How to Apply

Prospective graduate students must apply to the University of Guelph online, through the Ontario Universities Application Centre (OUAC). Please visit the Graduate Studies website to learn more and begin your application process.

After submitting an online application for the Criminal Justice and Public Policy master's degree program, you will be invited to submit required documents through the University of Guelph's online system, WebAdvisor.

September is the only entry point for the program. All applications are acknowledged when received.

The deadline to apply is January 15.

It can take up to five days to receive access to WebAdvisor after applying through the OUAC system. Therefore, students should begin their application no later than January 1.

Required documents for the CJPP program

  • All transcripts
  • Statement of research interest
  • If your first language is not English, you will be required to submit the results of a standardized language test.
  • Two (2) academic reference letters and assessment forms. An electronic Referee Assessment Form will be sent directly to the referees listed in your online application.

Statement of Research Interest Guidelines

For applicants intending to write a thesis, your statement should focus on that project. For applicants intending to pursue the course-based option, your statement should focus on research that you wish to pursue in one of your courses. Its length should be 1-3 double-spaced pages (plus references).

The primary purpose of the statement of interest is to demonstrate your ability to perform graduate-level academic research, rather than explain your personal interest in criminology and/or criminal justice policy. As such, it should describe a research project that you hope to complete during your time in the program.

Regardless of whether you are intending to take the thesis or course-based option, the best statements will identify a issue relevant to the program, situate it within the relevant academic literature and include a proposed research question and methodology.

Include the following four components in your statement:

Research question and relevance

Describe the question that you would like to answer in your project and explain its main relevance. For example, does answering this question further the study of criminology and/or criminal justice policy? Does it make an original contribution? Does it shed light on one or more pressing criminological, sociological or political issues?

Existing literature

Describe briefly what the academic literature has to say about your topic of study, relevant theory and your research question in particular. Your task here is to demonstrate a basic understanding of the literature on your subject.

Methodology

Describe how you plan to answer your research question. You should comment on your proposed research design and case selection, as well as on your methods of data collection.

Fit with program and declaration of thesis/course-based

Explain why you believe the Criminal Justice and Public Policy program at the University of Guelph would be a good place to conduct this research. Identify at least one faculty member who could supervise your project. Please begin this section with a one-sentence declaration that reads: "I intend to pursue the [course-based/thesis] option," selecting one of the two options.