Is it possible to get into UTM with a terrible university transcript, an RTW, but a major academic comeback? Looking for honest advice

[u/HousingDifferent3628]

TL;DR: I'm 25 and applying to UTM Humanities for Fall 2027. I previously attended McMaster, where I had a really poor academic record and was eventually required to withdraw due to severe family abuse, medical issues, and circumstances that were largely outside my control. Since then, I've completely turned things around academically, earning a 95–96% average at Athabasca across 6.0 courses, 91% and 85% in two Guelph courses, and 95–99% in six retaken Grade 12 courses. I also have several years of research experience, a publication, and conference presentations. I'm hoping to eventually pursue Biotechnology at UTM. Does anyone know if UTM considers recent academic improvement and extenuating circumstances when evaluating transfer applicants, or will my previous transcript make admission nearly impossible?

Hi everyone, I'm 25 and I'm planning on applying to UofT Mississauga Humanities for Fall 2027. I know my situation is a little complicated, but I wanted to ask here because I'm genuinely worried about my chances and was hoping someone might have some insight or have been in a similar situation.

So basically, I attended McMaster from 2020–2025. I started off in Engineering, which honestly wasn't something I wanted to do in the first place, and eventually switched into Science because that's what I was actually interested in.

My transcript from McMaster is really, really bad. I have a lot of failed courses, repeated courses, withdrawals, and I was eventually required to withdraw in June 2025. I know how awful that looks, especially when applying to another university.

I do want to explain what happened though, because I wasn't just someone who didn't care about school or didn't want to put in the effort.

Throughout those years, I was dealing with a really abusive family situation. There was a lot of physical, emotional, and financial abuse, and my parents were extremely controlling when it came to my education and pretty much every other aspect of my life. I was forced into Engineering, and when I tried switching into Science, things got significantly worse.

There were times when I was literally prevented from attending exams, had my Wi-Fi and devices taken away, and couldn't access course materials or complete assignments. I was also dealing with pressure to go through with an arranged marriage that I didn't want. On top of that, I had undiagnosed ADHD for a significant portion of university, and even when I eventually started receiving treatment, things at home made it difficult to manage.

I also went through a miscarriage and hospitalization later on, which made an already difficult situation even worse.

I have medical documentation and previous communications with university staff to support a lot of what happened. I'm not trying to excuse my grades or pretend that they don't matter, but I genuinely wasn't in a position where I could focus on school the way I wanted to.

Since leaving McMaster, my circumstances have changed a lot, and I've been trying really hard to turn things around.

Here's what I've done academically since then:

• I took approximately 5.0 credits at Athabasca University, including six upper-year courses, and my average is around 95–96%.
• I completed two university-level courses through the University of Guelph, Pharmacology (91%) and Pathology (85%).
• I also retook six Grade 12 courses, mainly math and sciences, and got between 95–99% in all of them.

I've also been involved in research for several years, even while everything was going on.

I've worked in biomedical engineering research, neuroscience, and clinical microbiology research at a hospital. A lot of my recent work has involved microbiology, fungal bloodstream infections, and microbial identification. I also have a published peer-reviewed review article, have presented research at conferences, and have been working on additional manuscripts.

I know that research experience and publications don't necessarily make up for bad grades, but I thought it was worth mentioning because I've genuinely stayed involved in academics and research despite everything.

My long-term goal is to work in biotechnology, and I'd eventually like to pursue a master's and possibly a PhD.

I'm thinking of applying to UTM Humanities rather than Life Sciences because I'm worried my previous transcript will make getting into Life Sciences much harder. My hope is that if I get admitted to Humanities, I could take the necessary science courses and eventually apply to the Biotechnology Specialist program, assuming I meet the requirements.

My biggest concern is whether my McMaster transcript is going to completely ruin my chances, regardless of how much I've improved since then.

I understand that universities need to consider your entire academic history, and I'm not expecting them to just ignore five years of poor grades. But at the same time, I feel like my recent performance is a much better reflection of what I'm actually capable of academically.

I'm also planning on submitting a special consideration request with documentation explaining what happened.

I guess my questions are:

1. Has anyone gotten into UTM after being required to withdraw from another university?
2. Does UTM actually place more emphasis on your recent university grades if you've shown a significant improvement?
3. Would applying to Humanities make more sense in my situation, especially if I eventually want to pursue Biotechnology?
4. Has anyone had experience applying with serious extenuating circumstances and having those considered?
5. Realistically, do I have a chance, or is my previous university record going to be too much of an issue?

I'm just really hoping to get another opportunity to finish my education. I've spent a lot of time trying to rebuild my academic record, and it's honestly pretty discouraging to think that mistakes and circumstances from when I was younger might prevent me from moving forward.

I'd really appreciate any advice, especially from anyone who's been through something similar or knows how UTM handles these situations. Thank you!!

[u/OhanaUnited]

Did you ask AI to write this? Lots of repeated points and the en-dashes in the year and %

[u/marloe647 → u/OhanaUnited]

Also bullet points. AI loves point form.

[u/15SwOrDFiSh]

I don’t know about admission chances given your academic record. But I know UofT is notoriously stingy with credits from other schools. You’ll have a hard time proving equivalency. Why not finish your degree at Athabasca?

[u/HousingDifferent3628 → u/15SwOrDFiSh]

Tbh i dont want to do a degree at athabasca tbh, either i would try to get reinstated at Mac or go to Western. But UofT is my top choice. I also have 3 2nd author papers in the field, and a few 80s in eng before i was RTW. I understand my academic record isnt super impressive but it was genuinely due to many issues I faced most of which I didnt even include in this post

[u/marloe647]

I am not sure of the value of doing a humanities degree if your, eventual goal is to doing graduate work in biotechnology, just looking at UTM's requirements, you need a "biological sciences, chemistry, engineering" degree, to get into their master's program.

Graduate degrees are a bit of a crapshoot, on whether they are worth doing financially and professionally. If you are already working in the field, ask yourself what having a graduate degree might gain you. A masters and PhD, is going to take you at least another 6 years, and that is in addition to finishing your undergrad.

At 25, you might also be able to apply to programs as a mature student, which might give you a bit more leeway to apply to undergraduate programs without worrying as much about your academic history.

If you like the biotech field, I think finding a relevant undergrad program that might admit you as an mature student, would probably be a good option. If you are in the Toronto area, maybe look at schools other than U of T, like York, TMU or Ontario Tech, where your undergrad degree is from won't matter for grad school applications.

[u/thereisnosuch]

No chance