Transcripts

Please provide details of all post-secondary study you have undertaken, including current studies, even if a degree has not been awarded.

Begin with the most recent (or current) institution attended and continue in reverse chronological order.  You will be required to provide a copy of the transcript for each institution (including exchange or continuing education, etc) for your application to be assessed.

Upload your transcripts as a PDF to the “Education” page in the application. Unofficial transcripts included in your application should include your full name and the name of the issuing institution. The education section should include the following:

• All post-secondary education you have undertaken including current/past studies even if a degree has not been awarded. Please include the time period when you studied there (approximate dates are acceptable), and the level of study that you have completed.
• This includes bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees, doctoral/medical degrees, post-secondary diplomas, post-secondary certificates, transfer credits, single post-secondary level courses taken, and continuing education courses, etc.
• Please note: If a transcript is not in English, you are responsible for providing an official translated version. In this case, both the original untranslated transcript and the official translation are required. The only exception to this requirement is where the official translation is done by the institution (university) issuing the transcript.

Do not include in your education section:

• Your high-school academic history
• Additional education/general interest courses that were not taken at post-secondary institutions (i.e., linked in learning certificates, certification of completion/participation, pass/fail online certificates, etc.)

Electronic documents are required for the online application process. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable (e.g., photos, scans, etc.). Official transcripts will be required from the issuing institution if an offer of admission is accepted.

*Note: illegible documents can cause an applicant’s file to be dismissed before review, so please check your files before submitting your application. WES documents and other standardized testing such as GMAT, GRE, MCAT, etc. are not required for the PhD Application process.

After the application deadline passes, updated documents will not be required or accepted by the program. If offered admission, updated documents will then be required at a later time.

Mailing address for official documents if an offer of admission is made:

Global Health Office, Faculty of Health Sciences
Attn: PhD in Global Health Program
McMaster University
1280 Main Street West, MDCL 3500
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4K1

Applicants are asked to submit a Statement of Research Interest as a PDF to the Upload Materials page in the online application. The statement is your opportunity to provide us with insight into your motivation and interest in pursuing doctoral studies in Global Health.

The Statement of Research Interest should (1000 words maximum):

• Describe your global-health-related experiences including coursework and independent research completed at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels, as well as professional and volunteer experiences.  Explain how these experiences have influenced your interest in global health and your proposed area of research.
• Discuss your proposed area of research and dissertation plans.
• Describe any educational and/or professional experience that indicates your capacity to undertake research-oriented doctoral studies in your proposed research area.
• Indicate a proposed supervisor and describe the alignment between your research interests and the proposed supervisor’s expertise. A list of supervisors associated with the Global Health Program can be found on the program webpage. Only in exceptional circumstances, the program will consider proposed supervisors not currently associated with the Global Health Program.
• Indicate any funding that you have been awarded to support your PhD studies and/or research, or any funding you have applied for and/or are planning to apply for.

Applicants with a secured supervisor and/or funding awarded (or a strong plan for acquiring funding awards) are reviewed more favourably by the admissions committee.

Applicants should not use generative AI for their application. See McMaster’s statement on the use of generative AI here.

Please include a full academic CV uploaded as a PDF to the Upload Materials page in the application.

Entry into the PhD program is highly competitive and varies year to year. Prior to applying to the program, applicants should contact potential supervisors. Applicants with a secured supervisor are reviewed more favourably by the admissions committee.

Letters from faculty member(s) indicating willingness to supervise, interactions to date, and appropriateness of match given the applicant’s intended research interests, should be included. Letters of support from potential supervisors can be uploaded as an optional additional material to the “Upload Materials” page on the online application. A letter of support from a potential supervisor does not guarantee acceptance into the program.

If applicants are unable to secure a supervisor, an application submitted to the program will still be accepted. You are required to identify at least one and up to three proposed supervisors on the online application.

Discussion with supervisors should include the availability of funding, alignment of research interests, and expectations with their supervisor prior to applying.

Acceptance into the Global Health doctoral program requires both meeting the academic eligibility requirements and research supervisor matching by the applicant.

The following is a list of McMaster faculty who have been approved by the Faculty of Health Science Graduate Studies to supervise and/or sit on the committee of a Ph.D. Global Health candidate. While those approved for a supervisory role may also take up a role as a committee member, those approved only for committee membership may not act as supervisors (see second list below). As part of the application process, you are required to describe the connection between your research interests to those of your proposed supervisor. Supervisors research interests are listed below. In all cases, transdisciplinary methodological approaches are encouraged.

Should you wish to work with a faculty member that is not on the list below, please contact the program academic advisor (ghadvising@mcmaster.ca). Any questions pertaining to the research interests listed below should be sent directly to the faculty member. If you have any further questions, please contact the academic advisor.

As per School of Graduate Studies requirement, you will need to submit two confidential academic references and will be required to indicate an email address for each referee.

Your referees will receive an email message asking them to complete an eReference immediately after the ‘Send to Recommender’ button is clicked. Your referees will be provided with the necessary information and instructions on how to go about completing their eReference once their invitation is sent to them. You may wish to click on this button just before you submit the application.

Referees have two weeks after the application deadline to submit their references.

If you need to change your reference or referee email address after submitting your application, you may do so through the Application Status Portal.

Reference Requirements

• References should come from professors or faculty members who can best comment on your abilities as a graduate student and as a global health scholar, typically, this should be someone who has supervised you as part of a course.
• Examples include an instructor or professor, a thesis professor or supervisor for a major research paper or project. Typically, teaching assistants are not appropriate academic references.
• We encourage you to submit the application early to allow referees sufficient time to complete the electronic forms, which will be sent via email directly to the referee’s email address you have provided.
• Referees also have the option to upload additional documentation (i.e. PDF reference letter) to supplement the e-reference form.

If you have been out of an academic setting for five years or more (as of September 2024), you are permitted to submit one academic and one professional reference (in lieu of the two academic references typically required).

After the reference deadline, no references will be accepted, and your application will be considered incomplete.

Please note: Failing to meet the School of Graduate Studies reference requirements may mean your application is incomplete and ineligible for review.

Applicants must submit an academic writing sample in English of up to 25 pages uploaded as a PDF to the Upload Materials page in the application. Preferably this will be a publication in which the applicant was the sole or lead author. A writing sample from course work is acceptable. No particular format is required.

Applicants whose first language is not English or whose previous degree was completed in a language other than English, will be required to upload a language proficiency test result as a PDF to the ELP page in the application.

Language requirements as outlined by the School of Graduate Studies can be found here.

Applicants must submit the completed application online with the (non-refundable) application fee of $150 CAD.

If there is an issue with payment, the application will not submit.

When the payment is approved, you will receive an application acknowledgement email confirming that your application has been successfully submitted.

Applications will not be considered for admission until an application fee has been paid.

For important information about the application process, see the School of Graduate Studies website here.

Begin your McMaster University Application

Once you have paid for and submitted an application, you can monitor you application status here.

Students are expected to conduct original and innovative research as part of a thesis that expands upon existing knowledge and meets the rigorous criteria for peer-reviewed scholarship.

Students are required to complete four courses for a total of 12.0 Units.

The following research methods course is required:

1. GLOBHTH 713 Research Methods: A Global Health Perspective (3.0 Units), or equivalent level advanced research methods course in the event the course was previously completed.

Students who have taken this course may complete an acceptable alternative course in advanced research methods as determined by the supervisor in consultation with the program.

2. A second advanced research methods course as determined by the supervisory committee in consultation with the program (3.0 Units)

Students may also take two other courses from a pre-approved list of electives or can complete up to two independent studies courses under the guidance and approval of their supervisor:

3. GLOBHTH 715 Independent Study Course I (3.0 Units)
4. GLOBHTH 716 Independent Study Course II (3.0 Units)

Students may elect, or may be required, to take additional courses beyond the four required based on consultation with their supervisory committee. A list of pre-approved electives is available in the Global Health Program PhD Handbook. In addition to coursework, all students will be required to participate in a research and professional development seminar.

The comprehensive evaluation consists of an oral defense of a comprehensive examination portfolio. The elements of the portfolio must include but is not limited to:

1. A literature review comprised of an independent study reviewing a body of published literature and critically summarizing the findings.

2. A review of completed courses describing their contribution to developing the student’s interdisciplinary skills and knowledge related to current issues in global health and the thesis research.

3. A description of relevant publications authored by the student during the course and their contribution to the thesis research

4. The dissertation proposal.

The comprehensive evaluation will require students to integrate the major theoretical writings and pertinent substantive research with their selected research focus. Students will demonstrate an in-depth and broad understanding of the current scholarly literature and methodological approaches in their relevant field of study in global health. The evaluation will be assessed by the supervisory committee on a pass/fail basis.

All students will produce an original piece of empirical research, situated in relevant scholarly literature, which will become the reference point for conceptualizing and justifying a central research question and interpreting the significance of the principal findings. The thesis must be defended in a PhD Final Oral Examination as outlined in the School of Graduate Studies regulations for the Doctoral Degree.

Prior to the program start date, students should have an idea for a research topic that aligns with existing faculty for supervision. This information should be submitted as part of the online application and in the Statement of Research Interest. The principal supervisor will be a full-time faculty member who has approved privileges for supervising doctoral students in this transdisciplinary program. The composition of the supervisory committee will be made during the course of the first year of studies.

For further details regarding supervision and supervisory committee, please refer to Section 1.2.4 and Section 3.1 of the Graduate Calendar.

Is securing funding required before applying to the program?

Applicants are asked to indicate any funding that has been awarded to support your PhD Studies and/or research, or any funding you have applied for and/or are planning to apply for in your Statement of Research Interest.

Applicants with a secured supervisor and/or funding awarded (or a strong plan for acquiring funding awards) are reviewed more favourably by the admissions committee.

For more information on funding requirements and opportunities please see here.

Please refer to the Global Health PhD Handbook (2024/2025) for additional policies and regulations on course selection and delivery, course and program evaluations, absences, academic integrity and performance reviews.