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Faculty of Science

School of Interdisciplinary Science

Academic Advising Resources

Academic Advising Help

Level 1 students can contact the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies office.

Do you have a course conflict?

Are you having difficulty enrolling?

Are you receiving an error when trying to register?

  • Seats may not be available at this time, Please wait 24- 48 hours and try again 

There are seats left in the course, but I can’t enroll due to reserved seats? What is happening?

In some courses, we reserve a certain number of seats (“Reserve Caps”) for students based on level of study/program. If you see seats available in a course but can’t enrol, it is likely reserved seats for your level/program are full. If that is the case, you will see this error message: “Remaining seats are being held for students in a specific Program/Plan/Level. You do not meet this criteria. Please contact your Faculty Office if you have any questions.”

We encourage you to monitor seats through the enrolment period up to the course drop/ add deadlines that appear here: https://registrar.mcmaster.ca/dates-and-deadlines/

Reserve caps are released on August 15th.

The course I want is full, what do I do?

  1. Check if the course is being offered in a different term, or if it is possible to take in a future year.
  2. Continue to monitor course seats up until the drop/ add deadline to see if space becomes available.
  3. Check the Academic Calendar for other options on course lists to fulfill requirements.

Are you receiving a Department Consent Error?

  • Email: sis@mcmaster.ca, indicate your name, student number, and error in email subject line.

Are you wanting to enroll in Life Science 3XX3:

How do I overload courses in a term?  

  • It is not common or recommended for students to exceed more than 15-16.5 units in any given term.  A request to overload your term would need to be discussed with an Advisor in the Associate Dean of Science office as there are a few things they will need to consider. Contact Office of the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies.

When is my enrolment period?

I did not receive a ballot for the 4th year seminar course;

  • Email sis@mcmaster.ca and provide name, student number, and issue in email title 

Need to drop/add course after the drop/add deadline?

Need to withdraw from course while it is in progress? 

Students are advised to create a conflict-free schedule. If circumstances arise that include a conflict between two courses students are advised to speak with the School’s Academic Program Advisor. No course conflicts will be approved without completion of the Faculty of Science Course Conflict form. This form is available from and will need to be submitted to the Office of the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies science@mcmaster.ca  or in person at BSB 129

 I need permission to enroll in a course that I do not have the prerequisite for.

  • Complete Online Waiver form on the School of Interdisciplinary Science Website.
  • Life Sciences student: Waivers will be reviewed per the dates and deadlines noted on the last page of the online form.
  • Non Life Sciences student, requesting a waiver into Life Sciences: waivers are reviewed after Aug 15th.
  • a waiver does not guarantee you a spot in the course. If the course is full, you will have to monitor enrollment during the drop and add period or take this next year.

All School of Interdisciplinary Science courses require students to have the prerequisite courses to enroll.

  • It is the instructor’s discretion as to whether course prerequisites may be waived. No exceptions to this rule will be made.

Waiver Request

Policy and Procedure for Re-Read/Re-Assessment

Submit Re-read/Re-assessment (Form A) Appeals

Review the instructions for a Formal Inquiry (Form B) Appeal here

Submit Format Inquiry (Form B) Appeal

To review your final exam, please adhere to the procedure outlined in the linked document: Exam Review Policy

Complete form and send to sis@mcmaster.ca

A transcript is a copy of your permanent academic record at McMaster University, duly certified by the Registrar’s signature and the University crest on all pages. Transcripts are privileged information and are available by submitting a request to the Office of the Registrar, your official university transcript.

Types of transcript Requests

Honours Integrated Science Transcript Supplements (‘iSci Transcripts’)

It is common for iSci students to request a formal breakdown of course component grades for ISCI 1A24, 2A18, 3A12, 4A12. This breakdown might be needed for applications, scholarship opportunities, and other reasons for which formal grades are required.

The file which provides this breakdown, while commonly referred to as an “iSci Transcript”, is officially called by McMaster University a “Transcript Supplement.”

To request an institutionally verified copy of your iSci Transcript Supplement, which will accompany and be attached to your official McMaster transcript, students in the program (as well as alumni) can make a request through the Office of the Registrar’s transcript request service page: https://registrar.mcmaster.ca/services/transcripts/#tab-10. On this service page, you will see a variety of service options.

For your reference, this is an example of what an iSci Transcript Supplement file looks like

Please note that your concentration will appear on the official McMaster transcript, and not on this accompanying page.

Important Dates:

Students can request their official McMaster transcript and accompanying Transcript Supplement at any time of year, but timing of your request will impact the version you receive.

The newest version for a given academic year will not be available until June 1st.

Given that ISCI 1A24A/B, 2A18 A/B, 3A12 A/B and 4A12 A/B are multi-term courses (A/B), final grades are not available until the conclusion of the course/ the conclusion of the winter academic term.

Grades at the conclusion of the fall term are therefore formally noted on transcripts as In Progress (IP).

Requesting any time before June 1 will provide the file from the year prior.

For example:

  • You can request a formal copy of your Fall 2023 and Winter 2024 Transcript Supplement as of June 1, 2024.
  • You can request a formal copy of your Fall 2024 and Winter 2025 Transcript Supplement as of June 1, 2025.

For informal copies of grades, and mid-year grades, students are asked to refer to other sources such as Avenue2Learn.

For all other questions, please contact: sis@mcmaster.ca

McMaster Honours Integrated Science equivalency letter to accompany Transcript, Class of 2024

 

 

Please see Policies, Procedures & Forms section of the Office of the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Studies office. In this section you will find relevant policies related to the School of Interdisciplinary Science and its programs. Please note that students are always expected to follow all McMaster policies and procedures pertaining to student conduct.

What are the differences between the Experiential Courses?

See LIFESCI Experiential FAQ

How do I find a supervisor? 

It is up to the student to find their own supervisor that aligns with their own personal interests. We suggest doing research on your topic and/or placement of interest. Explore why you feel this is well suited to your academic and career goals, and then contact potential supervisors accordingly. See reference materials below that might be helpful to find a supervisor:

Need help registering for Experiential Courses:

Complete the online application found on the Life Sciences website with your supervisor for the course you would like to apply to.

LIFESCI 3RP3/4A03/4B09/4C12/4D15:

LIFESCI 3EP3/4EP6:

SCICOMM 4A03:

Information about Science and Career Co-op:

Co-op Internship Information:

What Integrated Science program (iSci) concentrations are offered? 

visit Registered Students under the iSci website

Need help understanding what ISCI courses such as “ISCI 1A24” will include.

see ISCI Course Outlines

If I am to transfer out of ISCI, how will the ISCI courses be equivalent? 

contact sis@mcmaster.ca for an equivalency letter

 

Origins of Disease Specialization: 

Students in any of the four Science Level 1 Gateways may choose admission into our Honours Life Sciences – Origins of Disease (OD) specialization. This interdisciplinary program examines the chemical and physical basis of cell function, disease states, and current research in disease prevention and treatment. OD was created in partnership with the Departments of Chemistry & Chemical Biology and Physics & Astronomy. This program is limited enrolment. For more information, check academic calendar of this specialization.

Sensory Motors System Specialization:

Students in any of the four Science Level I Gateways may choose admission into our Honours Life Sciences – Sensory Motor Systems (SMS) specialization. This interdisciplinary program examines the interplay between neural and motor systems in controlling human behaviour and movement. SMS was created in partnership with the Departments of Kinesiology and Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour. This program is limited enrolment. For more information, check academic calendar of this specialization.

When do I apply for Level II?

Want to speak with an advisor?