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Courses & Requirements

The requirements for successful completion of the PhD program in Policy Studies are the following:

Coursework

  1. Three (3) required core courses
  2. One (1) required foundation course in their chosen field of study
  3. One (1)  required course in advanced methods
  4. One (1)  elective course

Comprehensive Exam

Dissertation (including proposal and final dissertation)

 

In order to complete the program in four years, students are advised to complete all coursework and the comprehensive exam within the first 16 months of the program. Students should aim to defend their proposal by the end of their second year.

Students must maintain continuous enrolment in the program, including payment of applicable fees, in every fall, winter, and spring/summer term of their program until all requirements of their program have been met, unless they have been granted a leave of absence or have withdrawn from the program. (Senate Policy 170B)

Core Courses (three required; normally taken in the first year)

This course is designed to provide students with a critical examination of the intellectual and theoretical foundations of public policy studies. The course examines the history and evolution of policy studies and the various theoretical approaches and analytical concepts used in policy research. An emphasis is placed on policy theory and literatures from political science and several different disciplines to illustrate how different perspectives underpin various policy approaches. 

This course provides students with an overview of the wide range of qualitative and quantitative research methods used in public policy research and policy analysis. Various policy research methods are compared in terms of their connection to different theoretical approaches, their strengths and weaknesses, how they are used in combination, and how they are employed to research different public policy issues. This course provides the foundation for students to develop their dissertation proposal. It may be team-taught and faculty members from different disciplines may be asked to make presentations on their research to highlight different research methods and interdisciplinary approaches to public policy research.

This course focuses on the various forms of quantitative research that may be used in the development and analysis of public policy, such as surveys, observational studies, experiments, and the statistical analysis of secondary data. Foundational issues such as research design, the relationship between theory and research, ethical practices, sampling, and measurement will also be addressed. Students will learn the basic techniques needed to implement different quantitative research methods, but the focus will be on developing research literacy and the skills needed to evaluate published research results.

Field Foundation Courses (one required):

Each of the field foundation courses is designed to provide students with the theoretical and methodological background to pursue more specialized research in their field. PhD candidates are required to take the field foundation course in their chosen field:

This course focuses on the interface of public policy and public administration, particularly relations of the private, non-profit and third sectors; public sector reform and public policy; new theories and models of governance and their impact on public policy; and transformation of the policy process under different models of governance. The emphasis is on theories and research related to the policy process; policy design, policy instruments and implementation. 

This course provides advanced examination of policy challenges arising from global migration. A particular objective is situating Canada’s policy responses in a comparative context with other traditional countries of migration, as well as more recent countries of immigrant settlement. Attention will be devoted to analyzing the role of the state, markets and civil society in shaping migration-related policies. The role of research in policy development and analysis is a recurring course theme.  Topics of interest include the policy ramifications of immigration, settlement and diaspora related to such issues as: optimal population size, economic imperatives, multiculturalism, newcomer integration, dual citizenship, transnationalism and refugee admission.

This course takes a historical, comparative and critical approach to the study of social policy. The focus is on key theories and perspectives in social policy and the fluid boundaries between social policy, economic policy, health policy, environmental policy and justice policy underpinning interdisciplinary approaches to social policy research. Through an emphasis on the political economy of social welfare policy development at the local, national and international levels, the course provides students with an understanding of the evolution of social conditions and examines the influence of different policy ideas, institutions and interests on social policy development and change. This course also examines social capital, social cohesion, diversity and social justice movements. The emphasis is on defining and understanding the broad and inter-related field of social policy as a foundation for further research in a broad range of social policy areas. 

Advanced Methods Courses (one required)

i. Statistical Analysis of Social Science Research (SS8000)

ii. Advanced Qualitative Research  (SS8001)

Electives (one required):

 PhD candidates may take one elective from the following:

  1. other PhD field foundation courses

  2. one of the electives offered by Policy Studies (PD courses) if offered

  3. a course selected from policy-related graduate courses outside of the program

  4. a specialized readings course in a theoretical or methodological area related to dissertation research

Related:

Comprehensive Examination

Doctoral candidates must demonstrate an overall command of theories and methods in policy studies by passing a written comprehensive examination. The examination will test the student's grasp of the history and state of knowledge in the field of policy studies, its central themes and major debates, and the key theoretical and methodological foundations and challenges. 

The comprehensive will be in the form of a written exam, completed over a four-month period (normally the spring/summer term of the first year) and will be based on core theory, methods and the student's chosen field. 

The successful completion of the examination indicates that the student is qualified to teach at the university level and has the level of knowledge in policy studies needed to begin work on the dissertation. Normally the comprehensive exam must be completed by end of the second year of registration.   

Doctoral Dissertation

Proposal

Upon completion of the comprehensive exam, students will prepare a proposal for their dissertation research. The proposal should be prepared alongisde regular consultation with the supervisor and the supervisory committee.

After approval of the written proposal by the PhD supervisory committee, dissertation proposals will be presented orally and formally approved as part of the degree requirements. Normally the proposal will be presented by the end of the second year in the program. 

 

Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation requires the candidate to produce a substantial piece of supervised work that is worthy of publication and that makes an original contribution to knowledge in a particular field.

The dissertation demonstrates:

  • the candidate has a thorough grasp of the appropriate theories and methodological techniques and an awareness of the limitations of those theories and methods;
  • a distinct and original contribution to knowledge in the field;
  • an ability to communicate research findings effectively;
  • the author has written a careful, rigorous and sustained piece of work;
  • that research is complete and the author is admissible to the community of scholars with expertise in the policy field.

Students are required to defend their dissertation to an examination committee at an oral defense. The examination committee consists of the student's supervisory committee, an out-of-program examiner, and an external examiner. Students who are in the final stages of their dissertation should reach out to the Graduate Program Director to discuss the defense procedure.

Supervision and Supervisory Committee

Both the comprehensive exam and the dissertation are overseen by a supervisor and a supervisory committee. 

The comprehensive committee must consist of 3 faculty (the supervisor + two committee members), all of whom are members of the Policy Studies program faculty. You may wish to change the composition of your comprehensive committee prior to starting your dissertation proposal. 

The dissertation committee will oversee the dissertation at all stages of the research process (proposal, research ethics if applicable, data collection and analysis, and drafting). The supervisor must be a member of the Policy Studies program faculty. The dissertation committee may include up to one faculty member outside the program, subject to the approval of the GPD and YSGPS. 

You are not required to find a supervisor prior to applying to the program; however, it can be beneficial to reach out to potential superivsors to determine their availability and capacity to act as a supervisor for your proposed research project. Students admitted to the program are strongly encouraged to start considering supervisors in their first term of the program.