What is unique about this program at the U of M? Beyond first year the classroom sizes are intimate, allowing superb training of our students in a collegial atmosphere. Our hands-on observing course occurs earlier in the program than is typical and our telescopes are supported by a planetarium on campus, which is rare. Many of our students find exciting summer astronomy research jobs in our department. The Physics and Astronomy Department, which celebrated its centenary in 2004, is a medium-sized research intensive department. Graduates from its various programs currently hold prestigious positions in institutions in North America and Europe. The expertise of its 22 full-time faculty members is recognized by the role they play in numerous committees of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) and the granting arm of NATO, and those of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the Canadian Association of Physicists (CAP), the International Astronomical Union, and the Canadian Astronomical Society (CASCA). At present they attract in excess of $2.5 million in annual funding from a variety of sources including NSERC, the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI), both the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Canadian Space Agency among others. These funds help underwrite the support offered to graduate students in numerous areas, both experimental and theoretical, ranging from studies in the star and planet formation regimes, through the high energy physics of stellar explosions and the acceleration of cosmic rays, and galaxy evolution.

Common International Curricula (GCE and IB): General Certificate of Education (GCE): Minimum 2 courses at Advanced (A) level and 3 courses at Ordinary (O) level: no grades below a ‘D’ (GCE). International Baccalaureate (IB): An IB diploma with 3 courses at the higher level (HL) and 3 courses at the standard level (SL): no grades below a ‘3’ (IB). English language proficiency.