M.Sc. in Environmental & Life Sciences

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the M.Sc. program should hold a B.Sc. honours degree in Biology, Environmental Chemistry, Geography, Environmental Science or related discipline, and at least a B+ (77%) or equivalent standing in their third and fourth years of an undergraduate B.Sc. program (last ten full credits).  Some candidates, as a condition of admission, may also be required to take courses from the undergraduate program or from other departments or universities, to fill in background deficiencies.

• A statement of research interests must be included in application.  It is helpful to include names of prospective faculty supervisors.
• A student for whom English is not a native language, must have acceptable proof of facility in English (e.g., an undergraduate or graduate degree from a university at which English is the language of instruction) or a TOEFL score of at least 580 (written) or 237 (electronic).
• For more detailed information on how to apply to EnLS, visit Trent University’s Graduate Studies page for more details.

 

Degree Requirements

Master’s students are required to take the equivalent of 3 half-courses, including 1 of 6 core courses, and submit a thesis based on original research. It is recommended that at least 0.5 course credits be in a program theme area other than their primary field of study. Students are permitted to take a maximum of one reading course (ENLS 5090H) or one senior undergraduate course (ENLS 5095H). Forms are available in the EnLS office. Students must attain at least second-class standing (B-minus or 70%) in all courses to remain registered in the M.Sc. program. Full-time M.Sc. students are expected to complete their thesis within two (2) years (4 years for part-time students).

 

For more information about graduate courses, please refer to Trent University’s Academic Calendar.

 

Conversion from M.Sc. to Ph.D.

Exceptional students enroled in the M.Sc. program may apply for conversion to the Ph.D. program by petitioning the Director (9-15 months after commencing the M.Sc. program) to undertake a Conversion Examination.  You must have completed at least 2 half-courses at the time of request and have obtained at least an A-minus (80%) in each.  Students wishing to take advantage of this procedure should discuss the matter with their Supervisory Committee in their first year. Students who successfully convert to the Ph.D. program will be guaranteed another 2 years of financial support (4 years in total).