Please note: the application period for graduate studies at the University of Toronto opens in mid-October and closes in early January for admission in September. Those interested in our programs must apply almost a year in advance of their desired start date. Our department does not admit students for January.
Keep in mind that since our full-time MA and PhD programs are funded, our admission process is very competitive – more so for international students.
The application is available online (see below for link). The student is responsible for uploading all documentation by the deadline. Letters of recommendation will be uploaded by the referees and they should do so by the deadline as well.
Please refer to the School of Graduate Studies for more details on the submission of required documentation.
Application Overview
1. Complete online application form
2. Pay the non-refundable application fee
3. Upload all supporting documentation. Referees will upload letters of recommendation themselves.
1. Online Application Form
Please read carefully the instructions, found at the bottom of this page, before proceeding to the online application.
Begin or to continue an online application
2. Non-refundable Application Fee
A non-refundable payment of CAD $125.00 is made during the online application process.
3. Supporting Documentation (to be uploaded as part of your application)
a) All applicants are required to upload one electronic or scanned transcript from each post-secondary institution attended.
Scanned copies of transcripts must be up to date and must include the transcript “legend” which is usually printed on the back of the paper transcript. More detailed requirements for scanning and submitting can be found below. The admissions committee will make its decision about your application based on this scanned transcript. Please ensure that the file is complete and readable before submitting.
The following option applies to transcripts from Canadian universities only: In lieu of a scanned copy of a paper transcript, applicants may upload a .PDF file of their academic history from their university’s student web service. Printing to pdf directly from your web browser is ideal; if this is not possible you may copy and paste the information into a word processing program and print to pdf from there. Where possible, the file should include the university’s grading legend and your name. Some universities do not include the same information on the student web service as they do on the transcript (e.g., class size or average). If the admissions committee determines that the file is incomplete you may be asked to submit a copy of the transcript instead.
b) Two letters of recommendation (they are provided electronically directly to the Graduate Unit and are only shared among the programs listed on the application. The University will contact your referees using the information you have provided in your application. It is recommended that you confirm your referees' availability prior to submitting their contact details. One of the letters must comment on the applicant’s fluency in Spanish.)
c) A sample of written work in Spanish (10-12 pp). Please upload with application.
d) A one-page statement of purpose, outlining the applicant’s areas of interest. Please upload.
e) A copy of curriculum vitae.
If you have further questions, please contact the Graduate Coordinator at spanish.graduate@utoronto.ca or the Graduate Administrator at spanport@chass.utoronto.ca
Application Deadlines for the 2023-24 Academic Year.
- September 2023 Admission:
The application closing date is January 9th, 2023. This deadline includes the receipt of application, supporting documents, and reference letters. - January 2024 Admission:
This department does not admit students in January.
Continuing MA Students
As of January 1, 2007, students who are already registered in the department for the M.A. program and who wish to continue to the Ph.D. program are required to follow the application process described above. Such students are not required to resubmit copies of transcripts that the Department has on file or of the M.A. program.
Application Instructions
Please follow these instructions carefully. At the end of the instructions is a link to an online application.
Applications to the Graduate Department of Spanish and Portuguese must be submitted to the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) through the online admissions application which is housed on a secure server in the University of Toronto. The department will consider your application only after you have entered your personal and academic information in the online application, submitted the application fee and uploaded all the required documents, including all the transcripts (scanned or electronically) as indicated on the application. Note that paper originals of your official transcripts are only needed after you have been accepted to the Program. An email will be sent from the department requesting the official transcripts.
Once you access the SGS online admissions application and enter your contact information an applicant identification number and a password will be emailed to you. You can leave and return to your application at any point until you move to the payment stage. At that point you can return to check on the status of this application.
Payment of your application fee must be received by the School of Graduate Studies before we will consider your application. You may pay online by VISA or MasterCard. This payment method is secure as the transaction is handled by Mirapay, a third party authorized by VISA and MasterCard. Mirapay provides the School of Graduate Studies with payment confirmation only. SGS and the University of Toronto will not have access to your credit card information. Please note that the process requires that popup blockers on your web browser be disabled.
If you are unable to pay by credit card you may print an invoice from the application and mail it with a certified cheque to the School of Graduate Studies.
N.B. The online admissions application replaces previous pdf and printed application forms. If you have copies of those forms, please discard them and use the online application process only. If for some reason you cannot use the online admission application, please contact the Department.
Proceed to the SGS online admissions application
Remember to enter your SGS applicant ID on the documents. We require these as a reference so we can enter them in the system as they are received. It is your responsibility to check the system frequently to verify that your application is complete.