Graduate Program

The History department has a major graduate program built around a cadre of approximately 70 students, 34 regular faculty members and 15 emeritus professors.  More than 60 of our students have won SSHRC scholarships in the last decade.  Since 2000 faculty members have been awarded $5 million in research grants. Graduates of our Master’s program have gone on to build handsome careers in government, law, private enterprise, research and academia.  Alumni of our doctoral program are currently teaching at universities and colleges throughout Canada.

Victoria is home to the BC Archives and the Royal BC Museum and offers a spectacular physical location for Canada’s most westerly graduate program.

• A proven commitment to excellence. The 2008 academic review of our department called it one of the “best mid-sized departments in Canada.” UVic as a whole is ranked 2^nd among mid-size universities in Canada in the recent McLean’s survey.  The Times Higher Education ranks it 130th globally among all universities.
• Competitive Fellowships.  Funding of our program by UVic’s Faculty of Graduate Studies has increased by more than 50% in the last five years, allowing us to offer extremely competitive fellowships and TA-ships to qualified applicants.
• An excellent and supportive academic environment.  The program is built around opportunities for faculty-student contact, both intellectual and social, and a strong and supportive sense of community among graduate students.
• Strong capabilities in Indigenous history/settler-native relations. There is an open and welcoming atmosphere for Aboriginal students. Several Indigenous students have passed through the program or are currently enrolled.
• Important research initiatives and RA opportunities. In the last decade, our department has provided a base for major collaborative research projects, among them Great Unsolved Mysteries in Canadian History, the Indian Ocean World, the Canadian Families Project, Canadian Century Research Infrastructure and the Veterans’ Oral History Project
• Leadership in new technologies. Faculty members explore non-traditional ways of conducting and communicating research, including the use of websites, GIS and a range of databases.