As a mode of being in the world, improvisation shows us that there are other ways of doing things, that social change is possible, that another world is possible.
—Fischlin, Heble, & Lipsitz (The Fierce Urgency of Now, pg. 243)

The new interdisciplinary graduate program in the field of Critical Studies in Improvisation (IMPR) offers MA and Ph.D. Degrees incorporating foundations in critical inquiry, multidisciplinary improvisatory practices, performative agency, and community engagement, built on years of award-winning, arts-based research and training by the International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation (IICSI). Through study and experiential learning opportunities, students will gain broadly applicable practical skills in research and project development, management and implementation, leadership, and collaboration. For more information on the IMPR program, please contact imprgpa@uoguelph.ca.

In the cohort-based Critical Studies in Improvisation 2-year Masters program, students will complete three core courses in Core Concepts, Research Methods, and Arts-Based Community-Making. Students will develop their program of study in conjunction with faculty mentors, customized to their research and practice interests. We strongly encourage prospective candidates to reach out to potential faculty mentors to discuss the program and their research interests.

Through this program, students will acquire crucial transferable skills with broad relevance and application across a range of fields. Critical thinking, improvisational skills, collaborative competencies, and project management experience will all be fostered. These skills will enhance students’ effectiveness in academic, scholarly, artistic, business, and grassroots community contexts, maximizing graduates’ expertise and employability not only in the field of education, but in areas such as research, writing, public administration, policy analysis, communications, government and non-government organizations, not-for-profits, community leadership, arts programming and administration, and artistic practices spread across digital, traditional, and emergent media.

Applicants to the MA should hold a four-year Bachelor’s degree or equivalent with a minimum GPA of 75%, in a field related to your proposed study.

IICSI and the interdisciplinary IMPR program have as an underlying pedagogical principle the desire to recognize ability and expertise beyond traditional degree formats. Therefore, in special circumstances, the program will follow established university policies for alternative admissions.  Because Critical Studies in Improvisation is an interdisciplinary program that includes significant attention to practitioners and community-facing work, more expansive requirements for prospective students exist to facilitate admission of strong candidates without a bachelor’s degree or with a degree in a field not directly related to Critical Studies in Improvisation or with exceptional practitioner experience. Following established university procedures, these candidates will be evaluated for MA admission based on the contents of their portfolio, research proposal, and reference letters. The admissions process may also entail a face-to-face interview if deemed necessary by the admissions committee. Upon admission, students with this profile may be assigned additional courses to ensure adequate preparedness for research and practice in the field. If you have questions about your elibility, please reach out to us using the contact information below.

January 15th of the anticipated entrance year.

Online application information can be found here. This part of the application includes a typed form. You will be required to submit the names of your two referees at this stage. The application fee is CDN $110.  Within five working days of submission, you will receive an email with instructions on how to upload your documents to WebAdvisor. The account creation and referee requests cannot be expedited, so please work well ahead of deadlines. Once you receieve this information, please proceed with Step 2.

On WebAdvisor you will find a checklist for the items you will need to upload to the site. These may include:

The following items (see below for details) must be submitted to the University of Guelph SlideRoom Portal:

SlideRoom is open for submissions between November 1 and January 15.

Please note that SlideRoom will allow you to log in and edit your portfolio as much as you like, but no more changes will be allowed after you click submit.  A $10 fee (USD) will be charged to each applicant at the time of submission.

Your research proposal should outline your critical orientation and proposed research activity for the program of study. The proposal should also include rationale outlining the way your profile and proposed research fit with the Critical Studies in Improvisation program and explain how you will contribute to the field and how your previous work prepares you for entry to the program. The statement should cover in some detail the substance of what you want to do, how it relates both to your formation and how you think the program might complement or add to that formation, the relationship of your project to other research (if any) that has been done, key people in the program who might advise you, and anything else the admissions committee should know. Practitioners or applicants with non-academic trajectories should feel free to describe their work in ways that situate it in relation to the proposed program of study. 

Your CV should outline work and education, as well as any relevant artistic activities, such as exhibitions, residencies, performances, collaborations, and grants.

NOTE: Please list the names of your referees and their institutional affiliation at the end of your CV.

A representative sampling of your best and most relevant creative, professional, and/or research practice, in relationship to the field of Critical Studies in Improvisation and to your proposed area of research. Portfolios can include music, artwork, digital files, writings, or other creative works, and must be linked to your rationale for admission to the program.

Acceptable formats include jpg, png and gif for images; mov, wmv, flv, and mp4 for videos; and mp3 for music. To optimize image quality and upload speed, please ensure that image files are approximately 1024 x 768px at 72dpi and please keep video files under 60MB each. Our SlideRoom portal offers additional instruction for submitting work and links for technical assistance.

Please submit a sample of scholarly writing, such as an essay, article, or book chapter. Full books and large manuscripts will not be accepted.

For more information regarding your application, please contact imprgpa@uoguelph.ca.

Accepted students will typically be offered student stipend funding and Graduate Teaching Assistantship positions within the program and in affiliated departments. This program also features opportunities for Graduate Research Assistantships funded by faculty research grants, as well as internships with community partners. 

MA students will be offered baseline funding that includes 3 Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA) plus a University Graduate Scholarship (UGS) over two years.

The University of Guelph has established a number of ACCESS awards which provide bursaries for students in financial need. To be eligible for these bursaries, students must complete a needs assessment application available from Student Financial Services, or check the website. A variety of competitive research scholarships are also available. Information on awards and funding assistance is available from the Faculty of Graduate Studies calendar Link. 

Prospective applicants, including foreign student applicants, are strongly encouraged to apply for the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) in advance of applying for admission to the IMPR program at the University of Guelph. Please review deadlines and application details at this link. 

Prospective students who are Canadian citizens or permanent  residents are also encouraged to apply for the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grant in advance of applying for admission to the IMPR program at the University of Guelph.  Please review deadlines and application details at this link

Additional scholarships and awards may be available. Please visit the Graduate Studies funding page for more details and information.

For information on University of Guelph tuition and fees, please see this page.

Applications from international students are warmly encouraged, though the application procedures are somewhat more complex. If the applicant’s first degree was completed in a country where English is not the first language, certification of English-language proficiency must be documented at the time of application. Examples of acceptable assessment of proficiency include official scores or results from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) of the Educational Testing Service, the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), the Michigan English Language Assessment Battery (MELAB), and the Canadian Academic English Language (CAEL) assessment. The minimum acceptable score is 550 for the paper-based TOEFL, an overall score of 89 with no individual component below 21 for the Internet Based TOEFL, 6.5 for IELTS, 85 for MELAB, and 60 for CAEL. However, the Admissions Committee will also assess the essays submitted as part of the application to determine whether the applicant is likely to be able to work adequately at the graduate level. Graduate courses at the University of Guelph are completed in approximately 12 weeks, and students must therefore be proficient in the use of English, both written and oral, when they begin their studies at Guelph. There is no provision for upgrading English language skills during the course of the PhD Program.

In addition, international applicants should be realistic in their estimation of the cost of studying and living in Canada, which are currently between $18,000 and $25,000 Can. per year. Financial assistance is normally guaranteed for all entering students, but at best, such funding would only cover a portion of the total cost of a year’s study. International applicants are strongly encouraged to consult the University’s Centre for International Programs website for additional information, and also the International Graduate Student Funding Guidelines on the University’s website. In addition to special tuition fees for international graduate students, there are also some other non-academic fees, and all international students and their dependants must enroll in the University Health Insurance Plan as soon as they arrive in Ontario.

Students can also choose to combine their MA in Critical Studies in Improvisation with an IDS designation (MA.IMPR+IDEV). The IDS collaborative specialization offers an interdisciplinary framework for the study of international development that combines training in a selected academic discipline with exposure to a broad range of social science perspectives. This designation gives extra flexibility on the job market while permitting disciplinary specialization required by most PhD programs. 

In addition to the MA in Critical Studies in Improvisastion course requirements (tailored to IDS), students take the IDS seminar and one course from each core area: Sociology/Anthropology, Geography, Economics, and Political Science. Completion of the IDS program adds the designation "International Development Studies" to the MA degree. Visit the IDS website for more information or e-mail ids@uoguelph.ca.

Critical Studies in Improvisation, University of Guelph

Graduate Coordinator, Critical Studies in Improvisation

Professor Daniel Fischlin
519-824-4120 x53267
dfischli@uoguelph.ca

Improvisation Academic Program Assistant

imprgpa@uoguelph.ca

International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation

Professor Ajay Heble, Director
aheble@uoguelph.ca

Julia Busatto, Project Manager
improv@uoguelph.ca

The International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation (IICSI) is a partnered research institute hosted at the University of Guelph. The partners include eight academic institutions (University of Guelph, McGill University, Memorial University, University of Regina, Carleton University, the University of British Columbia, Queen’s University Belfast, and 17, Institute of Critical Studies), a foundation partner (Musagetes), and over 65 community-based organizations. The Institute’s mandate is to create positive social change through the confluence of improvisational arts, innovative scholarship, and collaborative action. Our team engages, connects, and mobilizes scholars, students, creative practitioners, and community partners in order to create a vibrant intellectual hub, and a focal point for leading-edge research and critical inquiry in the field of improvisation studies. For more about the institute and a full list of team members and partners please visit our website.