Political Science

About Political Science

The Department offers programs leading to the M.A. (with or without thesis) and Ph.D. degrees. These programs combine depth of specialization in a particular field with breadth of knowledge in related fields. The staff offers courses and supervises research on most of the important areas of political science. Students may specialize in any of the following:

• Canadian Government and Politics;
• Comparative Politics;
• Political Theory; or
• International Relations.

M.A. graduates gain the scholarly preparation required to proceed to the Ph.D. program at McGill or elsewhere. Alternatively, the M.A. degree prepares graduates for teaching at the college level, for advanced study in other disciplines, or for rewarding jobs in government and in the private sector.

Besides its traditional M.A. program, the Department also offers M.A. options in Development Studies and Gender and Women’s Studies.. Interested students must apply and be accepted to both the political science M.A. program and to the option program.

For a full list of our affiliated research centres and institutes, please consult our website: mcgill.ca/politicalscience/about-us/centres.

Changes may take place after this content is published. Students are advised to contact the Department Office for supplementary information, which may be important to their choice of program.

Political Science Admission Requirements and Application Procedures

Admission Requirements

The Graduate Admissions Committee only considers applications from those who already have an undergraduate academic degree in political science or a closely related field (e.g., international studies, sociology, philosophy for prospective political theorists, etc.). Those without this required background occasionally enroll as Special Students in the undergraduate program and take upper-level undergraduate courses to build the academic record necessary to apply to the graduate program.

Master's

Students holding a B.A. degree may be eligible for admission to the M.A. program. Preparation equivalent to a McGill Honours degree in Political Science is desirable.

Ph.D.

Students holding a master’s degree in political science may be eligible for admission to the Ph.D. program. In some instances, outstanding students with a B.A. in Political Science may be admitted directly into the Ph.D. program without having completed an M.A. degree. They will be considered Ph.D. 1.

Reference Letters

All applicants, including those who have done their undergraduate work at McGill, must submit two letters of reference. It is recommended that you contact your referees at least a month in advance of the deadline. Applications that do not have references by application deadline will not be considered.

TOEFL Exams

Applicants to graduate studies whose mother tongue is not English, and who have not completed an undergraduate or graduate degree from a recognized foreign institution where English is the language of instruction or from a recognized Canadian/American institution (anglophone or francophone), must submit TOEFL scores. A minimum score of 100 on the Internet-based test (iBT), with each component score not less than 20 is required for admission. Please use the codes McGill 0935 – Political Science 89 when writing the TOEFL exam. The IELTS (International English Language Testing Systems) with a minimum overall band of 6.5 is also acceptable. Files will not be considered unless TOEFL/IELTS scores are received before the application deadline. IELTS test scores must be sent electronically by IELTS directly to McGill University using the McGill code 0935.

For more information, consult the TOEFL, and IELTS websites.

Application Procedures

McGill’s online application form for graduate program candidates is available at mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/apply-now.

See University Regulations & Resources > Graduate > Graduate Admissions and Application Procedures > Application Procedures for detailed application procedures.

Additional Requirements

The items and clarifications below are additional requirements set by this department:

• research statement – M.A. – maximum one (1) page single-spaced, a concise academic statement
• research statement – Ph.D. – maximum two (2) pages single-spaced, a concise academic statement
• writing sample – Ph.D. only

Application Dates and Deadlines

Application opening dates are set by Enrolment Services in consultation with Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS), while application deadlines are set by the Department of Political Science and may be revised at any time. Applicants must verify all deadlines and documentation requirements well in advance on the appropriate McGill departmental website; please consult the list at mcgill.ca/gps/contact/graduate-program.

Information on application deadlines is available at mcgill.ca/gradapplicants/how-apply/application-steps/application-deadlines.

Admission to graduate studies is competitive; accordingly, late and/or incomplete applications are considered only as time and space permit.

Program Overview

Master's Programs

Students can select a program option within the Thesis program or choose to follow the regular stream within one of our four main sub-fields. Currently, the M.A. Non-Thesis (Research Project) is only offered to students applying for the option in Gender and Women's Studies. However, thesis students will be permitted to switch into the regular non-thesis program (one time only) while completing their coursework. Non-thesis Gender Studies students will also have the option to switch into the regular thesis stream (one time only).

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Thesis)

The M.A. program is generally recognized as among the most demanding and rewarding in Canada. A main purpose of the M.A. degree is to demonstrate an ability to design and execute with competence a major piece of research, comparable to a full-length article in a scholarly journal. The length will vary with the nature of the topic. A thesis that contains considerable data analysis might be well developed in 50 pages, while an institutional or historical study would generally be longer.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Thesis): Development Studies

The Development Studies Option (DSO) is a cross-disciplinary M.A. program offered within existing M.A. programs in the Departments of Geography, History, Political Science, Anthropology, Economics, and Sociology. This thesis option is open to master's students specializing in development studies. Students enter through one of the participating departments and must meet the M.A. requirements of that unit. Students take an interdisciplinary seminar (INTD 657 Development Studies Seminar.) that will be co-taught by professors from two different disciplines and a variety of graduate-level courses on international development issues. The M.A. thesis must be on a topic relating to development studies, approved by the DSO Coordinating Committee.

Students interested in development will benefit from the expertise provided by the Institute for the Study of International Development. For more information on the Institute, see mcgill.ca/isid/teaching-programs/graduate/development-studies.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Non-Thesis)

The M.A. program is generally recognized as among the most demanding and rewarding in Canada. Students in the non-thesis program will submit a research essay. The research essay will normally be based on a paper written for a graduate seminar or an independent reading course. The research essay requirement also applies to each of the non-thesis options listed below.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Non-Thesis): Development Studies

The Development Studies Option (DSO) is a cross-disciplinary M.A. program offered within existing M.A. programs in the Departments of Geography, History, Political Science, Anthropology, Economics, and Sociology. Students enter through one of the participating departments and must meet the M.A. requirements of that unit. Students take an interdisciplinary seminar that will be co-taught by professors from two different disciplines (INTD 657 Development Studies Seminar.) and a variety of graduate-level courses on international development issues.

Students interested in development will benefit from the expertise provided by the Institute for the Study of International Development. For more information on the Institute, see mcgill.ca/isid/teaching-programs/graduate/development-studies.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Non-Thesis): European Studies

**This program is currently not offered.**

The European Studies Option (ESO) is an option offered within existing M.A. programs in the Departments of Political Science, History, and Sociology, as well as in the Faculty of Law. This option is open to students whose work is focused on Europe, in particular on issues relating to European integration, broadly understood. Students enter through one of the participating departments and must meet the requirements of that unit. Students will take an interdisciplinary capstone seminar and two other courses on European themes and issues as part of their M.A. program. Knowledge of French, while not a prerequisite, is an important asset for admission and will be encouraged as part of the program, as will knowledge of a third European language.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Non-Thesis): Gender and Women's Studies

The Gender and Women’s Studies Option offers McGill graduate students who meet the degree requirements in a participating unit and who wish to earn 6 credits of approved coursework, a cross-disciplinary specialization in feminist, and gender and/or women’s studies, deploying a wide array of disciplinary methodologies and modes of inquiry. The student's research paper must be on a topic centrally focused on gender and/or women's studies. See mcgill.ca/igsf/programs.

Master of Arts (M.A.) Political Science (Non-Thesis): Social Statistics

**This program is currently not offered.**

The Social Statistics Option complements disciplinary training with research experience applying statistical methods to Statistics Canada data or equivalent. Students complete course requirements, supplemented by further statistical courses, as advised by the Option Advisor, and subject to approval by the Department, and a statistics-based M.A. research paper in conjunction with an interdisciplinary capstone seminar. See mcgill.ca/socialstatistics. Entrance to this option is by application to the Social Statistics Option Committee subsequent to acceptance into the Departmental program.

A research paper is required to demonstrate proficiency in research. It is normally about 50 pages in length and involves revision of a paper written for one of the graduate courses completed in the program. The research paper is evaluated by two faculty members in the Department.

Location

Department of Political Science
Stephen Leacock Building, 4th Floor
855 Sherbrooke Street West
Montreal QC H3A 2T7
Email: graduate.polisci@mcgill.ca
Website: mcgill.ca/politicalscience