Faculty of Arts, Toronto Metropolitan University

The Faculty of Arts at Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University) inspires, informs and engages. Our 225+ world-class researchers are leading path-breaking projects that improve and enrich the lives of citizens, migrants and Indigenous peoples across Canada and globally. We have established a strong reputation for research and teaching that is impactful, equity-informed and transformative.

A large number of TMU colleagues from the Faculty of Arts and the Department of Politics and Public Administration - and many others affiliated with its two graduate programs in policy studies - work closely with local, national, and international governments, public servants, policy makers, and diverse community partners. The Department of Politics and Public Administration also houses a partnership program with the First Nations Technical Institute for leaders in First Nation communities and Indigenous agencies and organizations.

Toronto Metropolitan University is located in the city’s centre. The university, like the city itself, is very diverse. TMU is a leader in career-oriented education, administered through innovative disciplinary and interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate programs. We have world-class researchers working and mentoring in modern facilities.

TMU has made public policy a university-wide priority, exploring how the university can better support individual researchers, departments, programs, and affiliated centres to produce policy relevant research and programming to increase the impact of their work. The Faculty of Arts is the primary home of TMU’s public policy focused research and programs. Many of the Faculty’s research centres and programs have well-developed partnerships with community organizations and policy-makers such as the Yellowhead Institute, the Centre for Policy Innovations and Public Engagement, and the Bruce Fellowship in Canadian Freshwater Policy. 

Learn more about the TMU Faculty of Arts at torontomu.ca/arts.

PhD in Policy Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University

Launched in 2009, it was Canada’s first and only interdisciplinary doctoral program in the field of policy studies. Students contribute to scholarship and to policy solutions aimed at addressing current societal needs in the public, private, and third sector. There are currently 50 students in the program, 32 graduates, and more than 80 faculty members from across the university

contributing to the program. The program allows for specific focus on public policy and administration; immigration, settlement, and diaspora policies; and social policy and a range of other areas of doctoral research including environmental policy, global public policy, Indigenous governance, food security, labour market policy, health policy, and urban policy. The program also balances traditional policy studies with insights from critical policy studies. Graduates hold academic appointments at universities across the country including York University, McMaster University, Concordia University, Carleton University and University of Manitoba. Others work as senior policy researchers and analysts for the Government of Canada; Government of Ontario; City of Toronto, Government of Prince Edward Island, and many other government agencies and non-government organizations.

Learn more about TMU’s PhD in Policy Studies at torontomu.ca/policystudies.

Master of Arts in Public Policy and Administration, Toronto Metropolitan University

The Master of Arts in Public Policy and Administration (MPPA) program integrates the fields of public policy and public administration to reflect the theoretical and practical realities of the political context of policy development, implementation and analysis. In 2008 it was the first program in Canada to earn accreditation from the Canadian Association of Programs in Public Administration. The MPPA program is committed to implementing the Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission with program goals and funding for Indigenous students. It provides students the advantage of proximity to numerous government and community agencies in Toronto to support their research and co-op placement opportunities. The over 600 graduates of the program since 2006 have secured careers in all levels of the Canadian public service, the non-profit sector, law, international organizations, and academic fields of public policy and public administration.

Learn more about TMU’s Master of Arts in Public Policy and Administration program at torontomu.ca/politics/graduate/public-policy-administration