Funding and Awards | Department of Sociology

Funding Packages

We make every effort to provide comprehensive support to each and every graduate student. The department has an excellent record of securing external funding for students and providing additional teaching and research opportunities.

All full-time graduate students receive guaranteed funding. The current minimum guaranteed funding package for Ph.D. students is $25,000 per year for four (4) years and $16,000 for MA students for one (1) year or two (2) years dependent on the degree pathway.

It is important that you apply for all major external and internal scholarships (where appropriate) for which you are eligible. Recipients of major external and internal scholarships will be applied to funding offers (i.e., the external award is not on top of the original $16,000 or $25,000 minimum guarantee); however, funding offers overall for students with external awards are likely to be higher than those who do not receive them.

Employment

Graduate students are expected to serve as paid Teaching Assistants in many of the undergraduate courses offered by the Department. Full-time students must limit Teaching Assistantships and any other academic employment (including Research Assistantships) to an average of ten hours per week in each term, unless they are Teaching Fellows.

Graduate students may also have the opportunity to be lead instructors for our courses as Teaching Fellows, ranging from comprehensive 200-level courses to specialized 400-level seminars. These are excellent opportunities to enhance syllabus design, course planning, teaching and broader pedagogic skills for future careers.

Additional internal and external funding

Queen's Internal Awards

Successful applicants are nominated for Queen’s Graduate Fellowships/Scholarships. No separate application is necessary. The awards are valued between $5,000 and $10,000 and are awarded on a competitive basis.

Please see Queen's Internal Awards for a list of available awards. If you feel you meet the requirements to qualify for any internal award please contact the Graduate Programs Advising Coordinator.

Department of Sociology Awards

Blakely Family Student Initiatives Award: The Blakely Student Initiatives Fund provides financial support for student participation in projects devoted to the principles of personal growth and/or community service. Projects should provide educational opportunities such as participation in exchanges, competitions, internships, symposia, conferences and seminars. Applications for funding must be received prior to the conference/event for which you are applying. Contact Martin Hand for more information.
Conference Travel Awards: Full-time master's students in the first 2 years and full-time doctoral students in the first 4 years are eligible to apply for a student conference award to attend a recognized conference at which they are presenting an authored or co-authored paper or poster. Funds are allocated on September 30 and May 30. Successful applicants will be awarded some money to help support travel, accommodation, food, and registration fees. The application must be made and approved prior to the conference.

School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs Information and Awards

Information on tuition, fees and costs as well as the financial support offered to graduate students from the University and external agencies is provided by the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs:

Tri-Council Awards and Ontario Graduate Scholarships

Current graduate students in the Department of Sociology who are eligible for an Ontario Graduate Scholarship and/or a SSHRC or another Tri-Council Award are required to apply for them.

Calculating costs

Queen's University Registrar provides an overview of the costs that students in our graduate programs may incur, including education and basic living expenses (based on an 8 month period). The amount it costs to attend Queen's will depend somewhat on the choices you make, which will affect your budget.