Financial support is considered to be the responsibility of the student. Students applying for the MA program should include completed forms for Graduate Fellowships and any other scholarships and bursaries for which they may be eligible with their application package. Current students should check with the department and Dean of Graduate Studies for scholarships or other funding opportunities they may be eligible for.
Unless you are a Canadian Citizen or Landed Immigrant, your work opportunities as a graduate student will be limited to employment on campus. Unfortunately, the department cannot necessarily guarantee support for all our students. International students may have difficulty supporting themselves through SFU funds alone.
There are opportunities in the Humanities Department for Teaching Assistantships (TA-ship) and Tutor Markerships (TM-ships) for MA students with appropriate background in the subject area. Teaching Assistants direct undergraduate tutorials, evaluate papers, and mark examinations. The current value of a TA-ship in the Humanities Department is $4,411 for a four-base unit appointment. Tutor Markerships are available for Distance Education (CODE) courses and are paid by CODE according to enrollment numbers.
These positions are posted three times per year, usually three months prior to the term the courses are offered. Notifications of available Teaching Assistant or Tutor Marker positions are posted in the department, on the Humanities website, and circulated through our email distribution lists. Interested students must submit a resume and a letter of application before the closing date to the Manager, Academic and Administrative Services to be considered for these positions. For information on the criteria for awarding TAships in the Department of Humanities, please see our TA/TM Hiring Criteria.
Teaching Assistants and Tutor Markers are represented by the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU) and work under a Collective Agreement.
Research Assistantships may also be available to graduate students through faculty research grants.
Generally speaking, the Humanities Department awards its Graduate Fellowships (GF), worth $6,250 for a full GF or $3,125 for a partial GF, during the Fall semester to new incoming students. Students interested in a GF should first read the GF Terms of Reference to ensure they meet all the criteria for this award.
To be eligible to hold a GF, applicants must be registered as a full-time, regular (not "on-leave" or "part-time") student and must normally have a minimum grade point average of 3.50. In exceptional cases, other evidence of outstanding ability may outweigh this criterion.
Eligible students apply through their department of enrolment by completing an Application for a Graduate Fellowship form. It is the student's responsibility to sign it and attach any required documents/transcripts. Applicants submit the complete GF application package to the Graduate Program Assistant by the departmental deadline.
Please see the Dean of Graduate Studies website for more information on entrance scholarships and details on other awards and scholarships administered by the federal government, the University, and other institutions or associations.
An application to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada is dependent upon an applicant's status per SSHRC guidelines. For current SFU students or recently graduated SFU students, applications may be submitted to the Graduate Program Assistant. The deadline is generally in October but may vary depending on the deadline set by the Dean of Graduate Studies office. For more information, please visit the SSHRC website.