Lise Bazinet
The Faculty of Social Sciences is ready and willing to accommodate a greater number of graduate students over the next four years.
According to François Houle, Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, “These days, the Faculty is particularly proud of the relevance of its study programs at the undergraduate level, and just as importantly at the graduate level.”
"We’re happy to see the extent to which our new baccalaureate programs meet students’ expectations,” adds Dean Houle. “They recognize the innovative nature of these programs and appreciate the quality of the learning experience they offer. Students in some of these programs are particularly pleased that their courses will involve partnerships with the community, government and the civil service, as well as with the UN, the World Bank and other non-governmental organizations.”
Many students are pleased with the international component of their program, especially in an age of social change and the role they will be called upon to play in the world. In response to these realities, the Faculty has added an international component to several of its programs. For example, courses are now available in Senegal, Kenya, Argentina and Tahiti, in collaboration with community groups and development research centres.
“The enormous growth we’ve experienced at the undergraduate level has now levelled off, and we are poised for growth at the graduate level. To respond to the increased demand, we are using the same winning formula: the creation and expansion of programs that meet the needs of the student population and the world at large. As stated in Vision 2010, we aim to increase graduate-level enrolment by 50 per cent between now and 2010–2011. This means that we foresee having an additional 625 to 950 students in graduate and doctoral studies.” At present, Faculty of Social Sciences has 350 students in master’s programs and 250 doctoral candidates.
According to forecasts, the soon-to-be-inaugurated School of International Public Affairs will attract 75 students. The plan is that the new Public Administration Program will focus on research.
Two departments will see their enrolment nearly double. The School of Political Studies and the Department of Criminology foresee an increase in the number of students in master’s programs from 25 to 50, and in the number of doctoral students from 8 or 9 to 14.
Henceforth, the MA-PhD in Psychology will accept up to 29 students per year (compared with 20 in the past). This is a significant increase, given the number of supervised hours of practice required for graduates to obtain their professional certification.
To enhance its existing master’s program, the School of Social Work is developing a doctoral program that could be implemented by 2009. This would be in time to meet the needs of students in the second wave of Ontario’s double cohort, who would be finishing their master’s degree by then. The School of Social Work is also planning to introduce a new undergraduate program so it can offer degrees at all three university levels, as is the case for most of the Faculty’s academic units.
Dean Houle has also not lost sight of the other two main objectives for his Faculty, as expressed in Vision 2010: to improve the university experience for undergraduates, and to fine-tune the linguistic balance by increasing the number of francophone and francophile students.
In short:
– Grants and research contracts have doubled in the last three years and are now valued at $6.5 million.
– The allocation of space in the new Desmarais Hall makes only two or three offices available per floor, and these will soon be filled.
– Plans are underway to convert contract positions for support staff into permanent jobs.
Related Link:
