To be considered for admission to the program, students must have completed (or anticipate completing before the beginning of the term in which they propose to begin the program) an Honours Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Political Science or its equivalent. Students with an Honours BA in a related discipline will be considered for admission but may be required to complete further work in Political Science before proceeding. Students with a General BA in Political Science may be admitted to a qualifying program, and then apply for admission to the Master of Arts (MA) program after completion of that program.
Admission Requirements
Admission requirements for students admitted to the Master of Arts program are as follows:
- An Honours Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in Political Science with at least a 78% overall standing
- Three letters of reference, normally from academic sources
- Resume
- Statement of Research
- At least one sample of written work
- Proof of proficiency in English (if applicable); accepted examinations and required minimum scores for graduate studies are listed on the English Language Proficiency page
Students who do not meet the requirements outlined above may be considered for admission to a transitional or probationary program depending on their academic background.
Please visit the Graduate Studies Office web pages for other information on the application process and for the online application.
Probationary students admitted to the program must achieve at least 75% in two predetermined courses in order to continue in the winter term. Normally a student will not continue on probationary status for more than two terms.
Transitional students
Transitional students admitted are normally required to complete additional predetermined undergraduate or graduate courses and achieve at least a 75% average.
See the Categories of Admission to the Master's Program page for more information.
Degree Requirements
Two patterns of study are available to meet the requirements for the MA degree in Political Science. Students may complete: the equivalent of four one-term (0.5 unit weight) courses and a thesis or, the equivalent of six one-term (0.5 unit weight) courses and a master's research paper.
All students must complete PSCI 600 and PSCI 601. Note that PSCI 600 and 601 are 0.5 unit weight courses offered over the Fall and Winter terms respectively.
Students in the Co-op program must complete and submit a work term report within one month of the completion of the work term.
At the time of application, students are asked to provide the Department with a general outline of their research interests, together with a suggested Thesis or Master's Research Paper project. There are many opportunities for students and faculty to discuss research interests and the two options in the program. Upon arrival, the Graduate Officer assigns a faculty advisor to each student. Although the faculty advisor could become is a student's supervisor, the advisor is to assist and offer advice on academic and administrative matters until a research supervisor is chosen.
We presume that all students are in the Master's Research paper option. Students who wish to write a Thesis may apply to do so at the end of Fall term. A committee composed of the Graduate officer, the prospective Supervisor and prospective Reader assesses a Thesis proposal.
Degree requirements are as follows:
Master's Research Paper Option
- Completion of PSCI 600 and 601
- A total of four other one-term (0.5 unit weight) graduate level courses (the overall average achieved in the six credit courses should be at least 70%)
- Submission of a master's research paper
- Submisson of an acceptable work-report (for students in the co-op option) within one month of completion of work term placement
The master's research paper in political science is best thought of as a "mini thesis" and is the equivalent of two one-term courses. The work is co-supervised by two faculty members who may ask for corrections and who jointly decide on the grade to be awarded upon completion.
Thesis Option
Completion of PSCI 600 and 601;
- Completion of two other one-term (0.5 unit weight) graduate level courses (the overall average achieved in the four credit courses should be at least 70%)
- Submission and defense of a thesis embodying the results of original research
- Submission of an acceptable work report (for students in the co-op option) within one month of completion of work term placement
The thesis is the equivalent of four one-term (0.5 unit weight) courses, and therefore should occupy roughly half of your allotted time.
While we allow students much latitude in the choice of research topic, we expect the thesis itself to be somewhat narrow in scope and analytically well-defined. Students sometimes do not appreciate how ambitious their initial proposals are. One elementaty criterion of a suitable topic is that it can be completed within the time allotted. The purpose of PSCI 691 presentations of thesis proposals is to assist students to define a suitable thesis topic.
Students must apply to write a Thesis at the end of the Fall term. The Thesis proposal is assessed early in the Winter term by the Graduate Officer and the prospective Supervisor and Reader.