Ashwani Kumar
Job Title
Associate Professor
Employer
Mount Saint Vincent University
Canadian Immigration Updates
Review details about the recently announced changes to study and work permits that apply to master’s and doctoral degree students. Read more
Overview
Graduate programs in the field of Curriculum Studies encompass, but are not limited to, investigations into: teacher education, the social construction of knowledge, the curriculum as culturally and politically situated, contemporary curriculum and instructional discourses, and the role of curriculum and curricular reform in K-12 and other learning environments. Students learn about issues of planning and development, program implementation and evaluation, and pre-service and in-service teacher education. Inquiry in the field is multi-disciplinary and includes numerous perspectives and orientations such as: cultural studies, historical consciousness, post structuralism, feminism, multicultural education, semiotics, and critical theory.
Quick Facts
Program Components
Dissertation
Program Enquiries
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Admission Information & Requirements
1) Check Eligibility
Minimum Academic Requirements
The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies establishes the minimum admission requirements common to all applicants, usually a minimum overall average in the B+ range (76% at UBC). The graduate program that you are applying to may have additional requirements. Please review the specific requirements for applicants with credentials from institutions in:
Each program may set higher academic minimum requirements. Please review the program website carefully to understand the program requirements. Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee admission as it is a competitive process.
English Language Test
Applicants from a university outside Canada in which English is not the primary language of instruction must provide results of an English language proficiency examination as part of their application. Tests must have been taken within the last 24 months at the time of submission of your application.
Minimum requirements for the two most common English language proficiency tests to apply to this program are listed below:
TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language - internet-based
Overall score requirement: 92
Reading
22
Writing
22
Speaking
22
Listening
22
IELTS: International English Language Testing System
Overall score requirement: 6.5
Reading
6.0
Writing
6.0
Speaking
6.0
Listening
6.0
Other Test Scores
Some programs require additional test scores such as the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or the Graduate Management Test (GMAT). The requirements for this program are:
The GRE is not required.
Prior degree, course and other requirements
Prior Degree Requirements
A Master's degree with high standing in a relevant educational discipline.
Document Requirements
A letter of intent describing the focus of the proposed research and a sample of work demonstrating scholarly writing,
2) Meet Deadlines
September 2026 Intake
Application Open Date
01 October 2025Canadian Applicants
Application Deadline: 01 December 2025
Transcript Deadline: 08 December 2025
Referee Deadline: 08 December 2025
International Applicants
Application Deadline: 01 December 2025
Transcript Deadline: 08 December 2025
Referee Deadline: 08 December 2025
3) Prepare Application
Transcripts
All applicants have to submit transcripts from all past post-secondary study. Document submission requirements depend on whether your institution of study is within Canada or outside of Canada.
Letters of Reference
A minimum of three references are required for application to graduate programs at UBC. References should be requested from individuals who are prepared to provide a report on your academic ability and qualifications.
Statement of Interest
Many programs require a statement of interest, sometimes called a "statement of intent", "description of research interests" or something similar.
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
Citizenship Verification
Permanent Residents of Canada must provide a clear photocopy of both sides of the Permanent Resident card.
4) Apply Online
All applicants must complete an online application form and pay the application fee to be considered for admission to UBC.
Tuition & Financial Support
Tuition
| Fees | Canadian Citizen / Permanent Resident / Refugee / Diplomat | International |
|---|---|---|
| Application Fee | $116.25 | $168.25 |
| Tuition * | ||
| Installments per year | 3 | 3 |
| Tuition per installment | $1,875.34 | $3,294.66 |
| Tuition per year (plus annual increase, usually 2%-5%) | $5,626.02 | $9,883.98 |
| Int. Tuition Award (ITA) per year (if eligible) | $3,200.00 (-) | |
| Other Fees and Costs | ||
| Student Fees (yearly) | $1,144.10 (approx.) | |
| Costs of living | Estimate your costs of living with our interactive tool in order to start developing a financial plan for your graduate studies. | |
* Regular, full-time tuition. For on-leave, extension, continuing or part time (if applicable) fees see UBC Calendar.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
All fees for the year are subject to adjustment and UBC reserves the right to change any fees without notice at any time, including tuition and student fees. Tuition fees are reviewed annually by the UBC Board of Governors. In recent years, tuition increases have been 2% for continuing domestic students and between 2% and 5% for continuing international students. New students may see higher increases in tuition. Admitted students who defer their admission are subject to the potentially higher tuition fees for incoming students effective at the later program start date. In case of a discrepancy between this webpage and the UBC Calendar, the UBC Calendar entry will be held to be correct.
Financial Support
Applicants to UBC have access to a variety of funding options, including merit-based (i.e. based on your academic performance) and need-based (i.e. based on your financial situation) opportunities.
Program Funding Packages
From September 2024 all full-time students in UBC-Vancouver PhD programs will be provided with a funding package of at least $24,000 for each of the first four years of their PhD. The funding package may consist of any combination of internal or external awards, teaching-related work, research assistantships, and graduate academic assistantships. Please note that many graduate programs provide funding packages that are substantially greater than $24,000 per year. Please check with your prospective graduate program for specific details of the funding provided to its PhD students.
Funding Statistics
Based on the criteria outlined below, 30 students within this program were included in this study because they received funding through UBC in the form of teaching, research, academic assistantships or internal or external awards with a mean of $40,216 and a median of $35,293.
This results in a net balance (any funding provided to the student minus tuition and fees) mean of $31,881 and median of $24,736.
- 16 students received Teaching Assistantships. Median TA funding based on 16 students was $3,119.
- 14 students received Research Assistantships. Median RA funding based on 14 students was $12,019.
- 11 students received Academic Assistantships. Median AA funding based on 11 students was $2,000.
- 30 students received internal awards. Median internal award funding based on 30 students was $24,869.
- 3 students received external awards. Median external award funding based on 3 students was $20,000.
Study Period: Sep 2023 to Aug 2024 - funding for full-time PhD students enrolled in three terms per academic year in this program across years 1-4, the period covered by UBC's Minimum Funding Guarantee. Mean and median values might mask variability in sources and amounts of funding received by individual students. Beyond year 4, funding packages become even more individualized.
Review methodology
Review methodology
Scholarships & awards (merit-based funding)
All applicants are encouraged to review the awards listing to identify potential opportunities to fund their graduate education. The database lists merit-based scholarships and awards and allows for filtering by various criteria, such as domestic vs. international or degree level.
Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA)
Many professors are able to provide Research Assistantships (GRA) from their research grants to support full-time graduate students studying under their supervision. The duties constitute part of the student's graduate degree requirements. A Graduate Research Assistantship is considered a form of fellowship for a period of graduate study and is therefore not covered by a collective agreement. Stipends vary widely, and are dependent on the field of study and the type of research grant from which the assistantship is being funded.
Graduate Teaching Assistantships (GTA)
Graduate programs may have Teaching Assistantships available for registered full-time graduate students. Full teaching assistantships involve 12 hours work per week in preparation, lecturing, or laboratory instruction although many graduate programs offer partial TA appointments at less than 12 hours per week. Teaching assistantship rates are set by collective bargaining between the University and the Teaching Assistants' Union.
Graduate Academic Assistantships (GAA)
Academic Assistantships are employment opportunities to perform work that is relevant to the university or to an individual faculty member, but not to support the student’s graduate research and thesis. Wages are considered regular earnings and when paid monthly, include vacation pay.
Financial aid (need-based funding)
Canadian and US applicants may qualify for governmental loans to finance their studies. Please review eligibility and types of loans.
All students may be able to access private sector or bank loans.
Foreign government scholarships
Many foreign governments provide support to their citizens in pursuing education abroad. International applicants should check the various governmental resources in their home country, such as the Department of Education, for available scholarships.
Working while studying
The possibility to pursue work to supplement income may depend on the demands the program has on students. It should be carefully weighed if work leads to prolonged program durations or whether work placements can be meaningfully embedded into a program.
International students enrolled as full-time students with a valid study permit can work on campus for unlimited hours and work off-campus for no more than 24 hours a week during academic sessions.
A good starting point to explore student jobs is the UBC Work Learn program or a Co-Op placement.
Tax credits and RRSP withdrawals
Students with taxable income in Canada may be able to claim federal or provincial tax credits.
Canadian residents with RRSP accounts may be able to use the Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) which allows students to withdraw amounts from their registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to finance full-time training or education for themselves or their partner.
Please review Filing taxes in Canada on the student services website for more information.
Cost Estimator
Applicants have access to the cost estimator to develop a financial plan that takes into account various income sources and expenses.
Career Outcomes
68 students graduated between 2005 and 2013: 3 are in non-salaried situations; for 6 we have no data (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016). For the remaining 59 graduates:
RI (Research-Intensive) Faculty: typically tenure-track faculty positions (equivalent of the North American Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor positions) in PhD-granting institutions
TI (Teaching-Intensive) Faculty: typically full-time faculty positions in colleges or in institutions not granting PhDs, and teaching faculty at PhD-granting institutions
Term Faculty: faculty in term appointments (e.g. sessional lecturers, visiting assistant professors, etc.)
Sample Employers in Higher Education
University of British Columbia (11)Royal Roads University (2)
Capilano University (2)
Concordia University (2)
Lakehead University (2)
University of Alberta (2)
University of Wollongong
Mount Saint Vincent University
Columbus State University
Thompson Rivers University
Sample Employers Outside Higher Education
BC School DistrictAlpha Secondary School
Museum of Vancouver
Government of Lesotho
TEC
Community Association for Lasting Success
Da Vinci Science Center
HR MacMillan Space Centre
Wells Fargo
Pythagoras Academy
Sample Job Titles Outside Higher Education
Teacher (2)President
Community Artist and Contract Researcher
Teacher Principal
Senior Manager, Curatorial
VP
Science Education Manager
Personal Banker
High Commissioner to Canada
Head Start Early Education Coordinator
PhD Career Outcome Survey
You may view the full report on career outcomes of UBC PhD graduates on outcomes.grad.ubc.ca.Disclaimer
These data represent historical employment information and do not guarantee future employment prospects for graduates of this program. They are for informational purposes only. Data were collected through either alumni surveys or internet research.Alumni on Success
Enrolment, Duration & Other Stats
These statistics show data for the Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD). Data are separated for each degree program combination. You may view data for other degree options in the respective program profile.
ENROLMENT DATA
| 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applications | 71 | 68 | 60 | 60 | 52 |
| Offers | 8 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 13 |
| New Enrolment | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Total Enrolment | 65 | 68 | 71 | 74 | 77 |
Completion Rates & Times
This program has a graduation rate of 84% based on 51 students admitted between 2011 - 2014. Based on 34 graduations between 2020 - 2023 the minimum time to completion is 4.1 years and the maximum time is 10.25 years with an average of 6.76 years of study. All calculations exclude leave times.
Disclaimer
Admissions data refer to all UBC Vancouver applications, offers, new enrolment for each registration year, May to April, e.g. data for 2022 refers to programs starting in 2022 Summer and 2022 Winter session, i.e. May 1, 2022 to April 30, 2023. Data on total enrolment reflects enrolment in Winter Session Term 1 and are based on snapshots taken on November 1 of each registration year. Program completion data are only provided for datasets comprised of more than 4 individuals. Graduation rates exclude students who transfer out of their programs. Rates and times of completion depend on a number of variables (e.g. curriculum requirements, student funding), some of which may have changed in recent years for some programs.
Upcoming Doctoral Exams
Monday, 2 June 2025 - 12:30pm
Daeyoung Goh
Reimagining Citizenship in Unification Education: The Discursive Formation of Naturalized Citizens in a Divided Korea
Monday, 16 June 2025 - 12:30pm - 1209, Neville Scarfe Building, 2125 Main Mall
Cristina Soto Quintero
Pablo Superstar: Public Pedagogies and Generation Z's Cultural Memory of Escobar and Narco-Trafficking
Tuesday, 24 June 2025 - 9:00am - Room 200
Megan Zeni
Expanding Understandings of Outdoor Play and Learning in K-8 Elementary Schools
Research Supervisors
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum Studies (PhD)
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors
These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.
Doctoral Citations
A doctoral citation summarizes the nature of the independent research, provides a high-level overview of the study, states the significance of the work and says who will benefit from the findings in clear, non-specialized language, so that members of a lay audience will understand it.
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Dr. Spector examined the concept of cosmopolitanism through theory, world events and literature. She argues that a cosmopolitan education is built upon hospitality to and responsibility for others in an increasingly interconnected and codependent world. This study increases philosophical understandings of what it means to be a human being. |
| 2013 | Dr. MacDougall investigated teaching and learning beliefs of art educators working in higher education. Informed by the philosophical work of Gilles Deleuze, he studied how art educators come to know what they know, and how they demonstrate that knowing in their teaching practices as they create meaningful learning encounters for their students. |
| 2013 | Dr. Golparian's research is an artist/researcher/teacher's post-colonial inquiry into the concepts of home, language, unbelonging, Othering, invisibility, exoticism, pain and ethics of in-between. Her aesthetic self-exploration highlights a sensitive pedagogy of representation in art education in engaging with the theme of displaced displacement. |
| 2012 | Dr. Khan critically analysed the film "All is Number". The study raised concerns regarding representations of mathematics, the learning of mathematics from film, and the work of ideology in the popularization of mathematics. This findings from this research offer a way to re-conceive mathematics education. |
| 2012 | Dr. Carter's arts based research led to understandings that include the connections between developing consciousness and having a noetic experience; the new a/r/tographic rendering of residue used to describe the way that having an illuminating experience in theatre school affects individuals; and how an immanent curriculum can be understood by theatrical engagement. |
| 2012 | Dr. Nolan investigated the lives, careers, and pedagogies of three eminent artist-teachers of saxophone that illustrate different paths to artistry in music performance and teaching. Her dissertation contributes to the burgeoning research in the pedagogy of music education and the intellectual heritage of mentors across generations. |
| 2012 | By interviewing elementary teachers before and after their practicum, Dr. Adler's research discovered how teachers' pedagogical content knowledge is transformed while in teacher education. |
| 2012 | Dr. Gosselin demonstrated how two frameworks associated with scholarship on the pedagogy of historical thinking help conceptualize experiences of exhibition makers and museum visitors. Her research underscores the need for museums to consider their role as promoters of historical consciousness in fulfilling their educational mandate and maintaining their social relevance. |
| 2011 | Dr. Baird undertook the development of educational programming at the Haida Gwaii Museum at Kaay Llnagaay in collaboration with First Nations and non-First Nations museum colleagues. A major finding is that respectful relationships are essential to foreground Indigenous knowledge in ways not normally incorporated into main-stream museum education programming. |
| 2011 | Dr. Claire Robson is a community centre writer-in-residence working with queer seniors in Vancouver's Eastside. She investigated how people can learn more about themselves and their culture by writing memoirs, even if they are not professional writers, and how their stories create communities and voices for marginalized people. |
Pages
Sample Thesis Submissions
Further Information
Specialization
Curriculum Studies encompasses, but is not limited to, investigations into: teacher education, the social construction of knowledge, the curriculum as culturally and politically situated, contemporary curriculum and instructional discourses, and the role of curriculum and curricular reform in K-12 and other learning environments. Students learn about issues of planning and development, program implementation and evaluation, and pre-service and in-service teacher education. Inquiry in the field is multi-disciplinary and includes numerous perspectives and orientations such as: cultural studies, historical consciousness, post structuralism, feminism, multicultural education, semiotics, and critical theory.
Program Website
Faculty Overview
Academic Unit
Program Identifier
VGDPHD-F5
Classification
September 2026 Intake
Application Open Date
01 October 2025 Canadian Applicant Deadline
01 December 2025 International Applicant Deadline
01 December 2025 Program Enquiries
Still have questions after reviewing this page thoroughly?
Contact the program
Contact the program
Departments/Programs may update graduate degree program details through the Faculty & Staff portal. To update contact details for application inquiries, please use this form.
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