How to Apply

Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies logo

Application Timeline

We accept applications for each academic year between October 1st of the previous year and January 31st of the start year. Notice of acceptance/rejection is normally sent by the end of March. Please fill out and submit our Pre-Application Survey at any time prior to starting a full application.

Please note: To be considered for the top Queen's awards and scholarships, domestic students should apply for federal and provincial graduate awards (SSHRC, and Ontario Graduate Scholarships). We also recommend that you submit your full application to our School of Graduate Studies and Post-Doctoral Affairs (SGSPA) as early as possible. The 2025-26 SCCS application will become available in the SGSPA portal on 10 September 2024. The deadline for 2025-26 applications will be 31 January 2025.

Step 1: Make contact with potential supervisor(s)

The SCCS Graduate Program only accepts students when we have faculty who are specialists and can supervise the project. You can explore our people directory to identify potential supervisor(s). Develop a short (up to 1-page) description of your proposed project and reach out to them to share your ideas and gauge their interest in supervising you. Securing a supervisor is of utmost importance to the admissions committee.

Step 2: Complete and Submit our Pre-Application Survey

A representative from our graduate program will contact you following submission of the pre-application survey to give you feedback on your potential application.

Scan or click on the QR code below to complete the survey.

Step 3: Initiate an Online Application

All Queen’s University graduate program applicants must prepare and submit an online application through the School of Graduate Studies and Post-Doctoral Affairs (SGSPA). To initiate an online application, applicants must visit the SGSPA site and click SGSPA Application. The 2025-26 SCCS application will become available in the SGSPA portal on 10 September 2024.

To begin an application for the Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies graduate program on the SGSPA site:

Create a unique login and password to start an account or login to an existing account
Once logged in, press the “Start an Application” button
Select “Film and Media / Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies” from the list of Departments
Select either the MA or the PhD program option as well as a program start date
Read and acknowledge the Queen’s University codes of ethics and conduct in order to proceed with the online application

Further details on the application process are available at SGSPA Application on the SGSPA website.

Step 4: Compile Required Documentation & Check Testing Requirements

Transcripts

A complete application must include official, up-to-date transcripts for all current and previous study the applicant has listed in the "Academic Background" section of the online application. Please note the following details:

Official transcripts must be sent directly to SGSPA by the issuing institution(s) via the following mailing address:

School of Graduate Studies and Post-Doctoral Affairs
Queen's University
Gordon Hall Room 425
74 Union Street
Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6

Though official transcripts must be provided prior to successful applicants beginning their graduate studies in Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies, for application purposes, scanned copies of official transcripts are acceptable. Queen’s reserves the right to extend conditional offers of acceptance to applicants who have yet to provide official, hard-copy transcripts from their previous academic institutions.

Important Notes on Providing Transcripts:

Degree and graduation certificates must be included if the transcript does not indicate the type of degree and date granted
Transcripts in languages other than English or French must be accompanied by an English or French translation provided by the institution issuing the transcript
Transcripts printed from a university website are not permitted
Hard-copy official 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

Testing Requirements

Any applicant whose first language is not English, but who, within the 12-month period prior to the month of application, has 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 Director of Admissions, School of Graduate Studies and Post-Doctoral Affairs, will review the request. The applicant will be informed of the results of the review.

Applicants whose native languages do not include English and who do not meet the exemption criteria listed above will need to earn satisfactory standing in an English Language Proficiency Test as part of the application process, and before final acceptance is granted. SGSPA will prompt applicants to provide information regarding their language skills in the “Languages” section of the online application.

Step 5: Prepare & Submit Online Application

During the online application process, applicants are required to complete a series of modules that include providing a summary of professional experience as well as a "Statement of interest." Please note that the short Statement of Interest on the SGSPA website can simply be the first paragraph or two of your Cover Letter or your Statement of Research. You need not create new content.

Note on References: The application portal will require applicants to submit two "academic" references. However, if you don't have two academic references, we will accept one academic and one professional reference. Simply input the contact information for your two references and the application portal will send your referees a link to a reference questionnaire. Referees may also have the option of uploading a letter.

Applicants must complete all the application modules before verifying and submitting the application for review.

Step 6: Prepare & Submit Additional Documentation to the Department of Film & Media via Email.

Although some of the online application modules may capture similar information, the Department of Film & Media requires that additional documentation be provided directly to Gabriel Menotti, Graduate Chair, via graduatefilm@queensu.ca. Please include your online application reference number in all correspondence.

In addition to the online application, to complete your application for graduate studies in Screen Cultures and Curatorial Studies, you must provide the 4 additional documents listed below in one combined pdf document via email to graduatefilm@queensu.ca.

Part 1) Cover Letter

Indicate your background, why you are interested in the program (why it is a good fit with your goals/project), and the name(s) of potential supervisor(s). Please note that we only accept students when we have supervisory capacity, so please make sure to review our faculty listing to make sure we have faculty members qualified to supervise your project. You may address the letter to "Dr. Dorit Naaman, Graduate Coordinator."

Part 2) A Research Statement

Outline your research interests and the MA or PhD project you have in mind (1-page maximum). The research statement has to include a question/problem you identify in your field(s) (i.e. the representation of X in context Y), a proposed intervention to address the issue (critical analysis, a media text/curatorial project with a written component, etc.), and the context of the research within the field(s) (i.e. – name specific scholars/artists/professionals who are already working in this area). The research statement should connect the proposed project to the program’s linked disciplines of film and media studies, the study of screen cultures, film and media production, and/or curatorial studies and practice. The research statement should be accompanied by a 1-2 pages bibliography and when appropriate filmography.

Part 3) Academic Writing Sample

Preferably a short research essay or a curatorial statement (approximately 10 pages, double-spaced where possible, in PDF format). If you do not have a writing sample that short, please provide an excerpt from a larger work. If you do not have a recent writing sample, please write one for the application.

Part 4) A Curriculum Vitae (Not required for MA applicants)

When applying for a Doctoral degree (in PDF format).

File Format and submission of Additional Documentation

Please name the one combined pdf document file in this format: ApplicationReferenceNumber-Lastname-Additional Documentation.

Send the one combined pdf document of additional documentation to Gabriel Menotti, Graduate Chair, via graduatefilm@queensu.ca. and state in the subject line: PhD - Additional Documentation + ApplicationReferenceNumber

Questions? Please Contact:

Gabriel Menotti, Graduate Chair / Helga Smallwood, Graduate Assistant
Department of Film & Media, Queen's University
Isabel Bader Centre, 390 King St. West
Kingston, ON K7L 2X4
Email: graduatefilm@queensu.ca.
Phone: 613-533-6000 x 76268