MS.ANTH - Anthropology - MSc (Thesis)

The general regulations and requirements of Trent University for the MA/MSc degree apply to graduate study in Anthropology. Students are admitted to the program once a year for studies beginning in the following September. Applications should be received by February 1 to be considered for admission and funding. To be eligible for admission, the applicant must possess a joint or single Honours BSc or BA degree or equivalent in Anthropology or a related field, with an average of at least an upper second class standing (B+, 77%) in the work of the last four semesters or the last two undergraduate years (full-time equivalent). Applicants to the program are expected to have a foundation in appropriate research methodology. They may be required to take an undergraduate course deemed necessary to their program of graduate study, e.g., ANTH 3000Y, ANTH 3100Y, ANTH 3150Y or ANTH 3990Y. Students will be accepted into the MA or MSc stream based on committee review of their proposed topic of study, undergraduate degree, and supervisory recommendation. Major changes to the proposed thesis topic may result in a transfer to from the MA to MSc stream, or vice-versa.

Candidates who have fulfilled the admission requirements are required to take three full graduate credits, including either ANTH 5000Y, and normally ANTH 5000Y or ANTH 5100Y. Full-time students are normally required to complete these courses in their first year of study; part-time students are normally required to complete their course work in the first three years of study. The number of undergraduate courses allowed for credit at the graduate level cannot exceed 1/3 the number of required courses for the program. In addition to completion of the course work, students in the MA/MSc program in Anthropology are required to conduct research and write a thesis in an area of interest to be identified and approved in consultation with the student’s supervisory committee, and to pass an oral examination in defense of the thesis. The text of the thesis is not to exceed forty thousand words, excluding bibliography. Students will present their thesis research at first- and second-year graduate colloquia. Students are subject to a review of their performance at the beginning of the winter session of each academic year. There is no formal language requirement, but students will be required to demonstrate (to the satisfaction of the supervisor) an acceptable capacity to read in a language or languages considered necessary for purposes of research. In addition, students may be expected to show adequate background knowledge in a related discipline, e.g., art history.

Expected time to completion for the Anthropology MA/MSc program is two years for full-time, four years for part-time.