How to Apply

How do you apply to the PhD Program?

This page provides all the information you’ll need to apply to apply to the Doctoral (PhD) program at the Faculty of Information. Entry into the program occurs once a year, in September. The program is delivered in-person on campus.

The application fee is $125 CAD per application. This fee cannot be waived and is non-refundable.

We invite all potential candidates to join us for an Information Day / Tour / Admissions Event to learn about your program options. Tours are also available.

Apply via the University of Toronto School of Graduate Studies
2025-26 Admissions Viewbook
Application process FAQs

Application Questions

  • admissions.ischool@utoronto.ca

Application Overview

The application process is online only. Entry into the program occurs once a year, in September. The program is delivered in-person on campus.

The application fee is $125 CAD per application. This fee cannot be waived and is non-refundable.

For more information on each of the application steps, the detailed “How to apply” section can be found below.

Eligibility

  • To be eligible for the PhD program, you must:
  • A minimum average grade of A- (or equivalent) is required for your application to be considered. This is the minimum GPA requirement for consideration. Presenting the minimum does not guarantee admission.
  • Completion of a Masters degree, or equivalent from a University of Toronto recognized institution.

Application Dates and Deadlines

  • Applications open on September 1. Entry into the program occurs once a year, in September. The next admission entry is for September 2025.
  • The deadline to apply is December 1. Applicants must submit their application, application fee and all supporting documents: research statement, transcripts, CV/resume, writing sample, academic letters of reference and English proficiency test results (if applicable). An application with supporting documents submitted after this date will be considered incomplete, and will not be reviewed by the Admissions Committee.

Application Steps

  • Apply online through the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) application system.
  • Submit supporting documents:
  • List of supporting documents:
    • Transcripts
    • Curriculum Vitae (CV) or Resume
    • Research statement
    • Statement of interest
    • Writing sample
    • Three academic letters of reference
    • English Language Proficiency (if applicable)

How to Apply: Step by Step

Step One:

Apply via School of Graduate Studies (SGS) application site

The application process is online only and takes place through the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) application site. Entry into the program occurs once a year. The next admission entry is for September 2025.

SGS Application Site

Step Two:

Submit your supporting documents

Supporting Documents

Applicants must provide a number of supporting documents. These include:

Applicants must submit transcript(s) from all post-secondary institutions attended.

Applicants currently in the process of completing their final year of study should submit an interim transcript.

Current and past University of Toronto students applying to Faculty of Information programs may give permission to the Faculty to download an official U of T transcript by emailing ischool@utoronto.ca.

For the purpose of the application review, you may submit unofficial transcripts using the online application form. If you receive an offer of admission, you’ll need to submit official final transcripts.

Transcripts are considered official when they have been prepared, sealed in an envelope and signed over the back flap by an official at the issuing institution. They are to be sent directly to the Faculty of Information: University of Toronto, 140 St. George Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3G6.

E-transcripts can be sent directly from your institution(s) to admissions.ischool@utoronto.ca

The Admissions Committee may at any time during the application process request that applicants submit official transcripts for all post-secondary institutions attended.

Standardized tests (such as GMAT or GRE) are not required or requested and will not be considered.

For applicants whose admitting degree was granted outside of North America, the Faculty of Information will accept transcripts sent directly from World Education Services (WES) as official transcripts. The Faculty of Information will consider the evaluation report from WES but will make its own evaluation decision.

It should include:

  • Education
  • Relevant personal and work experience, both paid and unpaid
  • Publications
  • Professional activities
  • Awards, honours, grants and fellowships, as applicable

All PhD applicants should proactively reach out to Faculty members conducting research in the areas they are interested in to ensure that their research can be well supported by a faculty member.

Your research statement should be written in essay format and be a maximum of 1,000 words, double-spaced.

A research statement generally outlines: 1) the research you plan to undertake in a PhD; 2) support at the Faculty of Information. We have provided some prompts that may stimulate and guide your thinking:

A research statement generally outlines:

  1. The research or project you plan to undertake in your PhD: What is the research you will conduct at the Faculty of Information? What fields or areas of research is your research in conversation with (demonstrated through a short literature review)? Who are the scholars (including researchers, artists/practitioners, community leaders, and/or elders) that have shaped your research interests? What is significant or novel about this research? How does your research contribute to intellectual diversity in the Faculty?
  2. Support at the Faculty of Information: Why do you want to undertake this research at the Faculty of Information? Which faculty members do you propose to supervise your research and serve on your dissertation committee, and why? Have you met with these faculty members? Which courses and programs of study (including potential optional collaborative specializations) will support your research? Are there research centres, institutions, or communities that can support your research?

Tips:

  • Be specific
  • Include citations and a bibliography
  • Include a short title for your research project
  • Include specific details about achievements (academic, professional, or community-based)
  • Write in clear, jargon-free language for an interdisciplinary committee

Your statement of interest should be written in essay format and be a maximum of 500 words, double-spaced. Your statement of interest generally outlines your background. We have provided some prompts that may stimulate and guide your thinking:

A statement of interest generally outlines:

  1. Your background: How did you become interested in this research? What led you to this proposed research? What background (academic, personal or professional) do you have that prepares you to pursue this project or area of research, and how do you need to grow? You should be specific about courses, essays, theses, research-creation, community organizing, activism and/or lived experiences that have prepared you to undertake the proposed research.

The writing sample is a piece of original academic work, around 3,000-8,000 words (double-spaced if not in published format).

The writing sample is used to evaluate writing skills, which are an important component of the PhD. This is easiest to do if the sample is single-authored. If you submit a collaboratively authored sample, please include a statement of contributions that explains your role.

The sample could be:

  • a course paper
  • an excerpt from your thesis or major research paper
  • an article submitted for publication
  • a chapter from a book or other similar publication

Three letters are required. If you graduated more than five years ago, you may substitute work letters of reference. Work-related referees should be direct supervisors who can comment on skills that would be useful in the academic environment.

In the application, you will be asked to provide contact information for your referees. Once you have saved the contact information, your referees will be emailed by the School of Graduate Studies with instructions directing them to a secure website where they will submit electronically:

  • A candidate assessment in a fillable confidential report form
  • A reference letter

Please be sure to inform your referees of all the appropriate deadlines.

Reference letters should:

  • be 1-2 pages maximum
  • include how long you have known the applicant and in what capacity
  • outline the applicant’s strengths as a student/researcher, ideally with specific examples
  • avoid gendered language
  • Include details such as: how would you describe the applicant’s intellectual characteristics? Their ability to carry out independent and collaborative research? What has prepared the applicant to undertake a PhD? How do you assess the applicant’s communication, research, and writing skills? Does the applicant possess personal qualities that will help them succeed in a PhD? Is there anything else we should know about the applicant that they may not have included in their research statement?

References from Traditional Knowledge Keepers and Elders

The Faculty of Information is committed to implementing recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada; specifically those concerned with eliminating educational gaps for Aboriginal students, improving education attainment levels and success rates, and developing culturally appropriate curricula.

We recognize that one of the most destructive and enduring artifacts of Canada’s colonial history involves the devaluation of traditional knowledge and cultural practice, and the disenfranchisement of knowledge keepers and elders. As such, and where requested by the applicant, letters of achievement, recognition, and support from community knowledge keepers and elders will be accepted by the admissions committee, and weighted equally to formal academic references.

Applicants whose first language is not English must submit the results of an English Proficiency Test.

The Faculty of Information reserves the right to require evidence of English language proficiency from any applicant educated outside Canada, whose first language is not English. Applicants must demonstrate proficiency in English by submitting an acceptable score from one of several English language competency tests.

For graduate programs consult the UofT School of Graduate Studies (SGS) website for information on available tests. Note that the Faculty of Information may require scores higher than the SGS language competency scores (see Faculty of Information minimum scores below). This requirement must be met before the Admissions Committee will review an application.

Rationale

  • Programs at the Faculty of Information are language-intensive
  • Some courses may use English in very particular philosophical and nuanced ways
  • Students are expected to function smoothly and subtly in both written and verbal English
  • Students are also expected to be English-language proficient in one-on-one interactions, group work, formal presentations, and in electronic communication media
  • For these reasons, the Faculty of Information may require scores higher than the SGS language competency scores
  • Scores must be from tests taken within the last two years

Acceptable Tests & Faculty of Information Minimum Scores

TOEFL – Test of English as a Foreign Language
Institution Code for U of T Graduate Studies: 0982-00

  • Internet-based Test (iBT)
    overall score: 107/120
    speaking section: 24/30
    writing section: 27/30
  • Paper-based Test
    overall score: 600
    Test of Written English (TWE): 5.5

IELTS – International English Language Testing System (Academic)
overall score: 7.5
Writing: 7.5
Speaking: 7

Cambridge English – C1: Advanced and C2: Proficiency
Required score: 185 overall with at least 176 for each component.
Applicants should use the “Send Your Result” function on the Candidate Results portal (https://candidates.cambridgeenglish.org) to send their results electronically to the University of Toronto.

COPE – Certificate of Proficiency in English
overall score: 95
writing component: 41
each of the other components: 27

English Language Program, UofT School of Continuing Studies
overall score: ‘A’ in Level 60 in Academic English

*Please note, the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) temporarily accepted the Duolingo English Test (DET) to satisfy the English language proficiency requirement for graduate admission to the Fall 2020 session only. Considering that testing centres for both TOEFL and IELTS have been resumed, Duolingo will not be accepted for admissions.

Exemptions

Some applicants may be exempt from completing an English proficiency test if they meet one of the conditions found at the bottom of the following page. Should you have any further questions, please contact us at admissions.ischool@utoronto.ca or (416) 978-3234.

For applicants where English is not their first language but completed an Undergraduate or Graduate degree from an institution where English is used as the medium of instruction and examination, then an English proficiency test result may not be required. However, applicants will be required to provide a letter from their previous institution to verify that English is indeed used as the medium of instruction. This letter should be sent directly to the Faculty of Information on official institution letterhead and email.

The admission committee does reserve the right to request for applicants to provide an English Proficiency Test result during the application process.

Step Three:

Post-application

Application Status Check

You may log in to your profile on the application website to confirm the receipt of your supporting documents, including letters of recommendation, and to amend your current contact information.

Your application will be marked “Under Review” when it has gone to the Admissions Committee for consideration.

Review process

The Admissions Committee takes a holistic approach in reviewing candidates. Emphasis is not placed on any specific area but on the overall application. Meeting the minimum requirements of the Faculty of Information and the School of Graduate Studies does not guarantee admission.

Applicants may be contacted for an interview during the application review process.

Admission is based on the availability of a faculty member to support your research. It is important to us that our admitted PhD students are well supported in their area of research by their supervisors. Therefore, you should proactively reach out to Faculty members who are conducting research in the area you are interested in ahead of time to ensure that you will have a supervisor who has the expertise to support your research.

Notification of decisions

Decisions will be communicated on the application website. Decisions are made as soon as it is possible to do so, rather than by a specific date. By the end of the admissions cycle (typically in May) the outcome of all applications should be communicated.

PhD Peer Mentorship

The University of Toronto Faculty of Information (FoI) or iSchool PhD Peer Mentorship Program aims to support prospective Ph.D. applicants from communities that have historically been underrepresented in higher education, though it is open to all applicants. This includes, but is not limited to: 

Connect with current doctoral students to receive insights, advice, and guidance for preparing an application to the iSchool. Whether you need feedback on your application materials, want to learn more about the program, or just need someone to guide you, our mentors are ready to help you succeed. 

Sign up to be a mentee here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdVa6vyKDcFQrlz0-WBTx2jfJ69prO62Ck4XTTPsMD8KcLjSg/viewform  

For any questions about the application process, the doctoral program, and living in Toronto, please refer to the FAQ document here: FAQ_Mentees.docx 

For any questions about the Peer mentorship program, please contact the Doctoral Student Association at ischool.dsa.ut@gmail.com