In his history of the University of Toronto, W. Stewart Wallace remarks that “a certain amount of graduate work has always been done in the University of Toronto.”³⁰ The report of the President’s Committee on the School of Graduate Studies in 1965 begins with a similar statement: “Graduate work and graduate degrees are as old as the University of Toronto and its forerunner, King’s College.”³¹ King’s College had opened its doors in 1843. Requirements established by the college council in 1844 stipulated that the degree of master of arts required admission to the bachelor of arts degree, a standing of nine terms from admission to that degree, and successful performance of “appointed exercises,” the nature of which, however, was not indicated. The minutes of the Senate of the University of Toronto of 1854 contained a reference to the master




of arts degree, but without any mention of requirements. ³² In introducing the master of arts degree University College was following the model of the British universities, but it was departing from that model in making it an “earned” degree. In Britain the ma was conferred automatically after a certain lapse of time from the conferring of the bachelor of arts degree. ³³

A statute of the University of Toronto in 1857 stipulated that “candidates for admission to the Degree of Master of Arts shall have been admitted to the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, shall be of the standing of one year from admission to the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, and shall have composed an approved Thesis upon some subject in one of the departments of the Faculty of Arts.” Similar requirements appeared in the Calendar of University College for 1860-61 and





again in a university statute in 1869. Throughout this period, in keeping again with the British model, there were apparently no residence or course requirements. The route to the ma was through the writing of a thesis, the subject to be approved by the undergraduate department, which also approved the written product. Primacy was in fact given to the baccalaureate degree, and the master’s degree was not always held in great esteem. In 1883 the editor of the Varsity criticized it, claiming that the ma thesis was no more demanding than an essay, that candidates should have to give proof of original research and pass an examination at the end of their course, and furthermore that University College was not in a position to provide lectures to students registered for the master’s degree.³⁴ A little later, in supporting proposals for the introduction of a degree of doctor of philosophy, the Varsity declared, “Any degree that will take the place of our





effete M.A. will be welcomed.”³⁵

We may indeed wonder how the departments could provide guidance for graduate students in view of their heavy undergraduate commitments. When John Squair, who had just received his ba, was called upon in 1883 to take over the Department of French following Pernet’s sudden resignation, he was responsible for the instruction of 51 Pass and 55 Honour students, with the assistance of one fellow, who was supposed to divide his time between the departments of French and German, as well as engage in research. The same situation prevailed in 1890, when total enrolment had reached 261 and Squair was giving fifteen hours of lectures a week.³⁶ It is difficult to determine the number of ma degrees conferred in French in this period.Although for many years the Calendar of University





College published the names of successful ba and ma candidates, the fields of study were not indicated. But candidates in French did exist, as two names attest: Alfred Henry Reynar, professor of Modern Languages at Victoria College in Cobourg and ma of the University of Toronto in 1869, and Alexander Francis Chamberlain, fellow in French and German at University College in 1887-90 and ma in 1889.