Admission Requirements and How to Apply

Admission Requirements

An undergraduate degree in theatre or a related art form is required, along with substantial experience creating and interpreting theatre in professional or community settings.

The candidate needs to contact the MFA Theatre Practice Coordinator, who will identify a faculty advocate (specialist in his/her proposed area of study) to advise on his/her application. For information on our faculty and their areas of expertise, please see the Faculty bios and Faculty Research.


How to Apply


The online admission application system will be available starting November 1st and will have a DEADLINE for receipt of a complete application (including all supporting documentation for both domestic and international applicants) of January 31st for the subsequent academic year. The application system will close on February 1 at 12:00 am MST. Submitting your application at least three weeks before the deadline is highly recommended. Please note: Fall term (September 1 - December 31) is the only term in which selected applicants may begin their programs.

 

1.To apply for the MFA Theatre Practice program, please click here and review steps 3, 4 and 5 on that webpage. To submit your on-line application, click the "Apply Now" button. Upload all required documents listed below and submit your $135 (Canadian) processing fee online by TBA. (Please note that as of September 1, 2021, the fee for applications to all graduate programs increased from $100 CAD to $135 CAD. If you have questions about the fee, please contact grad.webadm@ualberta.ca.)

2. The required application documents are:

  • Official transcripts from all universities attended. International applicants must provide an official, original language copy of their transcript (with an accompanying official English translation), as well as an original language copy of their degree certificate (with an accompanying English translation).
  • You will need to request one set to be sent directly to you that you will then scan and upload into your application.
  • If admitted, you will then need to request a second set of official copies to be sent directly to the Faculty of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies (GPS). (Do not request this second set until you are admitted to a graduate program and prompted to do so by GPS.) Please consult the transcript guidelines posted here.
  • Curriculum Vitae/Resume, including artistic and/or critical research, performances, workshops and publications
  • 3 letters of recommendation.
  • You will be asked to submit contact information for your referees in your on-line application.
  • Referees are prompted by the application system to submit their reference electronically when your application is complete and the processing fee is paid.

  • Reference letters must be received by the deadline. Please ensure that you submit your application in a timely manner so that your referees can submit their reference by the deadline.
  • Letter of intent articulating the reason you want to pursue a professional graduate degree--include a brief statement of your ambitions, skills, experiences and interests

  • Portfolio or samples of commentary on your work in the theatre which may include supporting documentation that confirms your expertise in your area, such as a script, commentary, production plan, DVD, portfolio, writing sample, or other form of documentation that demonstrates your ability to handle an advanced program in your area. The online application system can accommodate up to 5MB in PDF, JPG or PNG format. If your document is larger than this or in a non-accepted format, it can be sent directly to the Department of Drama to:

    Graduate Advisor
    Department of Drama
    3-146 Fine Arts Building
    University of Alberta
    Edmonton, AB T6G 2C9
    Email: dramags@ualberta.ca
  • For international applicants, English Language Proficiency (TOEFL, IELTS, etc) test results, when applicable.
  • Information on the English Language Proficiency requirement and exempted institutions, can be found here. The Department of Drama will not accept scores that are lower than the minimum scores posted.

3. Once you have submitted your application, you will receive an email from the online application system with an embedded link that allows you to log in and view the status of your application in the submitted applications portal.

  • Use the same email address and log in that you used to create your application to access your application via this link.
  • Until you are admitted and have accepted an offer, please communicate with us regarding the status of your application via the Communications tab within your application.
  • Log in frequently, because your application is where the results of your application will be communicated to you.

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