How we assess your application
Applications are due December 15, 2024 for September 2025 entry. The following documents must be submitted by December 15, 2024 to ensure they are processed in time for assessment by the Law Graduate Studies Admissions Committee:
- Unofficial Transcripts from all post-secondary degree-granting institutions.
- Résumé/Curriculum Vitae (CV), which must be recent.
- Research Proposal stating your research question, research methods, and/or the research directions you wish to pursue. You should reference the literature that you propose to draw upon and examine. You should highlight the interdisciplinary dimension of the project and explain how your research will engage with the relationship between law and society. You should also specify the faculty member(s) that you would like to work with and explain why.
- There is a strict 2-page maximum for LLM proposals.
- There is a strict 5-page maximum for PhD proposals.
- Please do not exceed these maximums.
- Two Assessment Reports submitted by two professors or other academic authorities familiar with your work. The admissions system will indicate when submitted.
- Demonstration of English Language Proficiency (where applicable).
- Research Writing Sample (PhD applicants only), such as a completed segment of your master's thesis or published article.
You are responsible for ensuring that all of your documents are correctly uploaded and meet all of the expected minimum requirements. You can check your application status using My UVic application. You may also add new documents if you have any updates.
- Suggested optional documents, such as Statement of Intended Study, are not required.
- Official documents are only requested if you receive an offer.
Calculation of equivalent GPA for international LLM applicants: If you are unsure about the calculation of your equivalent GPA due to undergraduate grading standards at your law school, you may wish to submit a scan of an official document showing your class ranking or ask the dean or another administrator at your institution to submit a supplement to your transcripts.
Graduate Admissions and Records Review
After submission, the Graduate Admissions and Records Office (GARO) will screen your application to determine if you are admissible to the university and that you meet the minimum academic requirements of the Faculty of Graduate Studies. These requirements are lower than the requirements of the Law Graduate Program.
For this stage, only unofficial (scanned) documents are required.
Graduate Studies Admissions Committee Review
A comprehensive review of your application is made by the above committee between January and February each year. Selection of qualified applicants whose applications align with the interdiscplinary Law and Society focus of our program will be made on the basis of supervisor availability and the applicant's:
- demonstrated academic credentials and excellency
- academic research output and capacity
- thesis/dissertation proposal and research interests
- writing sample (required for PhD applicants only)
- other abilities to contribute to the graduate program
Admissions Timeline
- Offers go out mid-February to late-April, depending on waitlist length and responses.
- All applicants are notified of our decision by the end of April.
- Offers include an email from the Law Graduate Program indicating our recommendation for admission and, a few days later, an email from the Graduate Admissions and Records Office with official confirmation of your admission (provisional or full).
How to accept an offer
To accept your offer, email the Graudate Program Coordinator before the deadline stated in your offer letter. A $200 acceptance deposit is required to be credited towards your tuition account. Exceptions are at the discretion of the Graduate Program Director.
If you receive a provisional offer of admission, you must submit any official documents requested by the Graduate Admissions and Records Office before you are approved for a full offer of admission. All items must remain in their original sealed and endorsed institution envelopes. Visit the Graduate Admissions and Records Office's submission of documents page for full details and requirements.
International students are responsible for securing the necessary immigration permit and documentation required to study in Canada in time for the September start date.