McMaster students can access a range of on-demand letters through the Student Centre in Mosaic.
The letters are considered official by the institution and in many cases, this letter, accompanied by a McMaster Transcript, will satisfy your requirements and will be produced more efficiently than a custom letter.
Your official McMaster transcripts can be ordered through the Registrar’s Office.
An official School of Graduate Studies (SGS) letter is a formal document issued specifically for graduate students by the SGS.
Please note that graduate program offices are not authorized to independently generate letters confirming enrolment or graduate status.
Log into Mosaic – Go to the Student Centre
Available once students are approved to graduate in Mosaic
Available following a student’s degree conferral
Available once registered in the upcoming or current academic year
Certifies courses enrolled in the current term
Certifies that while the student is enrolled in the program, they are not enrolled in courses in the current term
Student invoice for each term
Students can submit a Letter Request Form through Mosaic to request a customized enrolment letter. This type of letter is commonly used for purposes such as Study Permit extensions or Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP) applications.
It is the student’s responsibility to abide by all necessary government processes, including ensuring that their immigration documents remain valid.
If you need to extend your Study Permit, you will require either an Extension of Study Permit Letter or a Letter of Acceptance, depending on your situation. If you are not sure which letter you require, please contact the Immigration Advising Team at immigration@mcmaster.ca.
If you are applying for the PGWP, you will require the Completion Letter (example: Approved to Graduate Letter). Please visit the Immigration Advising website for information on documents required for the PGWP.
Please note, graduate students with account holds are not eligible for enrolment verifications. To sort out any financial holds, you must email studbill@mcmaster.ca.
All official enrolment verification letters for graduate students must be issued by either Mosaic or SGS Records. Graduate program offices are not authorized to produce these letters.
Reminder that these letters can take 10 to 15 business days to produce, and though there is no charge, if you require a letter urgently, you can request a transcript here and can use the on-demand letters available in Mosaic to satisfy many requirements.
* If you were or are currently participating in an approved co-op, and this information must be included in your letter, you are required to attach written confirmation from the Co-op Office outlining your co-op start and end dates.
**If your expected completion date exceeds the standard program duration (i.e., more than 2 years for a Master’s program or 4 years for a PhD program), written confirmation from your graduate program office is required. This confirmation must indicate your anticipated completion date.
Any requests submitted without the required documentation will result in processing delays.
Verification letters issued by the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) confirm only the information available on a student’s official graduate record (e.g., degree information, full-time/part-time status, program/plan, and enrolment dates). They do not confirm funding or future planned activity.
Letter requests must be submitted through Mosaic only. Requests submitted via email will not be processed.
Using the existing letters available in Mosaic is the preferred option when official documentation is required. For situations requiring additional details, customized letters may be issued by the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) for exceptional circumstances only. Please keep in mind that oftentimes, these letters are better served with a transcript – request a transcript.
Requesting a custom letter does not necessarily mean it can be produced, dependent on the content requested.
Please note that all customized letter requests are subject to a $50 fee. Refer to the Make a Payment section below for instructions on submitting payment.
Letters are issued based solely on official university records. As such, we are unable to include information beyond what is on the graduate student record.
To request a customized letter, please email sgsrec@mcmaster.ca. Please note that customized letters may take approximately 10 to 15 business days to process.
SGS does not provide official funding letters. A student’s Offer of Admission should be used in any instance where you need to provide confirmation of your funding package. If there were any significant changes to your graduate funding throughout the year, your program office should have issued you an official ‘Change to Financial Support’ letter. Should you have any questions, please reach out to your program office or gradpay@mcmaster.ca.
Pay statements for employment income (TA or RA in lieu of TA payments) are issued by Human Resources, and available for each biweekly pay period in your Mosaic account, via the Employee Self Service tile.
For those needing confirmation of Scholarship, you can use your existing Award Letters or Notices provided to you by SGS, CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC or other external organizations.
Important: Customized letters will not be produced between August 17 and August 31. In exceptional circumstances, requests during this period may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Before a customized letter can be produced, a $50 fee must be made to your student account. The $50 fee applies to any custom letter requests that go beyond the standard Enrolment Verification Letters in Mosaic.
If you are no longer an active graduate student and do not have access to Mosaic, please email Student Billings (studbill@mcmaster.ca) and they will assist with arranging payment.