Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Social Work

Advanced Credit

Request for Advanced Credit must be made as part of the application process. A copy of the course outline(s) detailing the course description, objectives, assignments, readings, etc. must be included in the request.

Credit will not be given for coursework taken as part of another completed degree/diploma or for courses taken to bring grade point average to a required level for admission. Advanced credit may be granted for not more than the equivalent of 9 units.

Flexible Grade Option (CG Grade)

The Faculty of Social Work, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program will allow students to pursue the Flexible Grade Option (CG Grade) in doctoral courses offered by the faculty, with no exceptions.

Students may choose the CG grade for a course taken extra to load.

The use of the CG grade will not affect students' eligibility for internal awards.

Concurrent Program Enrolment

Students in this program may not concurrently pursue a certificate, diploma or the final step of a laddered pathway Master's degree as outlined in section G.D.1.3 Concurrent Program Enrolment.

Credit for Undergraduate Courses

Credit for undergraduate courses will not be awarded.

Time Limit

The expected completion time is four years.

As established by the Faculty of Graduate Studies (see Time Limits), the maximum completion time is six years.

Supervisory Assignments

For incoming PhD students, the PhD/MSW Thesis Coordinator will act as the interim supervisor in cases where one has not been identified. By December 1 of the first year, each student must designate a faculty member as permanent supervisor. The supervisor and student must select a supervisory committee no later than three months after the appointment of the permanent supervisor. Doctoral supervisory committees typically consist of the supervisor and two other members, one of whom may be external to the Faculty of Social Work.

Within the first two months of working together, PhD students and their interim and/or permanent supervisors are required to complete and submit to Student Services in the Faculty of Social Work the signed Checklist of Expectations for Graduate Students and Supervisors and the Intellectual Property Awareness checklist. These become part of the student’s permanent record. If a change occurs in supervision, a new Student-Supervisor checklist must be completed, signed and submitted to Student Services within two months of the change.

Required Examinations

Candidacy

Doctoral students must successfully complete all the required courses, their thesis research proposal and portfolio prior to the Written Field of Study Examination and Oral Field of Study Examination, which must be completed within 28 months of commencement of the program. For complete details of candidacy requirements, see the Faculty of Social Work’s Doctoral Candidacy Requirements.

Thesis Examination

For the Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations, see Thesis Examinations. In addition, the program requires:

Scheduling of the Examination

All members of the Supervisory Committee must have reviewed the student’s draft thesis document before an examination can be scheduled.

Composition of the Committee

The Internal Examiner must be external to the Faculty of Social Work.

Financial assistance may be available to qualified students. For information on awards, see the Awards and Financial Assistance section, search the Graduate Awards Database, and consult with the Student Services Office in the Faculty of Social Work.