How to apply

Transcripts of your academic record from each university attended are required for admission including transcripts from any exchange programs attended.

The University of Toronto now requires applicants to submit an electronic copy of their transcript as part of the application package. Applicants must either scan or take a screenshot of their transcript and upload it to the application. All transcripts must be submitted this way including transcripts for UofT students.

Please do not submit hard copies of transcripts. Only applicants offered admission to the program will be required to submit final and official copies of their transcripts, showing degree conferral. Digital copies are acceptable from your institution to us directly.

If your transcripts/documents are in a language other than English, you must also submit notarized English translations. Translations do not replace original documentation. Both the original documents and translations must be submitted.  Exception: Since French is an official language of Canada, we do not require English translations of transcripts in French.

If academic records do not reflect the completion of studies in progress, official final academic records indicating that the degree has been conferred must be submitted to us as soon as possible and before admission can be finalized. Instructions about clearing these conditions are found on the offer of admission.

All applicants to the MGA must submit two academic letters of reference. We have no specific forms for this purpose. Letters of recommendation should be uploaded to the online application. While completing the online application you will be required to enter an e-mail address for your referee. Once you enter the name and email of your recommenders, they will be sent an e-mail with a link and instructions on how to upload their letter directly to your application. If referees would prefer to send in a hard copy they may do so to our office. Please have your referees use their own letterhead. If your referee would prefer to send a hard copy please ask your referees to enclose the letter of recommendation in a sealed envelope with a signature across the seal and send it directly to our departmental office. Letters of recommendation will be part of the official student academic record; they are confidential and applicants/students will not have access to them. Applicants who have been out of school longer than two years may submit employer references in lieu of academic ones.

REQUIRED: Please submit a personal statement of approximately 400-500 words that describes the professional interests or issue(s) which attracted you to the Master of Global Affairs program and what you intend to accomplish or pursue in this field after completing the MGA degree.

Applicants should also mention their interest in any one of the four main focus areas of the Munk School in their personal statement. 

OPTIONAL: The Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy is strongly committed to diversity within its community. We especially welcome applications from racialized persons/persons of colour, Indigenous / Aboriginal People of North America, persons with disabilities, LGBTQ persons, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas. We also encourage all applicants to submit an optional 400-500 word diversity statement explaining how they might contribute to diversity through their participation in the MGA program or their future work.

These documents should be uploaded as part of your faculty questions portion of your application.

This should include information not available elsewhere in your application package, including work experience relevant to your scholarly interests, academic awards, conference presentations, and publications.

These documents should be uploaded as part of your faculty questions portion of your application.

If applicants intend to apply by the January 27, 2025 deadline, the Kira talent video should submitted no later than January 31, 2025. If applying by the April 1 deadline, your video can be submitted anytime before April 1. Applicants will need to complete the one online video question AND one written response question. The Grad App Portal will send the Kira Talent link to anyone who starts an application for the Master of Global Affairs. Please note that there may be a delay of up to 24 hours of receiving this link.

• Video question: Applicants are required to answer a randomly selected question. The questions are general “getting to know you” questions. Example: “What are your hobbies?”. There is no need to prepare any answers in advance. Applicants have 45 secs to prep their answer and 90 secs to record their response.
• Applicants have the opportunity to practice for an unlimited number of times before beginning the formal assessment. However, once you begin the formal assessment/response, you can only record once..
• Written response question: Applicants will also need to submit a written response to a randomly generated question. The questions are general “getting to know you” questions. Example “What do you see yourself doing in five years?”. There is no need to prepare in advance for answering these questions. Applicants will have 5 mins to answer the question prompt.
• After you complete the Kira assessment there may be delay in seeing an update on your application in GradApp. Please give it at least 24 hours before contacting us.
• For questions related to this component of the application, please contact mga.admissions@utoronto.ca. For questions related to technical support on Kira Talent, please contact support@kiratalent.com.

You are required to submit official English test scores if and only if (a) you do not have a degree from a Canadian university, and (b) the language of instruction and examination for your degree was not English.

You will be asked on on the application to self-report your scores. Please arrange your testing agency to send the official scores to the department.

English-Language Proficiency Testing

You require both qualitative and quantitative skills to succeed in the MGA program. You will need to demonstrate your competency in these areas to strengthen your application for admission.

The Admissions Committee will review your transcript for evidence that you can succeed in our courses. They will look for courses that involve writing and for quantitative courses, including but not limited to mathematics, statistics, economics, physics, engineering, and quantitative research methods. If you do not have any quantitative courses in your academic record, and you wish to show your quantitative skills, you can opt to do the GRE General test and/or upload your high school transcripts (if you did mathematics in the upper years of high school). Please note that the GRE is not mandatory for the MGA program.

Applications will open on September 27, 2024 for Fall 2025 entry.

The first deadline to apply to the MGA program for Fall 2025 entry is January 27, 2025 (to be considered for merit-based scholarships).

The second deadline to apply to the MGA program for Fall 2025 entry is April 1, 2025 (not considered for merit-based scholarships).

Questions? Or do you wish to schedule an in-person or online appointment? 
Please email Rejeanne Puran at:
mga.admissions@utoronto.ca or call 416-978-7794