PhD in War Studies at Royal Military College of Canada

Programme overview

The PhD in War Studies at the Royal Military College of Canada is a multi-disciplinary distance-learning programme exploring human conflict in its military, diplomatic, social, political, psychological and economic dimensions. It prepares graduates for work as independent researchers, university teachers or senior analysts.

Department: War Studies programme | Duration: Normally five years (two years full-time coursework and comprehensive examinations, then three years for the dissertation) | Intake: September | Study mode: full-time | Location: Kingston, Ontario, Canada

What you will study

The programme comprises six 6xx-level course credits, the WS607 methodology course, a second-language reading requirement, comprehensive examinations in three fields (International Relations, Defence Policy, Military History) and a dissertation. Students may also take WS600 Theories of War from the Eighteenth Century to the Present.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

PhD in War Studies: entry is competitive; applicants must have completed a Master's degree or equivalent (a thesis-route Master's is desirable but not required). Admission follows the RMC general graduate requirements, with official language test results for applicants whose first language is neither English nor French. Students must also show reading proficiency in a second language (for example a CBB public service profile, or 70% in a university-level language course).

Tuition is charged per credit, so the total depends on the courses you register for each year. Current fees are listed in the official fee schedule.

Graduate studies Fall term 2026 starts 14 September.

The graduate studies application fee is $100.00 (non-refundable). Applications are submitted through the RMC online application form.

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