Royal Roads University offers Social Sciences: Doctoral Degree (DSocSci), a doctorate in Public Policy programme in Victoria, Canada. The programme is delivered on campus. Teaching is in English. Tuition for international students is CAD 89,464 per total (CAD 89,464 per total for local students).
At a glance
Degree:Doctorate
Field:Public Policy
Delivery: On Campus
Language: English
Local tuition: CAD 89,464 / total
International tuition: CAD 89,464 / total
Last checked September 2026 · Source: royalroads.ca ·
Program details
Overview
This applied doctorate blends the rigour of traditional PhD research with professional relevance, aimed at mid-career policy analysts, senior administrators, and executives from public, private, and non-profit sectors. After roughly 15 months of coursework built around two three-week campus residencies, students sit written and oral candidacy exams before advancing to dissertation research, typically completing the degree in about four years. Research must connect to one of the university's strategic themes, such as innovative learning or sustainable communities, and can be presented as a traditional monograph or as a portfolio combining a synthesis paper, a journal article, and two additional pieces. Graduates come from fields ranging from health care and disaster relief to environmental sustainability and conflict management.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Admission normally requires a master's degree in one of the social sciences or a related field; there is no flexible-admission pathway waiving the master's requirement. Applicants must also demonstrate normally a minimum of ten years of experience with senior-level decision-making authority, shown through a résumé of progressively senior roles, and submit a competitive, interdisciplinary, applied research proposal of three to five pages aligned with the Faculty of Social and Applied Sciences' research foci. As one of Royal Roads' named exceptions, this programme requires a higher English language bar than the general graduate standard for applicants whose first language is not English: IELTS Academic 7.0 overall with a minimum 6.5 in each band, or TOEFL iBT 100 overall with a minimum 26 in writing and 23 in listening, reading and speaking; the Duolingo English Test is not accepted. Applicants also submit three reference letters (two academic, one professional), a writing sample, transcripts and a structured résumé, and may be asked to complete a telephone interview.
Application Details
Start Date:January
Application Deadline:Next intakes are 11 January 2027 (apply by 11 October 2026) and 10 January 2028 (apply by 10 October 2027); domestic and international applicants share the same deadline.
