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Application for Graduate Studies
Applicants normally are admitted only in the Fall semester which begins in September. Students seeking admission to the graduate programme must submit a completed application package by the preceding January 31st. The Department reserves the right to admit only those students for whom research space and an appropriate faculty supervisor are available. Students transferring from other graduate programs may petition the department for credit for equivalent courses.
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Before you proceed with the application,
PHD APPLICATION
The Department of Political Science accepts applications from political science MA students normally with a minimum 3.67 GPA (See FAQ). How well the applicant's proposed research coincides with the department's focus on political economy, public policy and governance is an important consideration.
Application packages MUST BE COMPLETE when submitted.
Incomplete application packages will NOT be reviewed.
The Following is the complete documentation required for PhD application.
1. Apply Online*
2. Check list (pdf)
3. A statement of purpose elaborating your dissertation topic.
4. Graduate Fellowship Application
5. Transcripts
One official transcript(s) of all previous post-secondary studies. Transcripts must be in sealed envelopes which bear a university seal. Student copies are not accepted. Transcripts that are not in English require an official translation. (Transcripts from Quebec universities are exempted from this translation requirement.)
6. Three academic referee forms (pdf) in sealed, signed envelopes. Applicants should ask three Professors who are able to comment on their qualifications for graduate study. Recommendations from a non-academic person should not be used unless the applicant has been away from an academic institution for some time.
7. An academic paper in English as a written sample. It should include hypotheses, evidence, analysis and conclusions.
8. Unless you hold a formal post-secondary degree from an English speaking university, you must satisfy the English language proficiency requirement set by SFU. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) combined with the Test of Written English (TWE) are acceptable for this purpose. The IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is also acceptable. The minimum University requirements for test scores is TOEFL 570 and TWE 5 (paper based), or TOEFL 230 (computer based), or TOEFL 88 with a minimum of 20 in each category (internet based). The minimum requirement for IELTS is an overall band score of 7.0. Official test scores must be sent directly to the Department of Political Science from the language testing service. (Do not include them in your application package.) We do not accept student copies or photocopies.
*Please allow for a delay when checking the status of your application. Your documents may have arrived in our office but this may not be reflected online until about two weeks later. If after this time, updates have not been made online, please check back with us.
MA APPLICATION
Our MA program strongly prefers the applicant to have a BA in Political Science. The minimum SFU requirement for admission to an M.A. program is a Bachelor's degree with a Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of at least 3.0 (or B average) from a recognized university. You can convert your CGPA into SFU grade scale at the following web site CGPA Conversion. In practice, however, our successful applicants have much higher CGPAs. We suggest that students coming into the program have at least two years' background in political science. Some students with insufficient political science training may be required to take up to a year of qualifying work in the upper-division undergraduate courses in our department.
Application packages MUST BE COMPLETE when submitted.
Incomplete application packages will NOT be reviewed.
The Following is the complete documentation required for MA application.
1. Apply Online*
2. Check list (pdf)
3. A statement of purpose elaborating your research interest.
4. Graduate Fellowship Application
5 Transcripts
One official transcript(s) of all previous post-secondary studies. Transcripts must be in sealed envelopes which bear a university seal. Student copies are not accepted. Transcripts that are not in English require an official translation. (Transcripts from Quebec universities are exempted from this translation requirement.)
6. Three academic referee forms (pdf) in sealed, signed envelopes. Applicants should ask three Professors who are able to comment on their qualifications for graduate study. Recommendations from a non-academic person should not be used unless the applicant has been away from an academic institution for some time.
7. An academic paper in English as a written sample. It should include hypotheses, evidence, analysis and conclusions.
8. Unless you hold a formal post-secondary degree from an English – speaking university, you must satisfy the English language proficiency requirement set by SFU. The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) combined with the Test of Written English (TWE) are acceptable for this purpose. The IELTS (International English Language Testing System) is also acceptable. The minimum University requirements for test scores is TOEFL 570 (computer based score is 230) and TWE 5. The minimum requirement for IELTS is an overall band score of 7.0. Official test scores must be sent directly to the Department of Political Science from the language testing service. (Do not include them in your application package.) We do not accept student copies or photocopies.
*Please allow for a delay when checking the status of your application. Your documents may have arrived in our office but this may not be reflected online until about two weeks later. If after this time, updates have not been made online, please check back with us.
All application documentation must be received by January 31st. Applications that are incomplete as of that date will not be considered. Allow 2 weeks for processing and email polgrad@sfu.ca for confirmation that your application has arrived in the Department of Political Science.
Please direct all documentation to:
Department of Political Science
Graduate Program Assistant
Simon Fraser University
8888 University Drive
Burnaby, BC
Canada V5A 1S6
1) Q: I have an M.A. in an interdisciplinary field (political science is part of it). I notice that you require an M.A. in political science to apply for your Ph.D. program. Am I still eligible?
A: The requirement of having an M.A. in political science is used to make sure that our incoming Ph.D. students will have received sufficient training in political science at an advanced level. While we accept Ph.D. applications from those who do not have M.A. degrees in political science, the admission committee will carefully assess them, on a case-by-case basis, if they have received advanced and sufficient political science training.
2) Q: I have an M.A. in another discipline clearly different from political science (e.g., sociology, anthropology, economics, history) and I do not have a B.A. in political science. Am I still eligible for your Ph.D. program, because I am interested in politics?
A: No. Our Ph.D. program requires sufficient background in political science training. We strongly suggest that you should stay in your discipline and pursue a Ph.D. in that discipline. While doing so, you can expand your intellectual horizons to encompass political science (e.g., taking graduate courses in political science).
3) Q: I do not have a B.A. in political science. Am I still eligible for your M.A. program?
A: How much political science training did you receive in your undergraduate program? Generally speaking, your M.A. application is not strong, unless you have received significant political science or social science training. If you have only weak political science background, your best possible outcome is that you will be accepted to the qualifying year program. This program is for you to establish your eligibility for M.A. application. In it, you will be required to finish some 300- or 400-level political science courses with high grades in our undergraduate program (within a maximum of one year). After that, you can apply for our M.A. program. Please note that the successful completion of a qualifying year does not guarantee an entry to our M.A. program. Alternatively, you may want to get more undergraduate training in political science before applying for our M.A. program.
For more information call (778) 782-5487 or email: polgrad@sfu.ca