IRHR: Industrial Relations and Human Resources MIRHR

Master of Industrial Relations and Human Resources

Program Description

The Master of Industrial Relations and Human Resources (MIRHR) degree program benefits students who are interested in advanced academic study leading to career opportunities in human resources management, labour-management relations, collective bargaining and dispute resolution, organization development and change, and labour market and social policy.

The MIRHR is a professional degree program designed to train students in the latest innovations and best practices within industrial relations and human resources management. The program uses an interdisciplinary approach to provide specialized study of the employment relationship.

The MIRHR offers two program options:

  • The two-year MIRHR option allows qualified students to complete the degree program in two years (16 non-consecutive months) of full-time study.

  • The advanced-standing MIRHR option enables qualified students to complete the MIRHR in one year (12 consecutive months) of full-time study.

Both options may be taken on a part-time basis.

 

MIRHR Program (Two-Year)

Minimum Admission Requirements

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

  • Applicants to the two-year MIRHR program require an appropriate bachelor's degree from a recognized university. A minimum grade average of B+ in each of the final two years of the degree is required.

  • Applicants may submit results from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Although these tests are not required and there is no minimum score requirement, this information is helpful to the admissions committee. Test results more than five years old are normally not considered.

  • Applicants whose primary language is not English and who graduated from a university where the language of instruction and examination was not English must write the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). The following minimum scores are acceptable:

    • paper-based TOEFL exam: 600 and 5 on the Test of Written English (TWE)

    • Internet-based TOEFL exam: 100/120 and 22/30 on the writing and speaking sections

    • IELTS exam: overall score of 7.0 (Academic), with at least 6.5 for each component.

  • Since space in the program is limited, all applicants who meet the minimum admission requirements cannot be guaranteed admission. The CIRHR admissions committee reserves the right to select qualified applicants to the program. All admission decisions are final.

Program Requirements

  • Each student's program of courses must be approved by the Coordinator of Graduate Studies. If chosen courses appear to overlap to a large degree, approval may be denied.

  • Students must have a mid-B average overall to be recommended for the degree.

  • Failure in any course (that is, a grade of less than B–) will require a review of the student's program by the department.

  • A student who fails two or more courses is no longer in good academic standing and a recommendation for termination will be made to the School of Graduate Studies.

Year 1: Foundation Courses

  • Year 1 is spent acquiring a foundation in industrial relations and human resources and includes courses in economics, human resources management, law, quantitative methods, and organizational behaviour.

  • Students must take 4.0 full-course equivalents (FCEs), of which 3.5 are required courses, as follows:

    • IRE1002H Applied Statistics in Industrial Relations

    • IRE1010H Economic Foundations of Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • IRE1126H Economics of Labour and Human Resources

    • IRE1362H Organizational Behaviour

    • IRE1609H Strategic Human Resources Management

    • IRE1610H Industrial Relations

    • plus one of the following law courses:

      • IRE1270H Law of Labour Relations

      • IRE1338H Law in the Workplace.

  • 0.5 FCE is an elective course that is chosen from the list below to fill the requisite 4.0 FCEs in Year 1 of the program.

  • Students in the MIRHR program are required to achieve a mid-B average in Year 1 of the program (or in the first 4.0 FCEs) in order to continue or to pass into Year 2.

Year 2: Core Courses

  • Students must take 4.0 FCEs to complete Year 2. This includes core courses in Industrial Relations and Human Resources (1.5 FCEs):

    • IRE2001H Foundations and Current Issues in Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • IRE2002H Research Methods for Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • plus one of the following courses:

      • IRE2003H Research Project in Industrial Relations and Human Resources

      • IRE2004H Data Analytics and Metrics in Industrial Relations and Human Resources.

  • 2.5 FCEs are elective courses that are chosen from the list below to fill the requisite 4.0 FCEs in Year 2 of the program.

Program Length

6 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S/F/W/S)

Time Limit

3 years full-time; 6 years part-time

 

MIRHR Program (Advanced-Standing Option: 12-Month)

Minimum Admission Requirements

  • Applicants are admitted under the General Regulations of the School of Graduate Studies. Applicants must also satisfy the Centre for Industrial Relations and Human Resources additional admission requirements stated below.

  • Applicants to the 12-month MIRHR advanced-standing option require an appropriate bachelor's degree from a recognized university and significant academic training (normally 2.0 full-course equivalents [FCEs] at the senior undergraduate level), employment relations, human resources, industrial relations, labour studies, or labour economics. If the admissions committee determines that an applicant does not have sufficient academic training to qualify for advanced standing, the student will be considered for the two-year MIRHR degree. A minimum grade average of B+ in each of the final two years of the degree is required.

  • Applicants may submit results from the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT). Although these tests are not required and there is no minimum score requirement, this information is helpful to the admissions committee. Test results more than five years old are normally not considered.

  • Applicants whose primary language is not English and who graduated from a university where the language of instruction and examination was not English must write the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). The following minimum scores are acceptable:

    • paper-based TOEFL exam: 600 and 5 on the Test of Written English (TWE)

    • Internet-based TOEFL exam: 100/120 and 22/30 on the writing and speaking sections

    • IELTS exam: overall score of 7.0 (Academic), with at least 6.5 for each component.

  • Since space in the program is limited, all applicants who meet the minimum admission requirements cannot be guaranteed admission. The CIRHR admissions committee reserves the right to select qualified applicants to the program. All admission decisions are final.

Program Requirements

  • Each student's program of courses must be approved by the Coordinator of Graduate Studies. If chosen courses appear to overlap to a large degree, approval may be denied.

  • Students must have a mid-B average overall to be recommended for the degree.

  • Failure in any course (that is, a grade of less than B–) will require a review of the student's program by the department.

  • A student who fails two or more courses is no longer in good academic standing and a recommendation for termination will be made to the School of Graduate Studies.

  • Students admitted into the 12-month MIRHR advanced-standing option will have completed many of the foundation courses in industrial relations and human resources.

  • Students will take both foundation and core courses simultaneously in the three sessions of study (September to August). During this time, students will also take elective courses to increase their breadth of knowledge or to focus on their areas of interest.

  • Students must take 5.5 full-course equivalents (FCEs), of which 3.0 are required courses, as follows:

    • IRE1010H Economic Foundations of Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • IRE1126H Economics of Labour and Human Resources

    • IRE2001H Foundations and Current Issues in Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • IRE2002H Research Methods for Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • plus one of the following courses:

      • IRE2003H Research Project in Industrial Relations and Human Resources

      • IRE2004H Data Analytics and Metrics in Industrial Relations and Human Resources

    • plus one of the following law courses:

      • IRE1270H Law of Labour Relations

      • IRE1338H Law in the Workplace.

  • 2.5 FCEs are elective courses that are chosen from the list below to fill the requisite 5.5 FCEs in the program.

  • Students in the MIRHR advanced-standing option are required to achieve a mid-B average in the first 2.5 FCEs of the program in order to continue.

Program Length

3 sessions full-time (typical registration sequence: F/W/S)

Time Limit

3 years full-time; 6 years part-time