applicant Portal, distinct from the US Common App, UK UCAS, or Ontario's OUAC system used by most other Canadian provinces.
Do I need a CAQ specifically for Computer Science, or is that a general McGill requirement? It's a general requirement tied to studying in Quebec, not specific to Computer Science. Nearly all non-Canadian McGill applicants, across every program, need a Certificat d'acceptation du Quebec (CAQ) from Quebec's provincial immigration ministry before they can apply for a federal IRCC study permit.