Supervisors
Learn about faculty available to supervise this degree.
Please note: additional supervisors may be available. Contact the program for more information.
Program overview
Learn from internationally recognized scholars in a program with excellent student-to-supervisor ratios. Departmental expertise is wide-ranging; our historians are specialists in histories of Africa, Canada, China, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Students learn valuable skills in argumentative writing, critical thinking, public speaking, and grant proposal writing. Typically, students base their doctoral research in archival work within Canada and abroad. Students will complete a dissertation that contributes meaningfully to their chosen fields as they gain experience in teaching at an undergraduate level, present at conferences, and prepare research for publication.
Completing this program
- Core Courses: Reading courses in primary and secondary areas of study.
- Additional Courses: Elective graduate seminars (may include one course from another department). Must include Historiography and the Theories of History if not completed in the MA program.
- Language: Students demonstrate reading knowledge of a second language relevant to the student's research prior to the candidacy examination.
- Candidacy: Students will complete both oral and written candidacy exams in primary and secondary areas.
- Thesis: Students will be required to submit and defend an original research thesis.
Outcomes
Academic teaching and research, research consulting, public history, education, professional writing and editing, journalism, civil service and diplomacy.
A PhD in history is usually considered a final degree.
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Accepting InquiriesBlack Canadian/Slavery , Early American/African American -
Accepting Inquiries -
Accepting InquiriesEnvironmental History, Canadian History, Western Canada, Indigenous People, Cultural Exchange and the Fur Trade, Fur, Modernity and Industrialized relations, Treaty Trade, the State, and Business History -
Accepting InquiriesEnergy History, International History, Diplomatic History -
Accepting InquiriesSoviet military history, The Second World War, Soviet military and naval policy, The Soviet Union and southern Africa -
Accepting InquiriesTwentieth Century Canada, Canadian Women's and Gender History, Oral History -
Accepting InquiriesLatin America -
Accepting InquiriesEarly Medieval Europe ca 600-1000, Early Medieval England, Early Medieval North Sea -
Accepting InquiriesHistory of Brazil, Civic Rituals, Popular Festivals, Military Institutions, Slavery, Race, Popular Politics, Latin American History, History of Newspapers and Periodicals in Nineteenth-Century Brazil -
UnavailableEarly Modern England, circa 1500-1700, English Empire and Atlantic World, circa 1575-1750, Crime and Criminal Justice in Early Modern England, Early Modern International Law and Diplomacy -
Accepting InquiriesCanadian History -
UnavailableU.S. History--Late Colonial, Early National, Antebellum -
Accepting InquiriesHistory of Medicine and the Life Sciences, History and Philosophy of the Neurosciences, History of Physiology, Medical Visualizations throughout History, History of Public Mental Health and Psychiatry -
Seeking StudentsAfrican History/Military History -
Accepting InquiriesHistory of Education, Higher Education, and Media; History of Ethnicity, Race, Immigration, Refugees, and Multiculturalism; History of Intellectual Culture; Cultural Theory and Theories of History; Interdisciplinary Studies and Theory; Images in Historical Cultures -
Accepting InquiriesEditor, Journal of the History of Sexuality, History of German Population Policy, History of Gender in Europe, History of Nazi Racial Policy, History of Sexology and Transsexuality, History of the Holocaust, Comparative History of WWII Psychological Warfare -
Accepting InquiriesUnited States History, Urban History, Civil wars and nationalism in the 19th century -
Accepting InquiriesMilitary, diplomatic, and political history
Admission requirements
GPA
A minimum of 3.7 GPA on a four-point scale (or equivalent), in history courses taken at the graduate level.
Minimum education
Masters degree in history (or related) and a four-year undergraduate degree with honours or a major in history.
Work samples
A sample of written work, normally a master’s thesis chapter or a major research paper completed at the master’s level.
Documents
A detailed statement of research interest.
Reference letters
Two
Test scores
None
English language proficiency (ELP)
An applicant whose primary language is not English may fulfill the English language proficiency requirement in one of the following ways:
- Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL iBT including TOEFL iBT Home Edition) minimum score of 86 (Internet-based, with no section less than 20).
- International English Language Testing System (IELTS) score of 6.5 (with no section less than 6.0).
- Cambridge C1 Advanced or Cambridge C2 Proficiency minimum score of 180.
- Pearson Test of English (PTE) score of 59 or higher
- Canadian Academic English Language test (CAEL) overall score of 70 (no section less than 60).
- Academic Communication Certificate (ACC) minimum of B+ in each course.
- Duolingo English Test obtaining a minimum score of 125 (with no sub-score below 105). (temporary until Fall 2024 intake)
Deadlines
For admission on September 1:
- Canadians and permanent residents: Jan. 5 application deadline
- International students: Jan. 5 application deadline
If you're not a Canadian or permanent resident, or if you have international credentials, make sure to learn about international requirements
Learn more about this program
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