MA Program

Minimum Admission Requirements

• Applicants are admitted under the General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies. Applicants must also satisfy IHPST's additional admission requirements stated below.

• A bachelor's degree from a recognized university with an average grade of at least B+ in the final two years of undergraduate work. While the majority of accepted students exceed this standard, the very broad scope of the field and the variety of fruitful approaches to it also imply that many different backgrounds are appropriate. Accordingly, grades are only one criterion used to judge applicants.

• Applications must be accompanied by a 300- to 500-word statement of interest indicating the applicant's areas of interest in history and/or philosophy of science and technology at the graduate level. A writing sample of no more than 3,000 words (not to exceed 20 pages) is required.

• Application deadline is January 15 of every year.

• Applicants whose primary language is not English and who graduated from a university where the language of instruction is not English must submit results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and Test of Written English (TWE) with the following minimum scores:

  • Paper-based TOEFL: 580 and 5 on the TWE

  • Internet-based TOEFL: 93/120 and 22/30 on the writing and speaking sections

Completion Requirements

• Coursework. Students must complete a minimum of 3.0 full-course equivalents (FCEs). A student's curriculum is arranged in consultation with the student's faculty advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies.

  • Complete HPS1000H Introduction to the History and Philosophy of Science in the first session

  • Complete 1.0 FCE from the HPS 2000 series:

    • HPS2000H History of Mathematics

    • HPS2001H History of Physics

    • HPS2003H History of Biology

    • HPS2004H History of Medicine

    • HPS2008H History of Psychology

    • HPS2009H History and Philosophy of the Social Sciences

    • HPS2010H The Sciences of Human Nature

    • HPS2011H History of Engineering

  • Complete 0.5 FCE from the HPS 3000 series:

    • HPS3000H Philosophy of Science

    • HPS3001H The Philosophy of Biology

    • HPS3002H The History and Philosophy of Science

    • HPS3003H Social Studies of Medicine

    • HPS3004H Philosophy of Medicine

    • HPS3006H Philosophy of Probability

    • HPS3007H Philosophy of Economics

    • HPS3008H Philosophy of Science and Religion

    • HPS3009H Slavery, Medicine, and Science in Historical Perspective

    • HPS3010H Social Epistemology

  • Complete elective courses (1.0 FCE)

  • Demonstrate a reading knowledge of French or German; language instruction courses are not counted in the 3.0 FCEs required for the degree.

• Students who wish to pursue independent research may take HPS1500H Research Paper, in which they carry out a self-initiated research project under the direction of a faculty advisor.

Mode of Delivery: In person
Program Length: 3 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: FWS); 15 sessions part-time
Time Limit: 3 years full-time; 6 years part-time