Health and Society (PhD)

The PhD program in Health & Society will apply an interdisciplinary, comparative, and critical lens to analyzing and understanding health as a social and cultural process, construct, and outcome. It is the combination of these three perspectives, the ways that they interact with and build on one another, and a focus on both the social structural and cultural dimensions of health that makes the program distinctive in its area. The PhD program in Health & Society differs from many doctoral programs in this area in that it allows students to develop and pursue broader research interests that may be outside the typical focus on public health, demography and service management.

Areas of Research

• Social-cultural dimensions of health
• Systems, services and policy
• Environments and inequalities
• Diversity and inclusion

• Master’s Degree
• B+ minimum average, based on previous graduate work
• Each program may set additional/higher requirements. Please review the program website for details.
• Admission to a graduate program is based on a judgement by the University that the applicant can successfully complete the graduate degree program
• Degrees and grades from foreign universities are evaluated for their equivalency to McMaster’s. Please contact the program for specific details.
• Departments or programs may establish additional requirements, such as scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
• Admission is competitive: meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission
• The admission decision is not subject to appeal
• Applicants who do not meet the above mentioned requirements, should consult the Graduate Calendar to determine the requirements for exceptional cases