TMU Kira Talent Assessment: Format, Dates and Preparation
Luca from Candidate Falcon
Editorial Team
You applied to the MD program at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) School of Medicine, and the next step is an online assessment on Kira Talent. This guide covers what TMU says about it, the dates for the 2027-entry cycle, what past applicants report about the timing, and how to use the weeks before your window.
We label every source: what TMU publishes, and what applicants report on Reddit, which TMU has not confirmed.
The short answer
- Six timed questions, video and written, recorded on the Kira Talent platform. TMU calls it the asynchronous assessment.
- Almost every applicant is invited. TMU says all applicants will be invited, after a check that your application is complete and eligible.
- It decides who moves on. TMU generates a shortlist from it; only that shortlist reaches the file review and then the interview.
- 2026 dates: invitation on 12 November, completion between 19 and 22 November 2026.
- Applicants report 30 seconds to prepare and 2 minutes to answer each video question, one written question of about 10 minutes, unlimited practice and one attempt at the real thing.
Where the Kira assessment fits at TMU
TMU's selection process page lists the steps in this order:
- Initial screening. Your OMSAS application is checked for completeness and for a four-year undergraduate degree by the start date.
- Asynchronous assessment on Kira Talent. All applicants are invited. "A shortlist of candidates will be generated via this assessment."
- File review. Only the shortlisted candidates, including those applying through TMU's three admissions pathways, go on to a full review of their file.
- Interview. A further shortlist is invited to a virtual Multiple Mini-Interview of six stations. Applicants in the Indigenous Admissions Pathway take part in a virtual Talking Circle instead.
- Selection. TMU combines the rounds into a composite score and ranks candidates for 94 seats in the 2027 cycle.
The order matters: your Kira answers come before anyone reads your file. Applicants on r/premedcanada describe it as your first impression at TMU, and TMU's own wording supports that.
Dates for the 2027-entry cycle
| Date | Step |
|---|---|
| 4 October 2026 | Deadline to request accommodations for the assessment and interview |
| 12 November 2026 | Email invitation to register for the asynchronous assessment |
| 19–22 November 2026 | Window to complete the assessment on Kira Talent |
| Week of 16 February 2027 | Interview invitations and status updates |
| 27–28 February, 6–7 March 2027 | Interviews |
| 11 May 2027 | First-round offers |
TMU's FAQ says the Kira platform works from any country, so you can complete it while abroad. Specific instructions arrive with the invitation.
What the assessment involves
TMU says the six questions are "both video and written" and look at two things:
- Your understanding of and commitment to TMU's mission and values.
- Your communication, reasoning and problem-solving skills. Core medical or science knowledge is not tested.
TMU does not publish the timings. Applicants who took it in earlier cycles report:
- Video questions: about 30 seconds to read and prepare, then 2 minutes to record your answer.
- Written question: about 10 minutes to plan and type.
- About 30 minutes in total, completed in one sitting.
- Practice first: applicants report unlimited practice questions before the real ones. Kira lets you redo practice answers when the school enables them, but a submitted real answer cannot be redone.
One applicant inferred from these timings that there are five video questions and one written question. That is a guess, so check the instructions in your invitation, which take priority over anything here.
What TMU values, and why it matters for your answers
Because the questions test your fit with TMU's mission, read its vision, mission and values page before you practise. TMU's vision is "A healthier society, together", and its mission puts primary care for diverse and medically underserved populations at the centre. Its values are:
- Health Equity
- Community Engagement
- Reconciliation and Indigenous Resurgence
- Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Mutual Respect
- Well-Being
- Leadership
- Integrity
Applicants who reached the interview stage make the same point in different words: show that you understand who TMU serves, without dropping its buzzwords into every answer. Several suggest learning about health needs in the Peel Region, where TMU's school is based, and topics such as the social determinants of health, team-based care and health advocacy.
How to prepare in the time you have
- Build five or six flexible stories. Pick experiences that show different sides of you: working in a team, leading, a mistake you learned from, serving a community, a disagreement handled well. One story can answer several prompts if you know what it shows.
- Answer the question first. In 2 minutes you have room for one point, one example and what you took from it. Do not force a story that does not fit.
- Connect to TMU, briefly. End with how the experience shapes the kind of physician you want to be, in TMU's setting.
- Practise on camera with the timer. Speaking to a webcam feels unnatural. Record answers of exactly 2 minutes, watch them back and check that you finish your last sentence.
- Practise one written answer under time. Plan for two minutes, write for seven, and leave one to check.
- Use Kira's practice questions once the invitation arrives, to test your camera, microphone and the timer. Kira says practice questions may differ from the real ones in content and timing.
- Prepare your room. Quiet space, light in front of you, notifications off, and the full 30 minutes free.
What applicants ask on Reddit
Can I take notes? In November 2025, commenters said the invitation email allowed scratch paper. Glancing at notes is fine; reading from them will show on camera.
Does everyone get the same questions? Applicants have asked, but nobody outside TMU knows. Kira's terms forbid copying or sharing the questions schools set, so threads that claim to list them are not reliable.
I copied and pasted inside my own text box. Will I be flagged? An applicant worried about this in October 2026 and contacted Kira; the thread has no answer from Kira. To avoid the worry, type directly in the box.
Should I use AI to draft answers? No. Kira asks applicants to complete the assessment on their own and monitors browser activity, and its SimCheck feature screens timed written answers for plagiarism and AI writing. The video answers are recorded live in any case.
Practise the Kira format
Candidate Falcon's Kira Talent practice gives you timed video and written questions with feedback on each answer, so you can rehearse speaking for 2 minutes to a camera before your window opens. Every question is our own, not TMU's or Kira's. For the platform in general, the formats other schools use and 20 free practice questions, read our Kira Talent interview guide. Practice needs a plan that includes video practice; see pricing.
FAQs
Does every TMU applicant get the Kira Talent assessment?
TMU says all applicants will be invited, after an initial screening that checks your application is complete and that you will have a four-year degree. Applicants report that almost everyone receives it.
When is the TMU Kira assessment in 2026?
TMU sends the invitation on 12 November 2026, and you complete the assessment between 19 and 22 November 2026.
How long is the TMU Kira Talent assessment?
TMU publishes six timed questions, video and written. Applicants from earlier cycles report about 30 minutes in one sitting: 30 seconds to prepare and 2 minutes for each video answer, and about 10 minutes for the written answer.
Is the Kira assessment more important than the interview?
They do different jobs. The Kira assessment decides who reaches the file review, and the file review decides who is interviewed. TMU then combines the rounds into a composite score; it does not publish the weights.
Sources
- TMU School of Medicine: selection process, important dates, admissions FAQs, admission categories and vision, mission and values (read 1 November 2026).
- Kira Talent: practice before your assessment, applicant integrity, retakes and deadlines and the asynchronous assessment.
- Reddit, r/premedcanada (individual reports, read November 2026): the TMU Kira megathread, December 2024, tips from a medical student, November 2025, preparation and topics to review, November 2025, scratch paper, November 2025, copy and paste in the text box, October 2026 and approaching TMU's Kira, October 2026.
Candidate Falcon is independent and not affiliated with Toronto Metropolitan University, Kira Talent, ETS or any other organization named here.