Financial assistance
Fellowships, Assistantships and Funding
The University and the Department provide as much financial support as possible for graduate students.
(Please note: the regular MA program (not CSPT) is designed for completion in one year; students should not expect financial support for a second year of study at the MA level).
Consideration for funding is automatic, but priority will be given to those applications received by January 15. A funding offer is normally be included with an offer of admission.
The majority of students received funding in the form of a Teaching Assistantship (TA). Additional information about Canadian and international fellowships and scholarships is available at the Faculty of Graduate Studies and the Department of Political Science.
There is no waiver for tuition fees at UVic. International students should consult the Office of International Students for detailed information about costs of living in Victoria.
Teaching and Research Assistantships
Teaching assistantships are available in Canadian Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Theory. Teaching assistants run tutorials, hold office hours and mark assignments in first and second year undergraduate courses.
All teaching assistants must have an excellent command of English. There is an annual TA Training Workshop for new teaching assistants.
Some faculty are able to provide research assistantships to ongoing students whose interests and expertise are relevant to their research projects. These opportunities vary from year to year.
Applicants are advised to bring any special interests or qualifications, such as familiarity with a foreign language or culture, prior research or administrative experience, computer skills or knowledge of statistics, to the attention of the Admissions Committee.
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC)
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada has recently expanded and improved its scholarship and fellowship funding opportunities for graduate studies.
There are one-year $17,500 Canada Graduate Scholarships for MA students, four-year SSHRC Doctoral Fellowships at $20,000 a year, and three-year Canada Graduate Scholarships for PhD students at $35,000 a year.
Eligible students contemplating study at UVic are strongly encouraged to apply for these awards. Ongoing students in our program will be expected to apply at the earliest possible opportunity.
UVic normally provides a $4,000 President's Research Scholarship to supplement an award to any student who receives a major national scholarship. This means that an MA student with a Canada Graduate Scholarship will receive $21,500 in total funding for the year.
Life happens... let us help you.
Through Student Awards and Financial Aid, UVic has an emergency loan fund which provides short term assistance to students experiencing an unanticipated and urgent financial crisis.