Université de Montréal (UdeM): Admission, French Requirement and Fees

Université de Montréal is Canada's largest French-language university, a public institution in Montreal, Quebec. Almost all undergraduate teaching is in French, so you need a recognised French test at B2 or above. The key point for Russian school-leavers is that the attestat alone is not enough: UdeM requires either one successful year of university study, its own preparatory year, or a four-year bachelor's whose first year is preparatory. International undergraduate tuition in 2026/27 is $21,700 (CAD 30,773) for 30 credits, and strong applicants are automatically granted a tuition exemption scholarship of up to $10,180 (CAD 14,436) a year.

HEC Montréal (business) and Polytechnique Montréal (engineering) are affiliated with UdeM and share its campus, but they are separate institutions with their own admissions and fees. This profile covers the university itself.

Who UdeM suits

UdeM suits students who are ready to study in French or to reach B2–C1 within a year or so. Strong areas include medicine and health sciences, biomedical sciences, psychology, computer science, law, communication, pharmacy and veterinary medicine. The university describes itself as Canada's second-largest research university (Canada's Top 50 Research Universities 2025).

General country information is on studying in Canada.

Consider other options if:

• you want to study in Montreal in English: McGill or Concordia;
• you want a bilingual setting without the Quebec CAQ: the University of Ottawa;
• you want engineering or business in French: check Polytechnique Montréal and HEC Montréal directly.

Why the attestat alone is not enough

In Quebec, 11 years of school are followed by two years of CEGEP college and a three-year bachelor's. For Russia, UdeM therefore requires the attestat and one successful year of university study. Instead of that year, it offers its own routes:

Professional first-cycle doctorates (medicine, dentistry, optometry) and the preparatory year for medicine require a university degree. Depending on your French, the first year of the four-year bachelor's may include up to 6 extra credits of French courses.

French requirement

Since Winter 2026, UdeM has revised its French requirement. Most bachelor's programmes (for example computer science and psychology) require at least B2 in listening and reading on a recognised test taken within 24 months before the term starts. Depending on your writing score, one or two French writing courses may be prescribed in your first year.

Accepted tests: TEF Études, TEF Canada, TEFaQ; TCF Canada, TCF Québec, TCF tout public; DELF B2 tout public (only for programmes requiring B1 or B2); DALF C1 (programmes up to C1); DALF C2 (all programmes). For TEF and TCF, UdeM averages your listening and reading scores and assesses writing separately. Provisional results and test registrations are not accepted. Alternatives are the four-month Programme intensif de francisation universitaire on campus, or courses FRS 2804 plus one of FRS 1607, 2704 or 2707 at the École de français with B- or better.

Fall 2027 deadlines

The programme page deadline takes precedence. UdeM warns that immigration steps take three to six months. The general Winter 2027 deadline is 1 November 2026, but UdeM asks international applicants to apply for winter by 1 August, so for an applicant from Russia or Kazakhstan the realistic start is Fall 2027.

Tuition in 2026/27

International undergraduates admitted since Fall 2020 pay one rate regardless of discipline (French and francophone Belgian citizens have separate rates).

Compulsory fees are charged on top. International students must study full time; each term's bill is issued at the start of the term and must be paid in full by the due date. Without the scholarship, 120 credits of tuition at 2026/27 rates cost about $86,790 (CAD 123,091).

The UdeM exemption scholarship

The Bourse d'exemption UdeM reduces international tuition (except for French and francophone Belgian students). There is no application: candidates are assessed on their transcripts at admission. For bachelor's students admitted from Winter 2024, at 2026/27 rates:

If your file does not qualify for A or B, no exemption is granted. Conditions:

• valid CAQ and study permit for every term of the programme, uploaded to the Centre étudiant; while you study outside Canada, you are billed the full international rate;
• continuous full-time enrolment (except authorised leave);
• no other tuition exemption and no external funding from an organisation or third party;
• not available for short programmes such as certificates, majors, minors, microprogrammes or the standalone preparatory year.

Students who take the standalone Année préparatoire pay the full rate that year; whether the exemption applies to year one of the Baccalauréat 4 ans is worth confirming with bourses@sar.umontreal.ca before applying. See scholarships in Canada.

Graduate study

For a master's, UdeM accepts a four-year Russian bachelor's (bakalavr) with an average of at least 4/5, equivalent to 3.0/4.3. For a doctorate, a two-year magistr with 4/5 (3.3/4.3). French requirements are set by each programme, and some research master's programmes allow English. UdeM's graduate studies office distributes more than CAD 8 million a year in funding, and some programmes offer integrated funding. See master's degrees in Canada.

Where to live

On-campus residence places and rates are published by UdeM's housing service (logement.umontreal.ca); check the 2027/28 rates there before you apply for housing. Many students live off campus. For them, Services à la vie étudiante runs an off-campus housing office (Logement hors campus) with a regularly updated list of rentals for the UdeM community, a practical guide to Montreal's rental market, an intergenerational home-share programme and advice on tenants' rights (logement@sve.umontreal.ca).

For budgeting, Quebec's living-funds norm of CAD 24,617 a year for one person is meant to cover housing, food, transport and health insurance. Start looking early and book temporary accommodation for your first weeks.

Quebec: CAQ and study permit

1. CAQ. Apply on Quebec's Arrima portal (MIFI) after your admission letter. The fee is $95 (CAD 135) from 1 January 2026, non-refundable; 80% of decisions come within 25 business days of a complete file. The CAQ replaces the PAL; Quebec's 2026 target is 39,474 study permits. Separately, from 17 December 2025 to 16 December 2027 Quebec caps the number of CAQ applications per institution; once UdeM's quota is used up, new applications wait for places to be reallocated, so apply for the CAQ as soon as your admission letter arrives.
2. Study permit from IRCC, only after the CAQ. Fee $110 (CAD 150), biometrics $60 (CAD 85).

Funds. Quebec requires tuition, travel and CAD 24,617 ($17,360) a year for one person from 1 January 2026.

Passport. Since 28 January 2026, Canadian visa application centres in Russia do not accept passports; Russian applicants submit theirs abroad, for example in Yerevan, Almaty or Astana.

Work. The study permit allows up to 24 hours a week off campus during terms (some UdeM pages still mention the former 20-hour limit; IRCC's rule applies). See the Canadian study permit and working while studying and the PGWP.

UdeM, McGill or Concordia

Plan for Fall 2027

1. Summer 2026: take TCF or TEF if your French is near B2; otherwise consider UdeM's French programme.
2. August–December 2026: choose the four-year bachelor's or the preparatory year; translate your documents.
3. By 1 February 2027: apply and pay; upload French results by 15 February.
4. March–May 2027: receive the decision and your exemption level.
5. Right after admission: apply for the CAQ, then the study permit.
6. June–August 2027: biometrics, passport at a centre abroad, housing, arrival.

Common mistakes

• Applying to a regular bachelor's with only the attestat. Without a university year, choose the four-year bachelor's or the preparatory year.
• Using DELF B2 for a programme requiring more. DELF B2 covers only programmes requiring up to B2.
• Uploading provisional results. Only official results are accepted.
• Confusing UdeM with HEC Montréal or Polytechnique. They admit separately.
• Expecting the exemption before arrival. Without a CAQ and study permit, the full rate applies.

FAQ

Can I enter Université de Montréal straight after 11 years of school?

Not directly into a regular three-year bachelor's: UdeM also requires a successful year of university. You can apply to a Baccalauréat 4 ans with a preparatory first year, or to the standalone Année préparatoire followed by a second application.

Can I study at UdeM in English?

At bachelor's level, essentially no; teaching is in French. Some master's and research programmes accept English, as stated on each programme page.

What level of French do I need?

For most bachelor's programmes, at least B2 in listening and reading on TCF, TEF, DELF or DALF taken within 24 months before your start date. Some programmes require C1.

How much does UdeM cost international students?

In 2026/27, CAD 1,025.76 per credit, or CAD 30,773 ($21,700) for 30 credits, plus compulsory fees. The exemption scholarship can lower this to CAD 16,337 a year.

How do I get the UdeM exemption scholarship?

No separate application is needed: bachelor's candidates are assessed on their grades at admission. Level A is worth CAD 14,436 a year and level B CAD 6,880. You must hold a valid CAQ and study permit and study full time without interruption.

Are HEC Montréal and Polytechnique Montréal part of UdeM?

They are affiliated schools on the same campus but with separate admissions, programmes and fees. An offer from UdeM does not give you a place at HEC or Polytechnique.

How does StudyU help with UdeM?

Choosing the route (four-year bachelor's or preparatory year), the application and translations, a French plan, and the CAQ and study permit files are provided under an agreement with StudyU. UdeM decides on admission and the exemption scholarship, Quebec's immigration ministry issues the CAQ and IRCC decides on the study permit.

Sources

• UdeM: admission conditions for applicants from Russia, international students, checked 01.10.2026
• UdeM: four-year bachelor's, preparatory year, deadlines, application fees, BSc in computer science requirements
• UdeM: off-campus housing service, residences
• UdeM: French requirement, accepted French tests
• Registrar: 2026-2027 tuition, exemption scholarship, scholarships for international students
• Québec.ca: basic needs for 2026, CAQ fees, processing and caps
• IRCC: 2026 allocations under the student cap, PAL/TAL and CAQ, fees, visa application centres, off-campus work
• THE World University Rankings 2027: Université de Montréal

USD amounts use the ECB reference rate of 30.09.2026 (CAD 1 = $0.7051), rounded to $10 (amounts under $100 to $1). All facts checked on 01.10.2026.

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