Social Science in Canada

Advance knowledge and understanding of human diversity and adaptation — past, present, and future — while seeking answers to the most vexing issues and problems affecting our species and our planet

The MA and MSc programs are designed to develop your independent research abilities. You’ll focus on a specific area of geography under the supervision of a faculty member. Our research strengths include:

• Coastal systems
• Geomatics
• Human geography
• Physical geography
• Resources management

Your research will culminate in a thesis, which you’ll defend in an oral exam. You’ll have the opportunity to get out into the field, apply to work as a lab instructor, and attend the department’s colloquium presentations and other departmental events.

The Department of Sociology provides specialized training in the core areas of the discipline (sociological methods and theoretical inquiry), as well as a number of substantive areas: criminology and social justice; culture and social relations; population health and wellness; power, privilege and resistance; global sociology; and social policy and social change. The low graduate student/faculty ratio creates an informal learning environment in which students receive considerable individual attention. Faculty members are actively involved in research, including many projects that readily lend themselves as the basis for student theses and dissertations.

Social Studies prides itself in offering a rich environment with unparalleled opportunities for graduate students desiring a wide range of backgrounds and interests including visual culture, anti-oppressive education, gender studies, historical consciousness, moral education, and the history and politics of curriculum. The MEd is a course-based degree that does not require a research thesis.

Geography studies the cultural, social, economic, and political connections between people and their environment.

Examine the factors that shape the complex relationship between human societies and the built and natural landscape. Prepare for career opportunities in community development, land and resource management, or continue your graduate studies.

This program enables students to directly engage the world they live in. It asks students to examine why things have happened as they have, and to gauge the possibilities for change. The program does not shy away from complex problems but seeks to understand them in multiple contexts. It prepares students for a life beyond university studies, making them adaptable to various work environments, and ensuring a life-long commitment to engaging the world around them.

The MA in Social and Cultural Anthropology enables students to conduct research into a wide array of topics including gender, colonialism, media and technology, language, environmental politics and the senses. In the thesis option, fieldwork projects are individualized, giving you the freedom to choose your subjects and/or a community to work with in consultation with your supervisor. Or you may choose to pursue a year-long, essay (non-thesis) option that requires you to engage in a broad and rigorous study of anthropological literature. This course of study is well-suited for those wanting to dedicate more energy to course work or for a faster point of entry into a Doctoral program. Our faculty members work all over the world on a wide range of topics, and also run local research clusters such as the Centre for Sensory Studies and the Concordia Ethnography Lab.

This career-focused program teaches state-of-the-art geographic information systems (GIS), mapping and remote sensing technology to examine real-world issues in retail management, real estate development, social service planning, public health and safety or climate change. Hands-on labs, a 350-hour internship in the public or private sector, research and consulting projects with external clients, fieldwork including local and international field trips and opportunities for international exchange will prepare you to provide innovative solutions in a variety of fields. 

Geography deals with some of the most exciting issues on Earth. It studies the interaction between human beings and the global environment and the resulting problems and opportunities. The Department of Geography & Environment at the University of Lethbridge offers a unique multidisciplinary experience by combining the fields of archaeology, environmental science, and geography into one department.