Program Requirements

The PhD Degree

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is intended for those students planning a career in university teaching, research, or other activities calling for a high degree of scholarly competence.

 The IHPST has two full-time PhD programs: a 4-year PhD, and a direct-entry 5-year PhD. IHPST also has a flex-time PhD. PhD students are assigned a supervisor on admission who will advise, mentor, and monitor the supervisee on course selection, program planning, and grant applications. The Supervisor will also assist with putting together the student’s Advisory Committee (consisting of the supervisor and two members of the IHPST graduate faculty). The Advisory Committee will support graduate students through the events of the qualifying year (year 2 of the 4-year PhD and year 3 of the 5-year PhD). Finally, the Supervisor will prepare a report detailing the progress of the supervisee through each year of their program of studies.

PhD Program Requirements

All PhD students must:

  • Arrange their course choices and curriculum in consultation with their Supervisor and with the approval of the graduate office.
  • Complete the HPS1100Y paper with a minimum grade of A-.  Ordinarily, the assigned supervisor serves as the instructor for this full-year research-based course.  
  • Maintain a cumulative average of at least A- with no individual grade less than A-. Students falling below these standards may be asked to leave the program.
  • Demonstrate other competencies crucial to conducting research in the student's thesis area, as determined by the Advisory Committee (Supervisor and two members of the IHPST graduate faculty) in consultation with the graduate office. This may include, for example, competence in another language and/or technical competence in a field of mathematics, the physical sciences, life sciences, or social sciences.
  • Pass a qualifying (Specialist Exam) examination in areas related to the field of expected research. This examination is conducted by the student's Advisory Committee. The examination is ordinarily a two-hour oral examination. Students with documented accessibility concerns can opt to take a written examination through Accessibility Services.
  • Submit a thesis proposal approved by the student's Advisory Committee and to the graduate office.

Additional Considerations for the Flex-Time PhD:

  • Students in the flex-time program are required to register full-time for the first four years of the program. Thereafter, they may register part-time.
  • Transfers between the full-time PhD program and the flexible-time PhD option are not permitted.
  • Students in the flex-time program must satisfy the SGS General Regulation in the SGS Calendar, including good academic standing, supervision, and candidacy regulations.

Roadmap for 4-Year PhD Program (normally, admitted with a Masters degree)

Year 1: 

  •  Six .5 FCE IHPST courses completed, with an A- average.
  •  Two of these courses must be HPS1100Y. The proposal for the HPS1100Y paper (with the approval of the Supervisor) must be submitted to the graduate office by December 1. Guidelines for the HPS1100Y paper (and all forms related to the graduate program) can be found on the IHPST Graduate Student SharePoint Site.
  • The HPS1100Y paper must be submitted to the graduate office by June 30.

Year 2:

  • The Advisory Committee (consisting of the Supervisor and two members of the IHPST graduate Faculty), which oversees events of the qualifying year), is selected by Oct. 31. The form Establishment of the Advisory Committee is submitted to the graduate office by this date.
  • The Specialist Exam Form, along with the preliminary reading list, is submitted to the graduate office by the end of the fall term.
  • The finalized reading list is submitted to the graduate office. Completion Date: January 31.
  • Specialist Examination. Completion Date: April 30.
  • Dissertation Proposal is approved by the Advisory Committee. The Thesis Approval Form is submitted to the graduate office. Completion date: July 31.

Year 3:

  • Dissertation research.
  • Research Requirement completed by April 30.

Year 4:

  • Dissertation writing. Completed dissertation must be submitted to the graduate office two months prior to a scheduled dissertation defense. Completing the PhD in the 4-year window requires the submission of the dissertation by June 15.

Roadmap for 5-Year PhD Program (direct-entry)

Year 1: 

  • Six .5 FCE IHPST courses completed, with an A- average.    

Year 2:    

  • Six .5 FCE courses completed. Two of these .5 FCE courses must be HPS1100Y. The proposal for the HPS1100Y paper (with the approval of the Supervisor) must be submitted to the graduate office by December 1. Guidelines   for the HPS1100Y paper (and all forms related to the graduate program) can be found on the IHPST Graduate Student SharePoint Site.
  • The Advisory Committee (consisting of the Supervisor and two members of the IHPST graduate Faculty), which oversees events of the qualifying year), is selected by Oct. 31. The form Establishment of the Advisory Committee   is submitted to the graduate office by this date.
  • The HPS1100Y paper must be submitted to the graduate office by June 30.

Year 3:

  • The Specialist Exam Form, along with the preliminary reading list, is submitted to the graduate office by the end of the fall term.
  • The finalized reading list is submitted to the graduate office. Completion Date: January 31.
  • Specialist Examination. Completion Date: April 30.
  • Dissertation Proposal is approved by the Advisory Committee. The Thesis Approval Form is submitted to the graduate office. Completion date: July 31.

Year 4:

  • Dissertation research.
  • Research Requirement completed by April 30.

Year 5:

  • Dissertation writing. Completed dissertation must be submitted to the graduate office two months prior to a scheduled dissertation defense. Completing the PhD in the 4-year window requires the submission of the dissertation by June 15.

Program Requirements 

Annual Progress Reports 

An Annual PhD Progress Report along with an updated c.v. is submitted to the graduate office by September 30.  The report is prepared by the student's Supervisor in consultation with members of the Advisory Committee. The report should detail the students’ academic progress and any professional achievements of the previous academic year. Submitting an annual progress report required of all students enrolled in the PhD program. Permission to continue in the program depends on a satisfactory report.

HPS1100Y Requirement 

No later than December 1 (year 1 of the 4-year PhD; year 2 of the 5-year PhD), the proposal for an advanced research paper (required for HPS1100Y) must be submitted to the graduate office. The research paper itself is to be submitted by June 30th in the same academic year. The proposal will be signed by the student’s Supervisor. 

Progress through the Program

All required courses, including HPS1100Y, are to be completed by June 30 in year 1 of the 4-year PhD and year 2 for the 5-year PhD. All students are expected to maintain a cumulative average of at least A- with no individual grade less than A-. In addition, all students are expected to receive at least an A- on the HPS1100Y research paper. Students falling below these standards may be asked to leave the program.

Specialist Examination 

All students must pass a specialist examination in areas related to the field of expected dissertation research. The Specialist Examination is a written examination. In preparation for this exam, students are to prepare a reading list in consultation with members of their Advisory Committee. This Specialist Examination must be completed by April 30 (year 2 of the 4-year PhD; year 3 of the 5-year PhD). This examination is to be administered by the student's Advisory Committee (the student’s Supervisor and two members of IHPST’s graduate faculty).

To meet this requirement, it is necessary that the student put together an Advisory Committee that is approved by the graduate office by the end of October (year 2 of the 4-year PhD; year 3 of the 5-year PhD).

With the support of this Advisory Committee, the student will shape the field for examination and prepare a tentative reading list by December 15. This reading list will serve as the benchmark for the specialist examination. A copy of this reading list for the specialist examination is to be submitted to the graduate office by this date.

The Advisory Committee will bring in one of the following verdicts:

  • Passed, either simply or with distinction
  • Passed, conditional upon certain deficiencies being remedied (to be certified by a member of the committee)
  • Adjourned, to be reconvened by the first week of September at the latest. Only one adjournment is allowed.
  • Failed, resulting in the student being asked to leave the program.

Advisory Committee 

With the support of their Supervisor, students should arrange an Advisory Committee (consisting of their Supervisor and two member of the IHPST graduate faculty) by October 31 of their qualifying year. All members of this committee hold an appointment with The School of Graduate Studies. The purpose of this committee is to give students the advice and support that is needed to fulfill the requirements of the qualifying year in a timely, issue-free manner, and to prepare students for dissertation research and writing. Members may be added or replaced with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. The Advisory Committee may be convened at the student’s or supervisor's request.  

Thesis Proposal and Establishment of the Supervisory Committee 

Before work on the dissertation commences, a thesis proposal must be approved by the student's Advisory Committee and the graduate office. The proposal is to be submitted 3- months after the student successfully completes the Specialist Examination, and in any case not later than September 1 of year 3 (4-year PhD) or year 4 (5-year PhD).

Students should discuss their thesis proposal with members of their Advisory Committee and obtain consent to serve on the student’s Supervisory Committee before the submission of the thesis proposal to the graduate office. Once this proposal is accepted by the Supervisor Committee and the graduate office, the student will have achieved candidacy (ABD status) and will have reached the final stage of the PhD process, namely, research and writing the PhD dissertation.

The thesis proposal should adhere to the following format and include the following information:

  • The length of the proposal may vary depending on the field and topic, but will generally be 3000-5000 words, and will make a detailed case for the feasibility of the research project and a timeline for completion.
  • It must include: (i) a title. (The title may be revised in the final version of the thesis); (ii) the name of the supervisor and membership of the student’s Supervisory Committee; (iii) a statement of the research problem and the approach the student will take in tackling that problem. This will include chronological, disciplinary, and geographical limits of the thesis (where appropriate). The research problem should be well-situated in the scholarly literature. The student should justify the need for this research and show how this work will make an original contribution to knowledge; (iv) a plan for completion, including comments on the sources, both archival and published, their location and accessibility, say whether additional foreign languages will be required, indicate how much travel and residence away from Toronto may be necessary, and demonstrate that the thesis is feasible in the time available for its completion in a timely manner.

Research Requirement 

This requirement must be satisfied by in year 3 of the 4-year PhD and year 4 of the 5-year PhD. It can be satisfied in a number or ways: (a) a reading knowledge of a language other than English, but only if this second language is a tool that is needed to carry out the research and writing of  the dissertation; (b) familiarity with research methods that are required to successfully complete the writing of the dissertation not typical of IHPST (e.g., randomized control trials, cohort studies, mathematical modelling); and (c) through IHPST course work. The determination of the nature of this requirement is determined The Director of Graduate Studies in consultation with the Supervisor and the student.

Dissertation Defense 

The Supervisor is responsible for submitting three or more names of potential external examiners to The Director of Graduate Studies who identifies an appropriate examiner and submits this individual’s CV to SGS for approval. The quorum for the dissertation defense is four examiners, with five the maximum number of voting members. Two additional non-voting members can be present at the defense at the discretion of SGS. At least one of the voting members must have had no or very minimal prior involvement with the dissertation (this condition will usually be fulfilled by the external examiner).

In addition, the School of Graduate Studies will appoint a disinterested external Chair who’s responsible for conducting the examination under the rules and guidelines of the School of Graduate Studies. The Chair cannot be a member of the IHPST graduate faculty, nor can this person have any prior knowledge of the candidate or the dissertation.

Students must understand that it takes some time to make these arrangements. Naturally, having submitted a completed, formal copy of their dissertation, students want to complete the final requirement of their doctoral program as quickly as possible. Following the submission of the complete dissertation to the graduate office, and the approval of the examination committee by SGS, a minimum of eight weeks is required before the defense can take place. Often it takes longer, especially during the months of July and August or over winter holidays.