13 Social Science PhD Degree Programs in Canada

The Doctor of Social Sciences program is the first degree of its kind in North America. It approaches the study of complex, real-world problems within an interdisciplinary and Trans disciplinary framework. The program design brings the research intensity of a traditional doctorate to an applied, professional focus. In this program, you will explore interdisciplinary applications of the social sciences for practical, sustainable transformation across organizations and society.

As Canada adapts to an era of profound social, economic and environmental change, leadership and expertise in interdisciplinary perspectives and processes for identifying and solving complex social issues are proving to be paramount. The Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Social Research (IDSR) builds on Trent University’s world-class reputation in interdisciplinary scholarship in the social sciences. With a combined emphasis on social inquiry, interdisciplinary research and professional scholarship, the IDSR Ph.D.

Saint Paul University, through its faculties of Human Sciences, Theology, Philosophy, and Canon Law, offers a PhD in Interdisciplinary Research on Contemporary Social Issues. This degree is conferred jointly by the Senates of Saint Paul University and the University of Ottawa under the terms of the federation agreement between them. The interdisciplinary research doctorate provides a space for reflection to increase understanding of contemporary social issues taking account of the insights of the graduate disciplines of the four participating faculties.

The School of Social Innovation of the Faculty of Human Sciences at Saint Paul University offers a Ph.D. in Social Innovation. The Ph.D. in Social Innovation provides a space for research and reflection aimed at understanding the dynamics and multiple impacts of social innovations, in order to assess and structure them more efficiently.

This program, the first of its kind in Canada, opens the door to a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment in which you will have the opportunity to take on ground-breaking research in your chosen field. In this program, you will have the flexibility to work with your colleagues and faculty members the way that best suits your studies. After graduation, you will be ready to do the important work of contributing, through teaching and original research, to fields of inquiry pivotal to the development of our thinking, and our cultures, in the twenty-first century. Trent graduates go on to become teachers and researchers at universities and colleges in Canada and abroad, and to develop new forms of cultural inquiry and artistic innovation wherever they live.

The first Indigenous Studies Ph.D. program in Canada, this program ensures that the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of Indigenous Knowledges are articulated, discussed, documented, recognized and respected within the overall program field of Indigenous Knowledges: Peoples, Lands, Cultures. Indigenous Peoples, particularly Elders and Knowledge Holders, are central to the program and curriculum.

The Cultural, Social, and Political Thought major in the Ph.D. program is interdisciplinary in nature. It is based on a cohort learning model that fosters an environment of interdisciplinary engagement and exchange, research, peer mentoring, and collaboration. The overall academic aims of the major are to emphasize the breadth and depth of social, cultural, and political thought and to inculcate the intellectual and practical tools needed to work successfully with community partners and agencies to facilitate social change. 

The PhD in Human Kinetics is designed to train progressive thinkers, leaders and experts who have advanced understanding and skills to innovate and expand knowledge in the field of Human Kinetics to benefit society. Students will have the opportunity to pursue independent research in the broad fields of Occupational Health, Safety and Wellness or Multi-Cultural Physical Activity and Sport.

The challenges we face today—social and environmental injustice, climate change, precarious work, surveillance, and a shrinking public sphere—are big, complex and multifaceted. Among their many other dimensions, they are questions of communication and culture, which demand urgent engagement. The Ph.D. in Communication, New Media, and Cultural Studies (CNMCS) is for creative students who embrace complexity, love difficult questions, and hunger for intellectual, artistic, and pedagogical risk-taking driven towards positive social change.

The program, administered by the School of Conflict Studies, studies various dimensions of social, political, and philosophical conflict from a multilevel and multidisciplinary perspective.

Grounded in the context of a post-modern society, and recognizing the importance of multiple perspectives, this Ph.D. program in Educational Sustainability will prepare students from a variety of fields.

Specialize in several areas of study, including cognition and communication, Franco-Ontarian and Francophone studies, interpretation, values and ethics, regional and cultural studies, and gender relations and sexuality studies.

The goal of this program is to educate counselors who are also researchers capable of independent and collaborative research. As researchers, they will be able to contribute to the knowledge base that informs counseling and spirituality.