Graduate Programs

The MA in Criminology and Social Justice prepares students for professional and leadership roles in private, public and non-profit sectors related to social justice. This includes: local communities, NGOs, government, international organizations, the legal profession and academia.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (3 semesters) 
• Practical experience: Optional 120-hour field placement
• Research component: Major Research Paper (MRP)
• Research areas: Equity-driven, interdisciplinary research exploring justice through migrant rights, feminism, urban governance, and Black and Indigenous justice

 Career pathways

Strong integration with community and industry partners, such as John Howard Society of Ontario, Kensington-Bellwoods Community Legal Services, the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion (CCDI) and more.

The objective of our PhD program is to produce professional economists with the expertise needed for success. Compulsory courses offer rigorous training in economic theory and econometrics, while electives prepare students in fields ranging from international economics to financial econometrics and development economics. 

Solid theoretical training combined with an empirical orientation ensures graduates are well suited for high-level research and management positions in academia and in the public and private sectors.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (5 years)
• Practical experience: Intensive training in advanced economic theory and applied econometrics
• Research component: Frontier economic research designed to educate and support students 
• Examples of research topics: Game theory and mechanism design, econometrics and data analysis, international and environmental economics, Indigenous issues and monetary, fiscal, and public policy

 Career pathways

Policy institutions, academia, industry

Our MA in International Economics and Finance is a specialized program designed for students in the early stages of their professional careers. Compulsory core courses are designed to provide a solid background in economic theory, financial theory and econometrics. Elective courses provide specialized training in fields ranging from labour economics to game theory.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (1 year) or a part-time (2 years) 
• Practical experience: Internship option available
• Research component: Term papers, presentations and supervised research paper 
• Research areas: Empirical analysis of economic data relating to social and economic problems

 Career pathways

Provincial ministries, consulting firms, law firms, banks and financial institutions, academia

The Literatures of Modernity program provides literature-focused professional skills development for academia and beyond. Our innovative courses investigate diverse works from cultural, historical, and global perspectives and in doing so, illuminate the ideas and social structures of modernity that have shaped and continue to shape our contemporary world.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (1 year)
• Practical experience: (Practicum option) Placement at an institution, organization, or enterprise connected to literature or other cultural industry
• Research component: Scholarly or creative literature-related research project
• Research areas: Literatures and cultures from the 16th Century to the present, Indigenous, Black, Postcolonial and Diasporic literatures, creative writing, digital humanities, critical theory, visual and material cultures

 Career pathways

Publishing, arts and cultural institutions, communications, law, education, government

Focused on core areas of philosophy, the Philosophy MA program is designed for students who wish to broaden or deepen their undergraduate experience in philosophy, and for those planning to pursue a PhD in the subject. 

The program aims to develop the analytical, communication, organization, study and research skills needed to succeed in both the profession of academic philosophy, and in the broader world of work.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (5 semesters)  
• Practical experience: Develop teaching skills through a combination of classroom experiences, teaching and research assistantships
• Research component: Major research paper and and thesis option
• Research areas: Analytic-continental traditions, including Indigenous philosophy, decolonial thought, justice-centered philosophy

 Career pathways

Bell Canada, Compute Canada, local school boards, law firms, academia

The PhD Policy Studies program is Canada’s first and only interdisciplinary doctoral program in policy. It was designed to prepare researchers for positions within academe, and in the public, private and not-for-profit sectors at the local, regional, national and international levels. The program faculty include over 80 affiliated faculty across the university.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (4 years)
• Practical experience: Contribute to improvements in policy research, design, implementation, and outcomes on a wide range of complex policy issues
• Research component: Dissertation supported by supervised research, coursework, comprehensive exam and proposal development
• Research areas: Immigration, urban governance, education and social equity, along with other social, economic, environmental and justice issues impacted by policy

 Career pathways

Government, non-profits, public health, housing, social services, immigration, academia

The Clinical Psychology program is designed to train professional clnical psychologists within a scientist-practitioner orientation. The curriculum was developed to meet the requirements for registration with the College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario (CPBAO). Throughout the program, clinical practicum placements provide an opportunity to put new skills into practice.

 Your program

• Program duration: MA (Full-time, 2 years), PhD (Full-time, 4 years + 1 year Internship)
• Practical experience: Clinical practica in our own psychology training clinic or local hospitals, mental health agencies and clinics, etc.
• Research component: (MA) research-based thesis and oral defense, (PhD) research-based dissertation and oral defense  
• Research expertise: Examples of research topics include anxiety and related disorders; trauma recovery; sleep disorders; addictions and substance use disorder; sexual and gender minority health; and treatment research, among others

 Career pathways

Academia, clinical practice, health care, research institutes, and a wide range of community and public sector settings

Pursuing a MA or PhD in Psychological Science provides an opportunity to train in an environment that fosters excellence in basic, applied, and translational research, across four core research areas: Applied Cognitive Neuroscience, Community and Health Psychology, Lifespan Development, and Social Psychology. 

Both the MA and PhD programs also offer innovative practicum placements, giving students the chance to work in active academic or applied settings. In this way they can experience diverse research areas and use newly acquired skills in health care, education and other professional environments.

 Your program

• Program duration: MA (Full-time, 2 years), PhD (Full-time, 4 years)
• Practical experience: Practicum placement at MA and PhD level in academic, industry, or government
• Research component: (MA) research-based thesis and oral defense, (PhD) research-based dissertation and oral defense
• Research expertise: Examples of research topics include intergroup and intercultural relationships; prejudice and discrimination; wrongful convictions; gerontology; social-cognitive development, human memory and cognitive neuroscience; media psychology; stress physiology and resilience, among others

 Career pathways

Academia, research institutes, government, industry, community organizations, public sector

This innovative program integrates the fields of public policy and public administration. Student work reflects the theoretical and practical political realities of policy development, implementation and analysis. 

Graduates leave the program with the skills and knowledge needed for further academic pursuits and careers in the public service. As a result, many work at all levels of government, and with non-profit and private sector organizations here at home and abroad.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (1 year) or a part-time (2 years) 
• Practical experience: Co-op placements related to public policy and administration in government, not-for-profit and private sectors
• Research component: Major research paper and thesis option
• Research areas: Public policy, administration, and governance in Canada and in a global and comparative context

 Career pathways

Municipal, provincial and federal governments and agencies, private and non-profit sectors, international non-government agencies, law, academia

The Master of Spatial Analysis offers a unique MSA degree designation through an academically rigorous 12-month graduate program with a 16 to 20-month thesis option. 

Through project-based lectures and labs, professional work placements and a major research paper or thesis, students learn to think geographically, and master geographic information systems (GIS) to support operational and strategic decision-making

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (1 year) or a part-time (2 years) 
• Practical experience: Internship placements related to location and data science in government, not-for-profit and private sectors.
• Research component: Major research project and thesis option
• Research areas: Use of geographic information systems (GIS) and advanced spatial analytics across a wide range of fields–environment, business, crime analysis, health, immigration, government and planning

 Career pathways

Environics Analytics, Ministry of the Environment, TRCA, RBC, Access Alliance

The joint Graduate Program in Communication and Culture (with York University) offers research-intensive MA and PhD study across three streams: Media and Culture, Politics and Policy, and Technology in Practice. 

MA students may complete a thesis, a Major Research Paper (MRP), or an arts-based Project-Paper (research-creation). The PhD culminates in a dissertation (traditional or research-creation). Students take courses and work with supervisors at both institutions, and MA students can apply elective field placements and research-creation pathways to develop professional skills.

 Your program

• Program duration: MA Full time (2 years) or a part time (4 years), PhD (4 years)
• Practical experience: Field placements, research-creation projects, academic conferences and symposia, teaching/research assistantships
• Research component: Dissertation supported by supervised research, coursework, comprehensive exam and proposal development
• Research expertise: Social research that explores the intersections of communication, culture, and society

 Career pathways

Academia, cultural and creative industries, public policy and government, digital media, journalism, entrepreneurship, museums, galleries, curation, research organisations

Gain a comprehensive understanding of environmental issues and practical solutions. This interdisciplinary program provides avenues for active research, access to a diverse urban environment, and opportunities to collaborate with experienced faculty. Program research spans the full range of environmental disciplines including science, social sciences, engineering, business, architecture, planning and public health.

 Your program

• Program duration: MASc Full-time (2 years) or a part-time (4 years), PhD (3 years)
• Practical experience: Carry out advanced work in an industry or a public sector organization under the direction of a faculty supervisor 
• Research component: Culminates in a Thesis (Thesis option), or a Major Research Paper (MRP–Project option)
• Research expertise: Understanding complex environmental issues and developing practical solutions

 Career pathways

Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canada Water Agency, Ontario Ministry of Environment and Parks, Toronto Water, Toronto Regional Conservation Authority, and a wide range of industries and NGOs in the environmental sector

The Master of Arts in Immigration and Settlement Studies is an innovative program that explores immigration trends, policies and programs in Canada from multi-disciplinary perspectives. 

Available in both full-time and part-time study options, the program is one graduate program available in the country focused solely on the consequences and opportunities arising from transnational human mobility as it relates to life in Canada and internationally.

 Your program

• Program duration: Full-time (1 year) or a part-time (2 years) 
• Practical experience: Practicum at an organization engaged in immigration or settlement-related policy, programs or services
• Research component: Culminates in a Major Research Paper (MRP)
• Research expertise: Interdisciplinary focus on understanding the different processes of human mobility both in Canada and globally

 Career pathways

Federal and provincial governments, colleges and universities, settlement services organizations, academia