General Admission Information

Each program offered by Michener has a fixed size, reflecting labour market demand and clinical education spaces. Therefore enrollment in programs is limited, and admission can be very competitive. Selection of applicants may be based on a combination of academic grades, interview mark, continuing education, references, and/or other selection criteria. For some programs, a rolling admission process may apply.

Critical Dates for Fall 2010 Admissions

February 1, 2010	Application deadline. Date by which all supporting documentation must be received to be considered in the first round of admissions offers.
February 1 - April 1, 2010	Completed application files are evaluated. All communication with students will be made by email during this period in order to expidite requests for additional information.
April 1, 2010	Top ranked candidates will receive information regarding their program of choice and will be required to sign and return to Michener a Statement of Intent. This will indicate the candidates interest to continue with the admissions process.
April 13, 2010	Top ranked candidates will receive an invitation to Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) week at Michener.
April 26 - May 1, 2010	Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) week at Michener.
May 4 - 9, 2010	First round of admission offers will be mailed out .

OAC/U-Level Courses

For individuals graduating from high school prior to 2003, all credits for required courses must be Ontario Academic Credits (OACs)
Individuals graduating from secondary school in 2003 or later must have Grade 12 University Stream (U-level) credits for required courses

Applicants are required to submit official grades for all post-secondary academic courses completed even if the minimum requirements are at the high school level. For detailed admission requirements please refer to the individual program pages.

Admission Scores

Program admission procedures have been developed to ensure that applicants have a reasonable chance of success in their program of choice. The first stage in the admissions process is an assessment of the applicant's academic qualifications. Each applicant's official educational documents are reviewed to ensure that the program prerequisites are met. A minimum grade of 60% is required for all prerequisite courses. This includes all courses used to calculate your grade point average. Please note that this is a minimum requirement and does not guarantee admission. Enrollment in programs is limited and admission can be very competitive.

Acceptance will be based on an admission score. The admission score is made-up of a combination of:

Prerequisite course marks
Average grade or grade point
Interview score (if applicable)

Limited enrollment makes it impossible to accept all those who have met the minimum requirements, thus applicants to some programs are asked to submit additional information, such as:

Proof of professional affiliation
Work experience
Confidential reference forms (22k - pdf)
Relevant continuing education details
and/or other program-specific selection criteria

Admission may be granted on a rolling basis for some programs, in which case the earliest applications will be considered for admission first. Please contact Office of the Registrar and Student Enrolment for information on specific programs.

New Admissions Process: The Multiple Mini Interview

In April 2008 The Michener Institute piloted a new admissions process for the Genetics Technology Graduate Program and the Ultrasound Graduate Diploma Program. This year all programs which require an OCAS application; Cardiovascular Perfusion Technology, Chiropody, Diagnostic Cytology, Genetics Technology, Medical Laboratory Science, Respiratory Therapy, and Ultrasound, will have the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) as part of their admission process.

Admission to these programs will entail a combination of cognitive (previous academic performance) and non-cognitive (MMI) scores. When assessing applicant files for admission, Michener will assign a 50% value of the overall score to each of these 2 categories. After ranking all candidates based on the specific program admissions requirements, the top ranked candidates will be invited to come to Michener to participate in a series of Multiple Mini Interviews. Minimally, candidate assessments must indicate a pass mark in their MMI's to receive an offer of admission. A more detailed explanation of the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) process can be found below.

Admission Limitations

Possession of the published minimum requirements does not guarantee admission, and The Michener Institute reserves the right to accept, defer, rescind or refuse admission of any applicant to a program, and to cancel any program where sufficient enrollment is not obtained or employment opportunities appear inadequate.

Please note that all steps in the admissions process are conducted in English and that all documents received in support of an application become the property of The Michener Institute and will not be returned to the applicant.

Admission Procedures
International Applicants
Clinical Sites

Continuing Education Course Registration Information

Applicants from Other Canadian Provinces

Applicants from other Canadian provinces and territories who have completed one of the following programs are considered to have the equivalent of the Ontario Secondary School Diploma at the OAC/Grade 12 U-level:

Alberta	Grade 12
British Columbia	Grade 12
Manitoba	Grade 12
New Brunswick	Grade 12
Newfoundland	Grade 12 OR one year at Memorial University after Grade 11
Northwest Territories	Grade 12
Nova Scotia	Grade 12
Prince Edward Island	Grade 12 OR one year at the University of PEI after Grade 11
Quebec	Grade 12 or its equivalent, i.e. completion of first year CEGEP (pre-university) with appropriate standing
Saskatchewan	Grade 12

Mature Students

A fundamental understanding of science is required for success in Michener's programs. Applicants who are 21 years of age or older and have been out of formal education for at least two years may be considered for admission on an individual basis. Please contact Office of the Registrar and Student Enrolment for more information.

Transfer Credit

Applicants are not eligible to apply for transfer credit until they have been offered a position in a program, paid their deposit and paid or deferred their tuition fees. Any student in any year may apply for transfer credit, however, no student will be granted transfer credit for a clinical placement. Michener's clinical education has been deemed necessary to develop and maintain clinical skills. Please note that students must complete at least 50% of the required course credits at The Michener Institute in order to receive a Michener Diploma or Certificate.

Exemption Challenge Form

Health Requirements for the 2009-2010 Academic Year

ALL Michener must have the following Health Requirements completed before first day of classes:Tuesday, September 8th, 2009.

A. Health Record Form

B. Immunization Requirements

C. Vulnerable Persons Check

D. Canadian Red Cross Standard First Aid & CPR for Health Care Providers

Information on these requirements can be found on the Health Requirements page

Multiple Mini Interviews(MMI)

This year Cardiovascular Perfusion Technology, Chiropody, Diagnostic Cytology, Genetics Technology, Medical Laboratory Science, Respiratory Therapy, and Ultrasound, will have the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) as part of their admission process. Michener will use the Multiple Mini Interview process described below to help evaluate the admissability of applicants to these programs.

What is MMI?

In an MMI, applicants will complete a 1.5 hour circuit of of eight, 7-10-minute mini-interview stations, rotating from station to station. The MMI is similar to an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) used by medical schools and certifying bodies except that it is not ‘clinical'. At each station, candidates will be presented with a ‘scenario' or question. They will then respond to a series of questions before proceeding to the next station.

What might I see in an MMI scenario?

As in any examination process, the actual scenarios will remain confidential. However, examples of scenarios can be found in Eva KW, et al. (2004)

Here is one example.

Parking Garage (Communication Skills) The parking garage at your place of work has assigned parking spots. On leaving your spot, you are observed by the garage attendant as you back into a neighboring car, a BMW, knocking out its left front headlight and denting the left front fender. The garage attendant gives you the name and office number of the owner of the neighboring car, telling you that he is calling ahead to the car owner, Tim. The garage attendant tells you that Tim is expecting your visit. Enter Tim's office.

What will an MMI station assess?

During the last two years, considerable time and attention has been paid to determining the non-cognitive characteristics of the students we believe will make good health care practitioners (attached). This has been approved by our Academic Leadership Team. The MMI stations are aligned with this work. The stations will assess characteristics like responsibility, teamwork, ethics, communication, self-reflection etc. that we have established are important.

What are the problems with the traditional interview?

We know from educational research conducted that the ‘score' received by applicants on the traditional interview can be influenced by the biases, expectations and perspectives of the interviewers. For example, Harasym et al. (1996) demonstrated that interviewer variability accounted for 56% of the total variance in interview ratings. Similarly, we know from examination data, that our most reliable data on student performance is achieved through multiple assessments by multiple assessors. In part, this is due to the fact that ‘good' performance in one domain (e.g., communication skills) does not predict ‘good' performance in another domain (e.g., knowledge of the human body). It is also due to the fact that more examiners cause fewer idiosyncrasies in the assessment process than are caused by the use of only one or two assessors. These types of studies have led to the OSCE being adopted as the examination of choice when measuring clinical competence.

What is the evidence for the MMI?

McMaster University has been using the MMI instead of the traditional interview for student candidate selection since 2004. In 2003, they ran a parallel process in which volunteers participated in both the MMI and a traditional interview. This has given them a cohort of 45 students who were admitted to medical school and have completed the Medical Council of Canada, Part I examination. They have studied the MMI systematically and carefully during this period and found the MMI process to be reliable and valid.

Acceptability of MMI

Candidate and examiner feedback are generally positive. The new Northern Ontario school of Medicine used the MMI in its selection process for its inaugural class(2005). MMI is being used in 2006 or planned for 2007 in Jerusalem, Brunei, Michigan (Ann Arbor), Australia, Northern Ontario, Calgary, and McMaster. It was used in parallel with the traditional interview at the University of Manitoba in 2006.

Can I read more about the MMI and interviewing?

Eva KW, Reiter HI, Rosenfeld J, Norman GR. The ability of the multiple mini-interview to predict pre-clerkship performance in medical school, Acad Med. 2004, Oct; 79(10 Suppl):S40-2

Eva KW, Reiter HI, Rosenfeld J, Norman GR, The relationship between interviewers' characteristics and ratings assigned during a multiple mini-interview, Acad Med 2004, 79(6): 602 - 9

Eva KW, Reiter HI, Where judgment fails: pitfalls in the selection process for medical personnel, Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract 2004; 9(2): 161-174

Eva KW, Rosenfeld J, Reiter HI, Norman Gr, An admissions OSCE: The multiple mini interview, Med Educ 2004; 38(3): 314 - 326

Harasym PH, Woloschuk W, Mandin H, Brundin-Mather R, Reliability and validity of interviewers' judgments of medical school candidates, Acad Med 1996 71: 40S-42S.

Reiter HI, Eva KW, Reflecting the relative values of community, faculty, and students in the admissions tools of medical school. Teach Learn Med. 2005 Winter; 17(1):4-8.

Non-Cognitive Qualities

Being a healthcare practitioner is a moral undertaking, our admission process aims to admit students:

Who will in their behaviors reflect the following attributes:

Responsibility

Empathy

Integrity

Who will in their professional relationships:

Take responsibility for their actions

Act ethically

Act in a collegial and colloborative manner

Be reflective

Be reliable

Be trustworthy and honest

Demonstrate respect for others

Maintain confidences

We aim to admit students who will:

Be self-directed learners

Be an integral part of an interprofessional healthcare team

Be willing to self-assess

Be willing to work hard

Communicate effectively

Demonstrate abiltity to manage time

Demonstrate ability to tolerate stress

Demonstrate good judgement

Recognize and respect the roles of other heathcare disciplines