Chair of the Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies Graduate Program Committee: Dr. Catherine Murray
Department contact: Graduate Secretary- gswssec@sfu.ca
Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies
Simon Fraser University
AQ 5102A
8888 University Drive
Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6
Tel: 778-782-3333
Fax: 778-782-5518
Normally, the student will complete the following requirements:
a) Successfully complete three graduate courses. The GSWS Graduate Program Committee, in consultation with the student's supervisory committee, may require a student to take additional courses, either to obtain breadth of background in Women's Studies or to acquire specific preparation in the topic of the student's proposed thesis.
Two of the student's required courses may be from Women's Studies at the University of British Columbia or relevant offerings in other departments, at SFU or UBC, with the approval of the student's supervisory committee.
Students who have completed the SFU or UBC MA program before admission to the PhD program will not be permitted to duplicate graduate courses they completed during their MA programs.
b) Successfully complete the comprehensive examinations. These will be set by the student's supervisory committee in consultation with the student, approved by the Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies Graduate Committee and completed to the satisfaction of the supervisory committee. One of the three tasks must be an exam or a review of the literature.
Normally, students will complete their coursework before taking examinations, and complete the examinations before presenting and defending a PhD thesis proposal. They will be expected to complete their coursework and comprehensive examinations within two years.
c) Prepare a PhD thesis proposal and defend it in a presentation open to the department as a whole.
d) Submit a PhD thesis giving evidence of independent research and critical abilities in the interdisciplinary study of women and/or gender. The student will be examined on her or his thesis in accordance with Graduate General Regulations.
Please note : Unless you are a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident (Landed immigrant), your work opportunities as a graduate student will be limited to employment on campus. We cannot and will not, in the future, be able to provide support for all our students.
1. Toward the end of November, we will respond to applicants about what we have received from them and what is still required for their applications to be complete.
2. The Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies Graduate Program Admissions Committee meets shortly after the January 16th, 2013 deadline and looks at all the applications at the same time.
The office of the Dean of Graduate Studies (click here for their website) has recently implemented an on-line application procedure.
To apply on-line, the online application system. Note that there is an application fee.
It is important to understand that this on-line application is only one part of the requirements for the Women's Studies Ph.D. application package. See below.
1. Letters of reference from three people who are familiar with you and qualifes to evaluate your capacity for graduate academic work. Note that we do not provide reference forms, so the letters of reference must include complete contact information for the referees.
2. Official transcripts in sealed envelopes should be sent directly from the applicable institutions (one from each post-secondary institution you have attended) directly to Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies
3. A 750 to 1200 word statement of your proposed area of study. This should include a proposed topic, and a description of the approach you wish to take, including main academic fields of study.
4. A short curriculum vita showing relevant course work, employment and volunteer work.
5. A sample of your scholarly work, such as an upper-level (third or fourth year) essay, an essay prepared especially for this application, a substantive portion of your honours thesis (if applicable) or samples of any academic publications.
6. If your first language is not English then an original TOEFL certificate or IELTS is required. (Click here for further info)
7. Finanical support is considered to be the responsibility of the student. You should include with your application package completed forms for Graduate Fellowships, and for any other scholarships or bursaries for which you might be eligible.
For your information: SFU Graduate Awards and Entrance Scholarships -
http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/scholarships_and_awards/award_forms/
SFU has a very limited number of major entrance scholarships for exceptional students. If you wish to be nominated for an entrance scholarship, you are strongly encouraged to submit your application for admission to your department of intended enrolment by January 16, 2013 . Failure to submit your application for admission by this deadline will decrease your chances for consideration in the annual Entrance Scholarship Competition to be held in February 2012.
1. ALL PARTS OF THE APPLICATION MUST TO SENT DIRECTLY TO THE DEPARTMENT OF GENDER, SEXUALITY, AND WOMEN'S STUDIES. THIS INCLUDES OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPTS AND REFERENCE LETTERS.
2. APPLICATIONS ARE NOT COMPLETE UNTIL AND UNLESS WE RECEIVE ALL PARTS OF THE PACKAGE.
Page last updated on January 30, 2012 ... Please notify webmaster of errors and omissions.