Offered by Saint Mary's University in Halifax, Canada, PhD in Astronomy is a doctorate in Physics & Astronomy programme. The programme runs for 4 years. Tuition for international students is CAD 10,955 per year (CAD 5,909 per year for local students).
Also offered as: Master's Degree
At a glance
Degree:Doctorate
Field:Physics & Astronomy
Duration: 4 years
Local tuition: CAD 5,909 / year
International tuition: CAD 10,955 / year
Information for the 2027/28 academic year · Last reviewed September 2026 ·
Program details
Overview
The Doctor of Philosophy in Astronomy is a graduate research program offered by Saint Mary's University's Department of Astronomy and Physics in Halifax, with a minimum completion time of four years and an intake each September. The program is structured around eight lecture-based courses, for which credit may be granted for relevant graduate coursework already completed, a graduate seminar series, and a research dissertation carried out under faculty supervision. Instruction and research take place in person on the Halifax campus. Students have access to faculty connections with international observatories and space-based telescopes, the Institute for Computational Astrophysics and its high-performance computing resources, the Burke-Gaffney Observatory, and an association with the TRIUMF particle-accelerator facility for nuclear astrophysics research, along with a visiting colloquium speaker series. Admission requires a Master of Science in astronomy, physics, or a related field, with an application deadline of February 1 for both domestic and international applicants. The program suits students pursuing advanced, faculty-supervised research training in a specific area of astronomy within a smaller graduate department.
Requirements
Admission Requirements: Saint Mary's admits to the Ph.D. in Astronomy on the basis of a Master of Science degree in Astronomy, Physics, or a related field; the program page publishes no numeric minimum GPA, no additional prerequisite coursework, and no program-specific English-language test scores. English proficiency for applicants without an English-medium degree is instead assessed under the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research's own graduate language requirements, separate from the undergraduate scale on Saint Mary's main admissions pages. Applications are due February 1 for a September start, with a minimum four-year program length; candidates apply through the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research and may contact the program coordinator for further details.
Application Details
Start Date:September
Application Deadline:Saint Mary's University applies directly, not through a provincial service. For the currently posted cycle, Winter Term 2027 domestic applications close 1 December 2026 and international applications for the same term close 15 October 2026; Entrance Award and Admissions Scholarship consideration requires applying by 15 February 2027. Applications for the following 2027-2028 academic year (Fall 2027 and Winter 2028) opened 1 October 2026, but SMU has not yet published a Fall 2027 closing date for either domestic or international applicants -- the prior cycle's Fall Term domestic deadline was 1 August 2026. Admission is not described as rolling; each term carries a fixed posted deadline, released roughly a year ahead of the term. These are institution-wide dates; this programme publishes no deadline of its own.
