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Program admission requirements

• Established record of academic excellence:
  • a minimum CGPA at the previous degree level of 3.67
  • demonstrated scholarly achievement in the form of peer-reviewed papers, national or international conference presentations, or equivalent
    
  • previous awards, fellowships and scholarships
    
  • for doctoral applicants: successful completion of a master's thesis or equivalent
• Proposed research that is interdisciplinary and must be pursued in more than one existing program

INS admission requirements are in addition to all SFU Graduate admission requirements.

Before beginning the application process, you must:

• Make contact with potential supervisors and supervisory committee members by exploring faculty members associated with various SFU graduate programs
  
• Identify a supervisor or two co-supervisors willing to support your application and guide your proposed research
  
  • Identify two additional committee members
    
  • Supervisor(s) and committee members must be from at least two different SFU academic units
  • Normally your Supervisor's academic unit will be your home department
    

• Complete Supervisory Committee and Resources Form in collaboration with your Supervisor
• Program requirements
  
  • Master's Program Applicants
    
    • Complete the Proposed Master's Program Timeline form
      
    • Required course work will normally consist of a minimum of six graduate level courses
    • A minimum of two of courses must be taken on-campus in class with other students (i.e. cannot be Directed Readings courses)
    • Courses must be from at least two different SFU academic units
    • Directed Readings courses are all to be taken within INS
  • Doctoral Program Applicants
    • Complete the Proposed Doctoral Program Timeline form
      
    • Required course work will normally consist of a minimum of four graduate level courses
    • A minimum of two of courses must be taken on-campus in class with other students (i.e. cannot be Directed Readings courses)
    • Courses must be from at least two different SFU academic units
    • Directed Readings courses are all to be taken within INS
      
• Research proposal (max. 1000 words)
  You may have already prepared a version of this when making contact with potential supervisory committee members. For application purposes, however, please be sure your research proposal includes the following elements:
  • Outline your proposed program of study (one single-spaced page for MA applicants; two pages for PhD applicants). Identify the question you wish to address, it's significance, your proposed methodology, and how your research will contribute to your fields study.
    
  • Please indicate how the faculty members and academic units you've selected will provide academic support for your studies.
• Academic writing sample 
  • The writing sample may be a: research paper, literature review, position paper, or other scholarly paper (see SFU Library's resources on avoiding  plagiarism).
  • Written within the last five years and reflect a strong and sustained argument.
  • Minimum 15 pages (excluding references).
  • Must include a title page with date and author’s name. Paper must be sole-authored (no co-authored samples). Identify the original context for the paper (e.x. if it originally submitted elsewhere, as in a course requirement).
  • Should include recent and relevant academic references (minimum 15) cited throughout the paper and listing the references.
  • Submitted in PDF format
• Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • Your CV
  • Two-page resumé for each member of the supervisory committee
• All post-secondary transcripts
  • Upload copies of your unofficial transcripts with your online application.
  • Official transcripts will be requested prior to an admission offer.

• Complete the online application using the Graduate Studies Application System
• You will need to submit the basic online application prior to moving on to the next step.
• Academic references
  • You will be asked to provide the name and contact details for three referees through the online application.
  • One reference must be from your proposed supervisor.
  • The additional two references should be written by referees who are able to comment on your academic competence and to make an informed judgment about your likelihood of success in graduate study.
  • All references should include the following in their references (please send these to your referees):
    • How long the've known the candidate and in what capacity.
    • An appraisal of the applicant’s ability to undertake graduate studies in their proposed field(s).
    • A discussion of any additional qualities relevant to the candidate’s ability to engage in graduate work.
  • Once you submit your application, referees will be sent an automated email prompting them to complete their reference online.

While completing your application, you can pause and return at any time before the application deadline. You must complete and submit the application yourself.

Once you complete and submit your application information:

• Your referees will be automatically emailed and sent instructions for providing their reference online.
• You will need to pay the non-refundable application fee of $110 CAN (students with Canadian transcripts only) or $150 CAN (students with one or more international transcripts) by credit card (Mastercard or Visa).

Once your application fee has been paid and processed, you will be able to upload the required documents to complete your application.

Learn more about the Application Process →

Watch a video demonstrating the application process →

Please upload the following documents listed in Step 3 before the deadline:

• Research proposal
• Writing sample
• INS Proposed PhD Program Timeline form or INS Proposed Master's Program Timeline form
• INS Supervisory Committee & Resources form
• Your CV
• CV Summaries of Supervisory Committee. Two-page resumés from all committee members combined as a single document
• Unofficial transcripts of all post-secondary institutions attended
  • If you have attended SFU, you will still need to upload your unofficial SFU transcript
  • Official transcripts will only be requested prior to an offer of admission

The INS steering committee may request changes to your proposal after the application period has ended. Your proposed supervisor will contact you if revisions are required.