FAQs
Please keep in mind it is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure the submission of all required materials and a complete application.
The PhD Program Office has a zero tolerance policy on any unacceptable behaviour, whether via email communications, over the telephone or in person.
Program FAQs
We offer one intake per year in the Fall semester.
Our program is a full time program.
No. The PhD program is a full time, in person degree. All students admitted to the PhD program are expected to attend courses and live in Calgary for the duration of the degree.
Yes. Students are required to teach a minimum of two courses post-candidacy as part of the program.
Between your first and second year, you will conduct a research project for course credit during the spring and summer sessions. Guided by your supervisor, you will design and implement a research project proposal. No two projects are the same but all involve a proposal, qualitative or quantitative research, a final paper submitted for internal publication and a presentation to faculty and fellow PhD students.
No. Once our deadline date passes, our office will circulate complete applications to the areas applicants have applied. Faculty members within each area carefully review applications and will let our office know which applications they are interested in.
Admissions FAQs
December 1st
No. These standardized tests are our means of screening applicants to maintain the quality of our program. This requirement is never waived, under any circumstances.
No. These standardized tests are our means of screening applicants to maintain the quality of our program. This requirement is never waived, under any circumstances.
Once you submitted your application you would have received an email with instructions for uploading all required materials.
The application deadline time is an extremely busy time of year for our one Program Specialist. Our volume of work is at the highest level. We do our best to respond to your inquiries as quickly as possible, however, we request patience from all applicants. We update checklists as soon as possible. Please allow time for a response to your email, and make sure you carefully read any email you receive. Do not repeatedly email with the same questions.
Unofficial test scores and transcripts may be uploaded to the online application for review purposes. Offers of admission will be contingent upon receipt of all required official materials.
A complete application includes ALL of the following:
- The payment of the application fee
- A current CV - submitted with online application
- A clear and concise Statement of Purpose - submitted with online application
- An official GMAT/GRE result - sent directly from the registrar of that institution to the PhD office.
Test taker copies may used until the official document arrives are our offices. - ALL official transcripts - sent directly from the issuing institutions to the PhD office.
This is common practice around the world. If you possess official transcripts, which are in sealed envelopes, you can submit them. NOTE: any official transcript not received in a sealed envelope is NO LONGER OFFICIAL. - Two references, preferably academic
- Unofficial transcripts uploaded to the on line application
Please send a brief email to the Program Specialist and request the email to be sent again. Make sure you mention your student ID and which referee did not receive the information.
Referees are allowed an additional two weeks past the application deadline to submit their information. Our office will send reminders.
By mid-February, any applicant who is being considered for admission will be shortlisted and contacted by the Program Officer about next steps.
Once all admission decisions are finalized (mid-March), any applicant not offered admission will receive and email from our office.
Yes, provided an otherwise complete application is submitted including the application fee, unofficial information has been uploaded to the application and you can prove you have made the necessary arrangements for the submission of official documents.
It is beneficial to have interest from a faculty member, but it in no way guarantees that an offer of admission will be extended.
It is beneficial to have interest from a faculty member, but it in no way guarantees that an offer of admission will be extended.
Unofficial transcripts are accepted for review purposes. All offers of admission are contingent upon the receipt of all required official transcripts.
For Canadian students, $125. For International students $145.
No. We appreciate the cost involved in applying, but we cannot waive the application fee.
- TOEFL: Institutional code = 0813 Dept code = 02
- GMAT: Institutional code = 0813 Dept code = 02
- GRE: Institutional code = 0813 Dept code = 4201
Financing FAQs
Yes. We cover tuition, provide $30,000 annually for four years, and offer generous support of up to $5,000, which allows students to attend academic conferences. We also support students in pursuing other internal and external scholarship opportunities. Our PhD students have a proven track record of winning high profile national scholarships, such as Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Scholarship and Killam Doctoral Scholarship. More about other scholarship opportunities.
Yes. Students are provided a budget for conference attendance. Requests for conference support must be submitted to the PhD Office prior to attending. The Faculty of Graduate Studies also offers travel grants for eligible applicants.
Promised program funding is adjusted when scholarships and awards are won. Please see our scholarships and awards page for information on potential awards and grant opportunities.
International Applicants FAQs
Yes. If the primary language of instruction was English, the TOEFL/IELTS exam can be waived at the discretion of the director of the PhD program.
Yes, if you have a previous degree taught in English, you can request that this requirement be waived.
No. These two tests are not interchangeable.