School of Graduate Studies and Research: Application for Admission

Application for admission and subsequent correspondence must be directed to the Registrar of the Graduate School, Stewart-Pollock Wing, Rm. 204, Fleming Hall, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6.

Although applications may be submitted at any time, most applications are adjudicated in March, so application should be made early in the year. However, certain departments do have earlier, firm, deadlines. It is the applicant's responsibility to contact the Department for information on their departmental deadline dates. Applicants from outside Canada should apply before the beginning of the year to compensate for possible delays.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all required documentation is received by the School of Graduate Studies. All hard copy documents must be submitted in duplicate and on appropriate forms where provided. Applications must be complete before a decision regarding acceptance will be made.

STAGE 1 PRE-APPLICATION
The pre-application gives applicants the opportunity to contact the department of interest and provide them with an outline of their academic background and research interests. There is no charge for the pre-application, which applicants must complete and have approved by the department before they can proceed to fill out the complete application. Applicants can log in to the online application system at any time to check the status of their pre-application. When approved, the link to fill out the complete application will appear. Only candidates that meet the basic requirements will be asked to proceed and fill out the complete application, which does have a fee.

STAGE 2 APPLICATION
Once the department has approved their pre-application, applicants are sent an email asking them to complete the entire application. Many of the questions on the pre-application appear on the application and will be filled in with the information given on the pre-application. All this information will remain available to edit until the final submission of the application to Queen’s University. Applicants are required to pay the application fee upon final submission. Instructions about supporting documentation that is required to process the application is displayed on screen upon submission, and applicants can check online at any time to see if the School of Graduate Studies have received it.

Note: For either application procedure, the applicant is responsible for ensuring that any and all required supporting documents, letters of reference, transcripts and test scores (if applicable) are mailed directly to the School of Graduate Studies and Research, Room 204, Fleming Hall, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario Canada K7L 3N6.

b. Transcripts: Applicants are responsible for ensuring that two (2) official transcripts of their complete university-level academic record are sent to the School of Graduate Studies by all universities previously attended. Transcripts in languages other than English or French must be accompanied by an English or French translation provided by the institution issuing the transcript. Photocopied transcripts or those printed from a university website are not permitted. Degree and graduation certificates must be included if the transcript does not indicate the type of degree and date granted. Transcripts are to be sent directly from the issuing institutions to the School of Graduate Studies, in sealed envelopes. All transcripts received as part of an application for admission must be received in sealed envelopes. Transcripts submitted with applications become the property of Queen's University, are subject to verification, are not available for copying and will not be returned to the applicant.

c. Letters of Recommendation: Two current academic recommendations are required from professors under whom the applicant has studied. It is recognized that certain applicants to some programs may have difficulty in obtaining academic references and that it may be more appropriate to get references from professionals or supervisors. In such cases references from other sources containing information acceptable to the Department or School and the School of Graduate Studies and Research may be considered. However, all effort should be made to include academic recommendations. In all cases the information accepted should relate to the ability of a prospective student to undertake the work in the program to which he or she is making application.

Applicants applying online will have the option to have their referees submit the letter of recommendation to Queen’s University via a secure online reference form submission process. Letters of reference sent as attachments via electronic mail (email) are unacceptable substitutes for this secure online refrence form.

Some departments have special requirements regarding letters of recommendation (e.g., three letters may be required, etc.). It is the applicant's responsibility to consult the appropriate department’s application procedures for details.

d. Additional Information/Documentation: Some departments require additional documentation such as a current course list, GRE or written sample of work. Online applicants will be able to provide most of this additional material as part of the online application. Applicants who apply with a paper application can refer to the Application Requirements section of the application package. This document can also be seen here: http://www.queensu.ca/sgsr/files/appreq.pdf.

f. Application fee: There is a non-refundable application fee of $70.00 CAN for each application to a program. Those applying online must pay the application fee using a MasterCard or Visa credit card. Those applying with a paper application must submit with that paper application a certified cheque or money order of $70.00 CAN, payable to Queen’s University.

As Queen's University is committed to the integrity of its student records, each student is required to provide either on application for admission or on personal data forms required for registration, their complete, legal name. Any requests to change a name, by means of alteration, deletion, substitution or addition must be accompanied by appropriate supporting documentation.

Applicants whose first language is not English or who have not recently studied for at least one complete year at a post-secondary institution where English is the official language of instruction, will be required to obtain satisfactory results in an English language proficiency test, as part of the application process. Students may be required to take a remedial course in English and may be required to fulfill additional requirements if accepted into a graduate program.

Any applicant whose first language is not English, but who has recently studied for at least one complete year at a post-secondary institution where English is the official language of instruction, may submit with their application a request to be exempted from the English language proficiency test requirement. The Registrar of the Graduate School will review the request. The applicant will be informed of the results of the review.

All students accepted for admission are considered for limited departmental funding. Prospective or enrolled students do not make individual application for most internal fellowships administered by the School of Graduate Studies and Research. Departments are notified of all annual fellowship competitions, and nominate eligible students appropriately. Most of these fellowship allocations are made in April.

Financial assistance is limited and applicants should also investigate all possible funding sources external to Queen's University. Additional information may be found under Fellowships, Assistantships, and Loans.

Queen's University

School of Graduate Studies and Research

GRADUATE CALENDAR

2005-2006 Academic Year