Doctor of Philosophy in Political Science - Canadian Politics

The study of Canadian politics explores all facets of the Canadian political system, from the institutional and constitutional foundations of Canada to important questions about Canadian political life.

In addition to a focus on core political institutions (such as Parliament, political parties, the electoral system, federalism, and the courts), the study of Canadian politics at McMaster enables students to explore key topics in Canadian politics including: Indigenous Politics & Indigenous-state Relations, Quebec Politics, Political Economy, Social Policy, the Politics of Migration & Citizenship, Regionalism, and the Politics of Gender, Race & Class.

Our faculty offers graduate instruction and supervision in many of the core foci of Canadian politics including the central institutions of the Canadian state, law & public policy, Indigenous politics, political behaviour and public opinion, social policy and the welfare state and Canadian political economy. Our faculty is methodologically diverse, with the ability to support and train students in qualitative, quantitative and mixed-method research.

We prepare students in the fields of theories and approaches to Canadian politics and policy, public administration, and Canada in comparative perspective. Our students can combine Canadian politics with comparative public policy or international relations with courses in related fields such as comparative politics, globalization and the internationalization of public policy. The program prepares graduates for working in Canadian universities and colleges, as well as federal, provincial and local public services.

Admission to the PhD program will normally require a Master's degree in political science with an average of at least an A (A minus).
Official Academic Transcripts

Upload a scan of ALL official university transcripts completed to date to the application system. Remember to include a copy of the transcript key/legend or scale from the transcript.
Transcripts from institutions where you completed courses on Letter of Permission and/or as part of a Student Exchange Program must also be included.
If the official language of instruction at your institution is not English, please include both the original language document and a certified English translation.

TOEFL: minimum score is 92 (iBT-internet based), 237 (computer based) or 580 (paper based). The McMaster University TOEFL/TSE Institution Code is 0936 and the Department Code for Political Science is 89.
IELTS (Academic): minimum overall score is 6.5, with at least 5.5 in each section.