Queen's University

Student Experience

In grad school at Queen's, you will be among a community of over 4,200 graduate students. You will work alongside our world-renowned, award-winning professors, research staff, post-doctoral fellows, and industry partners as well as your fellow graduate students.

In addition to meaningful engagement and collaboration on research, you will have opportunities for professional development and access to resources that can help you achieve your academic and career goals while here at Queen's and after your graduation. You will be supported, right through to your degree completion and convocation, by the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (SGSPA), the Society of Professional and Graduate Students (SGPS), our Faculty and your department.

Connect and stay in touch via the SGSPA Newsletter, Facebook and Twitter, the Faculty of Arts and Science Facebook and Twitter, the SGPS Facebook and Twitter as well as through your department and departmental student society communications.

Investment in Talent

Queen’s is proud to support our graduate students with awards, merit-based funding and travel awards. For more information, see Awards and Scholarships.

Facts and Figures

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Research Excellence

A member of the U15, Queen’s ranks highly in terms of research funding and intensity. Our research funding enables us to invest in graduate student research and to prioritize graduate student supervision. In turn, our graduate students contribute to our research excellence by working with our nationally & internationally recognized faculty researchers in state-of-the art research facilities.

Facts and Figures

  • Since 2003, 1st or 2nd in Canada in number of awards & prizes per full-time faculty member
  • $187.3 million in research income in 2016, which translates into approximately $250,000 per full-time faculty member
  • 43 Canada Research and Canada Excellence Research Chairs
  • World class research, for example the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics.
  • Students work with experts in over 20 university- & faculty-based research centres

Facilities

Queen’s has state-of-the-art facilities that offer opportunities for specialized and interdisciplinary research. Queen’s continues to invest in its facilities with the support of the federal and provincial governments and donors.

  • In 2016, Queen’s received over $63.7 million from the Government of Canada’s Canada First Research Excellence Fund to support the creation of the Canadian Particle Astrophysics Research Centre.
  • A further $36 million invested by the federal and provincial governments will provide a Student Wellness and Innovation Centre enhancing graduate engagement in design thinking and putting ideas in motion.
  • Queen’s has five libraries with approximately 3,000,000 volumes and over 80,000 e-journals containing more than 85,000,000 articles. Queen’s was rated first in holdings per student in Maclean’s 2014 University Rankings.
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Transformative Student Experience

Queen’s has an active and vibrant graduate student community. Completion rates are high and students report a high level of satisfaction with their student experience. Queen’s campus is diverse and inclusive.

Facts and Figures

  • Grad students make up 18% of total enrolment at Queen’s and, with over 4,200 graduate students, Queen’s has the second largest concentration of graduate students in Ontario.
  • International students comprise 23% of the grad student population and come from more than 70 countries around the world. 
  • Queen’s has the second highest proportion of full-time graduate students among Ontario research-intensive universities
  • Queen’s has the highest (Master’s) and second highest (PhD) degree completion rates in Canada
  • Over 90% of students report the quality of their academic experience as good to excellent.
Support Services and Resources
 
Queen’s School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs provides support services and resources specifically for graduate students that add value to the student experience and enable academic, professional and personal success.
  • The Habitat is a one-stop-shop for being well and staying well in grad school. It won the 2015 Canadian Association for Graduate Studies Award for Excellence and Innovation in Enhancing the Graduate Student Experience. 
  • Expanding Horizons offers an extensive suite of workshops as well as online academic and career resources, all tailored to graduate student needs. The annual Graduate and Post-Doctoral Career Week, which includes hands-on workshops, expert panels and a networking reception were students can meet graduate studies alumni and potential employers.
  • The PhD-Community Initiative, part of the Expanding Horizons Series, provides an exceptional interdisciplinary, experiential learning opportunity that requires the application and translation of skills and knowledge to address a problem or issue faced by community partners.
  • Queen’s was identified as one of the top institutions in Canada for meeting the career service needs of its students by the Canadian Education and Research Institute for Counselling’s 2017 study. Queen’s Career Services received the second-highest ranking overall.

Alumni Mentorship and Network

Queen’s alumni offer graduate students mentorship and a world-wide network of contacts.

  • The School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs platform Ask an Alum provides an online network of grad alumni mentors. Graduate students can access alumni profiles and contact alumni for advice and mentorship, such as informational interviews, resume reviews, and general career advice.
  • Opportunities for interaction with alumni are also provided through Career Week and other events. Alumni provide presentations, workshops and take part in panel discussions and networking receptions.
  • Queen’s community, services and supports extend beyond graduation. Queen’s alum are part of a lifelong and global network that stretches across 154 countries. Alumni give and come back to Queen’s!
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Showcase Your Research

Queen’s School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs provides graduate students with opportunities to showcase their research in order provide them with experience in making their research accessible to academic, specialist and non-specialist audiences.

  • Queen’s was the first Ontario university to host a Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition – and it’s supported by workshops on effective presentations. Many departments have practice heats to help prepare their students.
  • GradChat is a weekly radio show and podcast featuring grad student research.
  • Gradifying is a student-run blog
  • The School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs has an annual lecture series and a partnership with TEDxQueensu and it organizes a variety of research showcase throughout the year.
  • Graduate students are supported in organizing and attending academic conferences.
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Our City - Kingston

Kingston is located between Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa on three bodies of water: Lake Ontario; the St. Lawrence River (Thousand Islands); and the Rideau Canal (a UNESCO designated World Heritage site). It is a destination of choice because it is accessible and affordable and is one of the world’s best university towns. The Queen’s community is an integral part of the Kingston community.

  • Over 150,000 people call Kingston home, including 25,000 students
  • 24 museums, galleries and national historic sites
  • World class performance venues including various music and film festivals throughout the year
  • 2,500 acres of green space. Kingston boasts one of the largest per capita green space areas in Ontario
  • Kingston has more restaurants per capita than any other city in Canada
  • 85% of students live within a 10 minute walk to campus. It takes approximately 15 minutes to walk across campus
  • The BBC ranked Kingston as the one of the top 5 University cities in the world
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