Fees and Financial Support

Tuition and Fee Information

All submitted applications will require a non-refundable $100 CAD application fee. Further information regarding the application fee is available on-line on the FAQs page.
Information about Tuition and other fees for Canadians and permanent residents of Canada can be found on the Tuition and Fees page, in Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research site. In some cases, the Department can defray the cost of the international student differential by providing a supplement towards international student fees.


Funding Information

Decisions concerning an applicant's admissibility to the program are initially made independently of the availability of financial assistance. But PhD applicants are not normally admitted without a funding commitment for the expected duration of the program (subject to satisfactory progress). Although M.A. students may be admitted without funding, many do receive funding, especially after the first term. All our recently admitted students have received some funding, and currently, most graduate students are fully funded. Funding comes in several forms, most commonly as teaching or research assistantships. Look here for information about assistantships in the Graduate Student Association collective agreement. All graduate applicants are automatically considered for departmental assistantships.

The University of Alberta offers a number of very attractive fellowships, both for recruitment and for continuing students. It also typically supplements scholarships awarded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. All these fellowships and scholarships are awarded competitively, but students in the Philosophy Department have had a great deal of success in winning them. Some restrict eligibility to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, while others are earmarked for international students.

The Department nominates very strong applicants to the M.A. and PhD programs for recruitment scholarships; more information about recruitment scholarships can be found on the FGSR webpage, Recruitment Scholarship Competitions. They involve six hours of department work per week, and in some cases, are renewable. The department also nominates strong applicants to the Ph.D. programs for Provost entrance awards, which will cover tuition fees. International students as well as Canadian citizens are eligible for these awards, and no separate application is required. There are also several general university awards for which both currently enrolled PhD students and new applicants are eligible, although many are restricted to Canadian citizens or permanent residents. The University of Alberta takes part in the Vanier scholarship program, which awards a few scholarships to exceptional doctoral students in all fields and without regard to nationality. More information on all these awards can be found through the website of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, Scholarship and Awards.

M.A. students who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents are eligible for Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) master's scholarships. Applicants eligible for this award apply through the Canadian university in which they are currently registered, unless they are not registered at a Canadian university, in which case they apply directly to SSHRC. PhD students who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents are likewise eligible for Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) doctoral scholarships and fellowships. The Department expects eligible applicants to the doctoral program to apply for such awards in September of the year preceding admission, and for every year of the program in which they remain eligible. Applications should be made through whatever Canadian university the student is currently attending, or directly through SSHRC. The Faculty of Graduate Studies supplements SSHRC fellowships by at least the amount of tuition and fees. Information about current tuition costs can be found on FGSR site, Tuition and Fees.