Note: This is the 2022–2023 eCalendar. Update the year in your browser's URL bar for the most recent version of this page, or .
Legal Name and Gender
Legal Name
Legal Name
Your legal name is the name that will appear on your degree, diploma, or certificate upon graduation, and on your e-bills, tax receipts, and official transcript. It is also used by the Government of Quebec to create a Permanent Code.
After confirming your offer of admission and registering at McGill, the name provided on your admission application is validated, and in the event of a variation updated, to match the legal name appearing on one of the following documents:
- Canadian birth certificate, copy of an act of birth, or citizenship certificate
- Canadian Immigration Record of Landing (IMM 1000 or IMM 5292 or IMM 5688 and Permanent Residence card)
- Canadian Immigration Study or Work Permit
- Certificate of Acceptance of Quebec (CAQ)
- International passport (Note: If you possess Canadian citizenship, a Canadian citizenship card or certificate is required as a Canadian passport is not acceptable)
- International birth certificate (with an official translation in English or French)
- Letter from international student's consulate or embassy in Canada
- Marriage certificate issued outside of Quebec—translated into English or French by a sworn officer if in another language (Note: Quebec marriage certificates are only acceptable if issued prior to 1984)
- Certificate of Name Change or Certificate of Change of Sex Designation and Name issued by the Quebec Directeur de l’état civil or applicable force in any Canadian Province
In the case of a variation in the spelling of the name among these documents, the University will use the name on the document that appears first on the above list.
Should McGill require a copy of one of the documents listed, both or all sides of the document must be copied and presented.
In order to update the legal name on your student record you must:
- Complete a Personal Data Change Form
- Provide us with a copy of the appropriate legal document with the updated legal name (if we don't already have a copy); the list of acceptable documents is listed above
- Submit the completed form and copy of the legal document by email attachment (PDF or TIFF format) to legaldocumentation [at] mcgill.ca
Legal Gender
Legal Gender
To update your legal gender you need to:
- Complete a Personal Data Change Form
- Provide us with a copy of the appropriate legal document with the updated legal gender (if we don't already have a copy); the list of acceptable documents is listed in the Legal Name section above
- Submit the completed form and copy of the legal document by email attachment (PDF or TIFF format) to legaldocumentation [at] mcgill.ca
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2022-2023 (last updated Jan. 26, 2023) (disclaimer)
Preferred First Name
Preferred First Name
Your preferred first name is a name by which you are normally addressed, and is different from your legal first name. The Preferred First Name Procedure enables students to use an alternate preferred first name for certain purposes while studying at McGill.
Students who wish to use a preferred first name should enter this information into Minerva as soon as possible in order to ensure that their preferred first name is used as widely as possible.
The preferred first name may be used on all unofficial university documents and tools, such as:
The student's legal name must appear on official university documents, such as:
- Official university transcripts
- Reports to government
- Letters of attestation
- Diplomas and certificates
- Tuition fee e-bills
It is important to note that making a request to use a preferred first name at McGill does not change a student's legal name in the McGill student record or records with government authorities.
You can provide a preferred first name on your application for admission or, once admitted, on Minerva, under the Personal Menu. From the Personal Menu, select Name Change and then add your preferred first name in the preferred first name field.
You can also request that your preferred first name be part of your McGill email address by submitting a change to Network and Communications Services (NCS) via the tool. For further details, see mcgill.ca/student-records/personal-information/address, which includes the Preferred First Name FAQ.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2022-2023 (last updated Jan. 26, 2023) (disclaimer)
Verification of Name
Verification of Name
You should verify the accuracy of your name on McGill's student records via Minerva (mcgill.ca/minerva). To do this, go to Personal Menu > Name Change, where you can make minor corrections such as changing case (upper/lower), adding accents, and spacing. You can also add a preferred first name that is different from your legal first name, and it will be used internally at McGill. For more information on the Preferred First Name Procedure, see mcgill.ca/student-records/personal-information/address.
Note that you cannot change your legal name via Minerva. Requests for such changes must be made by presenting official documents (see Legal Name and Gender and Preferred First Name) in person at Service Point, 3415 McTavish Street, Montreal QC H3A 0C8.
Note for Continuing Studies: Requests for such changes must be made by presenting official documents (see Legal Name and Gender) in person at the Client Services Office, School of Continuing Studies.
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2022-2023 (last updated Jan. 26, 2023) (disclaimer)
Programs, Courses and University Regulations—2022-2023 (last updated Jan. 26, 2023) (disclaimer)
