About Canada, Toronto, and the University of Toronto

• Canada is one of the G7 countries, has the 10th-largest GDP in the world, and is home to a population of 38 million people (growing at about 1% per year). Official languages are English and French, but 19% of the population has neither of these as their mother tongue. Canada is the world's second-largest country by area. Nunavut, the northern territory inhabitied by Inuit, is as large as western Europe and includes the northernmost permanently inhabited place in the world, Alert. However Toronto, at 43N, lies further south than Florence, Marseilles, and Portland.
• The University of Toronto (UofT) was founded in 1827 and is Canada’s largest University with over 80,000 students, of which 20% are graduate students.
• UofT is consistently regarded as Canada’s top research university, and among the top thirty universities in the world.
• Toronto is ranked in the top ten most livable cities, is one of the fastest growing G8 financial centres, and is also among the ten safest cities in the world.
• The University of Toronto also has suburban campuses in Mississauga and Scarborough, with a unified Physics Graduate program across all three campuses. [More info about UTM here.]

About the Department of Physics

• The University of Toronto has been granting Physics PhDs since 1900. Our department has a strong history both in condensed matter and in optics. In 1923 helium was liquified at UofT, the second place in the world, after Leiden. Early low-temperature physics research was done in the department, and Toronto graduates Jack Allen and Don Misener went on to Cambridge to discover superfluidity (simultaneously with Kapitza in moscow) and demonstrate the fountain effect. (see The History of the Department of Physics)
• Physics faculty at UofT are highly distinguished: among currently active faculty members are 14 Fellows of American Physical Society, 8 Fellows of Royal Society of Canada, 7 Canada Research Chairs, 9 Fellows or Scholars of CIFAR, 7 Sloan Fellowships, 4 RSC Rutherford Medalists, 3 CAP Herzberg Medalists, and 5 CAP Lifetime Achievement Awards. Read more recent news about Awards and Honours here.
• The total graduate enrolment is typically 190 students in programmes leading to the MSc and PhD. There are also typically 40 postdoctoral fellows in the Department.
• We strive for an inclusive and equitable community. Typically about 20%-25% of our graduate students identify as women. The diversity of the UofT student body is in part a reflection of the city we live in. Half of Toronto's population was born outside of Canada. Not only does this make a fun city, but also contributes to our social and scientific community. Further information and student resources related to equity, diversity, and inclusivity can be found here.
• Typically about 20% of our graduate students are international students.
• 70% of MSc students continue to PhD program at UofT. 85% of students who begin the PhD finish it.
• Median time to complete the PhD is 5.5 years after enrolling the graduate program with a BSc.

For more information about some of our distinguished alumni, see our pages on the history of the department.

Admissions Statistics

• Typical number of applications each year: 350
• Typical size of the incoming class (MSc and Direct-Entry PhD): 45

Beyond the numbers, one sees that the UofT Department of Physics is thriving thanks to the excitement and dedication of the students, postdocs, and faculty. Both the most profound mysteries of the universe and the most pressing problems in our world can only be addressed with new insights of the physics community. It is a great time to come to Toronto to pursue graduate studies in Physics!

This Fall, we welcome the following new students who have decided to join our community. This new group of students continues the tradition of attracting highly motivated people from around the world and across Canada.

New graduate students 2025