Doctor of Philosophy in Design, Technology and Society (PhD)
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Overview
The Ph.D. in Design, Technology and Society in the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture integrates design research with disciplines such as the social sciences, the applied sciences and the humanities. The program will advance new models of research-based practice, including the accommodation of Indigenous-focused research practices, that can be implemented in real world settings.
Quick Facts
Admission Information & Requirements
1) Check Eligibility
Minimum Academic Requirements
The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:
Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.
English Language Test
Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.
Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:
TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based
Overall score requirement: 100
Reading
22
Writing
21
Speaking
21
Listening
22
IELTS: International English Language Testing System
Overall score requirement: 7.0
Reading
6.5
Writing
6.5
Speaking
6.5
Listening
6.5
Other Test Scores
Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:
The GRE is not required.
2) Meet Deadlines
3) Prepare Application
Transcripts
All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.
Letters of Reference
A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.
Statement of Interest
Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Design, Technology and Society (PhD)
Citizenship Verification
Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.
4) Apply Online
All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.
Tuition & Financial Support
Tuition
| Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International |
|---|---|---|
| Application Fee | $116.25 | $168.25 |
| Tuition * | ||
| Installments per year | 3 | 3 |
| Tuition per installment | $1,875.34 | $3,294.66 |
| Tuition per year (plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%) | $5,626.02 | $9,883.98 |
| Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | $3,200.00 (-) | |
| Other Fees and Costs | ||
| Student Fees (yearly) | $1,144.10 (approx.) | |
| Costs of living | Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies. | |
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
Financial Support
Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.
Program Funding Packages
From September 2024 all full-time students in UBC-Vancouver PhD programs will be provided with a funding package of at least $24,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $24,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.
Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)
All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.
Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)
Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)
Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union.
Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)
Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.
Financial aid (need-based funding)
Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans.
All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.
Foreign government scholarships
Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.
Working while studying
The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.
International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 24 hours a week during academic sessions.
A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement.
Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals
Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.
Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.
Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.
Cost Estimator
Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.
Research Supervisors
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Design, Technology and Society (PhD)
Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors
These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.
This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.
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Middleton, Georgia (Public health nutrition policy; Children and families; Parenting and caregiving; Food and eating environments; Food insecurity; Shared eating occasions; Qualitative methodology and methods)
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Mikami, Amori (peer relationships; friendships; peer rejection; bullying; social skills training; social networking; Facebook; attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; ADHD; children; adolescents, Ways in which a supportive classroom or home environment can help children to make friends, Designing and evaluating interventions that train teachers or parents in strategies to assist children with peer problems)
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Militzer, Matthias (Multi-scale modelling of microstructure evolution, Physical metallurgy of advanced high strength steels)
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Miller, Kenneth (Mindfulness and its incorporation into mental health interventions in settings of adversity, Development of culturally grounded assessment and evaluation tools, The use of mixed-methods in intervention development and evaluation research)
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Miller, William (Occupational therapy)
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Miller, Bradley (Historical studies; British Empire History; Canadian history; Criminal Justice History; International Law and International Relations; legal history; North American History; Political History)
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Miller, Steven (Birth defects, Concussion, Preterm labor, Steroids)
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Milligan, Kevin (Labour and demographic economics; Public economics; Economic Policies; Children; Inequality; Pensions; Public Finance; Taxation)
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Milloy, Michael-John (Infectious diseases; Clinical sciences, n.e.c.; Psychosocial, sociocultural and behavioral determinants of health; medical cannabis; overdose; HIV disease; people who use drugs; Substance use disorder)
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Milner, Valery (Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics; Ultrafast Quantum Coherent Control; Ultrafast Spectroscopy )
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Milner-Bolotin, Marina (Curriculum, pedagogy and didactics; Science, technology and engineering curriculum, pedagogy and didactics; Specialized studies in education; Educational Technologies; educational innovation; Educational technology; physics education; STEM education; STEM teacher education; Science and Knowledge; teacher education; Teacher and Student Performance Evaluation; Teaching; Teaching and Learning Systems; Technological Innovations)
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Milstein, Sara (Classical Greek and Ancient Rome history; Classical archaeology; Classical linguistics; Religion and religious studies; biblical and cuneiform law; Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern Studies; History of Major Eras, Great Civilisations or Geographical Corpuses; literary history of the Bible; Literary or Artistic Works Analysis; Mesopotamian literature; Near Eastern scribal culture; Religious Contexts)
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Mirabbasi, Shahriar (Analog and mixed-signal intergrated circuits and systems design, intergrated circuit design with an emphasis on high-speed data communication and signal processing applications)
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Miran-Khan, Karim (Exercise is Medicine; Health promotion via Exercise; Type 2 DM prevention)
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Miskovic, Sanja (Mining engineering; Mineral Processing; multiphase systems; Production and Process Optimization; Optimization, Control and Operations Research; Prefeasibility and Pilot Scale; R&D and Innovation; Technological Innovations; Sensors and Devices; Computational Fluid Dynamics; Critical Elements Extraction; Embedded Sensors; Experimental Fluid Dynamics; High performance computing; IIoT; Industrial Big Data; Minerals Processing; Multiphase Flows)
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Miskovic, Ilija (Multi-physics of Geo-materials, Big Data)
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Mitchell, Karice (Visual art)
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Mitchell, Ian (safety critical systems, assistive technology (mobility), robotics, scientific computing, cyber-physical systems, Mathematical software, computational science and engineering, hybrid and cyber-physical systems, verification and validation, reproducible research, level set methods, robotic path, planning)
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Mitchell, Matthew (Terrestrial ecology; Forest ecology; Agricultural ecology; Ecosystem services; urban ecology; Biodiversity conservation; social-ecological systems; Landscape ecology; Agroecosystems)
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Mitchell, Tamara (Literary or Artistic Work Analysis; Artistic and Literary Theories; Political Ideologies; Contemporary Mexican Literature and Culture; Neoliberalism, Globalization, (Post-)National Politics; Political Philosophy, Critical Theory; Border and Diaspora Studies; Contemporary Central American Literature and Culture; Digital Humanities; Sound Studies)
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Mitchell, Cameron (Kinesiology; Aging; molecular biology; Muscle hypertrophy; Nutrition; Physical performance; Protein metabolism; Resistance training; Sarcopenia)
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Mitra, Souvik (Neonatology; Neonatal intensive care; Extreme prematurity; Preterm hemodynamics; Randomized Controlled Trials; Evidence-based medicine)
Pages
Further Information
Specialization
Program Website
Faculty Overview
Academic Unit
Program Identifier
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