News
The Medical Council of Canada (MCC) is launching the Licensure Pathway Navigation Service, a free and personalized service that helps internationally trained physicians (ITPs) understand the pathways to medical practice that may be available to them in Canada. ITPs have told us how hard it can be to find accurate information that reflects their own training, credentials, and circumstances. The Licensure Pathway Navigation Service is one way we are responding to that need, and an important step in our work to make the journey to medical practice in Canada clearer and easier to navigate.
Navigating the pathways to medical practice in Canada can be complex. Requirements vary by pathway, by province and territory, and the options available to each individual can depend on their education, training, and experience. It can be challenging to know which options are worth exploring, and to make informed decisions that impact major life decisions.
The Licensure Pathway Navigation Service is part of the MCC’s broader efforts to supporting ITPs as they work toward medical practice in Canada. Through a free, one-time, one-on-one virtual consultation with one of our licensure navigation specialists, eligible participants will have an opportunity to discuss their individual circumstances, explore pathways that may be relevant to them, and identify helpful information and possible next steps.
Our goal is to provide a touchpoint for ITPs to better understand their options, to ask questions, and to contribute to their ability to make informed decisions about how to move forward.
ITPs who are interested in participating are invited to complete an expression of interest to find out whether they meet the initial eligibility criteria.
While the MCC does not determine licensure requirements or make decisions about eligibility for medical practice pathways, we are an early point of contact for many ITPs pursuing medical practice in Canada. Through physiciansapply.ca and our services including source verification, and MCC examinations, we already support physicians at important stages of their journey. The Licensure Pathway Navigation Service builds on that existing relationship by helping ITPs better understand the pathways they may wish to explore and where to go for authoritative information about requirements.
The Licensure Pathway Navigation Service was developed with the support and expertise of Dr. Filipe Santos, IMG Consultant. A former IMG himself, Dr. Santos is a board-certified anesthesiologist and an assistant professor at the University of Toronto who works to help others navigate pathways to licensure in Canada. We are grateful for his contribution to improving the MCC’s navigation supports for ITPs.
The service is being offered as a pilot in English and French, with limited availability. As the pilot evolves, the MCC is committed to learning from the experiences of ITPs, keeping our knowledge of Canada’s evolving medical practice pathways current, and continuing to collaborate with organizations and experts across the medical education, assessment, and licensure landscape.