Kinesiology and Health Sciences - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Lyle S. Hallman Institute for Health Promotion

Lyle S. Hallman Institute for Health Promotion located on Waterloo's main campus

Advance your knowledge and pursue a career in health, aging, illness and injury prevention with the nationally and internationally recognized PhD in Science in Kinesiology and Health Sciences program. Understand cellular to societal implications of physical activity, nutrition and lifestyle, preparing you for careers in a wide range of health fields. 

In this program, you'll complete graduate courses including cross-disciplinary seminars and specialized graduate research seminars, comprehensive examinations, contribute to a growing body of knowledge through research and submit your work to peer-reviewed presentations and publications.  

Your coursework and research can be focused in one of three areas: biomechanics, neuroscience or physiology and nutrition. Within these there is a strong emphasis on aging, injury and disease prevention, health promotion and rehabilitation. 

Program overview

Department/School: Kinesiology and Health Sciences
Faculty: Faculty of Health
Admit term(s): Fall (September - December), Winter (January - April), Spring (May - August)
Delivery mode: On-campus
Program type: Doctoral, Research
Length of program: 48 months (full-time)
Registration option(s): Full-time, Part-time
Study option(s): Thesis

Application deadlines

  • February 1 (for admission in September)
  • June 1 (for admission in January of the following year)
  •  October 1 (for admission in May of the following year)

Key contacts

Grace Crooks
gsecrooks@uwaterloo.ca

Considerations for international students before submitting an application

While the Faculty of Health at the University of Waterloo values international students in our graduate programs, we can only accept a small proportion of these students. 

Guaranteed funding packages may not be able to cover all tuition and living expenses incurred during a graduate program and students are encouraged to understand more about the cost of completing their graduate program before applying.

Beth Godkin

I think that with our population aging, there is an increasing need for health researchers who have expertise related to disease prevention and/or strategies that can be used to optimize quality of life and health for those who live with chronic diseases. The field of Kinesiology is well suited to equip students with this type of expertise and to provide opportunities to develop important skills that can be used to support our aging population.

Beth Godkin, PhD Candidate, Kinesiology and Health Sciences

Supervisors

Admission requirements

  • A master's degree with a minimum 75% average in relevant field (normally Kinesiology, Recreation and Leisure Studies or Health Studies and Gerontology, but other degrees in Life and Social Sciences could be suitable as well).
  • Letter stating research interests and why the student wishes to pursue graduate studies.

Degree requirements

Application materials

  • Curriculum vitae
  • Program-specific questions (PSQ)
    • These are questions specific to the program you’re applying to. They can be viewed once you’ve started an application and are completed through a form in the online application.
  • Transcript(s)
  • Writing sample
    • Submit one copy of a term paper, research project, or thesis written during the students last year of master's studies.
  • References
    • Three references are required from faculty members who taught the student while in a Master's program. Normally, one must be from the master's supervisor.
  • Proof of English language proficiency, if applicable
    • TOEFL 100 (writing 26 speaking 26), IELTS 7.5 (writing 7.0, speaking 7.0)

Tuition and fees