DSU GRADUATE OFFICE
CONTACT
Graduate Office Manager: Kate Frost
Email: dsu.gradoffice@dal.ca
Who are we?
The DSU Graduate Office is the new home for graduate student support, advocacy, and community at Dalhousie University. Operating under the Dalhousie Student Union (DSU), the Graduate Office provides representation, resources, and programming tailored to the unique needs of Dalhousie’s graduate community.
Our mission is to enhance the graduate student experience by supporting academic success, professional growth, and student wellbeing. We serve as a bridge between graduate students, the DSU, and the university, ensuring graduate voices are heard and valued in decision-making across campus.
what we do
The Graduate Office offers takes on a range of responsibilities to serve the graduate students:
Advocacy & Representation: Representing graduate student interests within the DSU and university governance.
Administration: Overseeing Graduate Student Societies, including reviewing audits
Events & Networking: Hosting social, academic, and professional events that build community and foster collaboration across disciplines.
Resources & Support: Providing guidance on funding opportunities, academic processes, and wellbeing resources.
Community Building: Creating an inclusive and supportive environment for all graduate students, including maintaining the Graduate Lounge, located on the 4th floor of the SUB
Whether you’re seeking guidance, looking to connect with peers, or hoping to get involved in campus life, the Graduate Office is here to help.
Whether you’re seeking guidance, looking to connect with peers, or hoping to get involved in campus life, the Graduate Office is here to help.
Advocacy and Representation
ADVOCACY & representation
The Graduate Office reports directly to the DSU with any student questions, comments and concerns.
The graduate office will be hosting monthly feedback seminars to hear from students on changes they’d like to see. Use the submission form below to submit any questions or comments.
events & networking
ADMINISTRATION
The Graduate office is in the process of collecting data on what kinds of events graduate students are interested in having, fill out the following form to tell us what you’d like to see!
The graduate office reviews audits from graduate student societies and performs bi-annual disbursements of funds.
To submit an audit, click here
To learn more about how to complete an audit, click here
To learn more about treasurer training, click here
community building
The Graduate Lounge is a great space for students to study, have meetings, host socials, or just chill. Hours for the lounge are 9AM to 9PM daily
resources and support
The Graduate Office is working on putting together lists of resources for students (funding opportunities, calls for applications for PhD/post doc opportunities, calls for abstracts, competitions, conferences, etc.)
FAQs
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The Dalhousie Graduate Student Society (DAGS) was an active student society representing graduate students as early as the 1970s. In recent years, DAGS has been a defunct society, with their responsibilities falling onto the DSU. Instead of staying in limbo, DAGS was officially dissolved in the Spring of 2025. This office, the Graduate Office, was established in the Fall of 2025 to replace the role that DAGS played for graduate students at Dalhousie. The Graduate Office is the only governing body for graduate students at Dal that can disburse funds, review audits, and provide society grants.
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In short, no. Up until December 2024, a fee was charged to each graduate student that went to the DSU to be disbursed to the student societies of each department in the Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS). Due to the dissolution of DAGS, a referendum question to suspend the collection of student fees was passed in a DSU referendum. Since this referendum, graduate students have not paid fees to any graduate student society nor have they paid fees to the graduate office. Money that was previously collected will still be dispersed to the appropriate student societies upon completion and passing of their most recent audit, and we have budgeted for disbursements to continue for the next two years (again at the completion and passing of society audits). After two years (2027) student fees may be reinstated via referendum
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Yes. While student fees have been suspended, graduate student societies will still receive funding. Funding will be delivered once per audit period, at the completion and passing of society audits.
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You can email dsu.gradoffice@dal.ca with any questions.
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You can check the list of ratified DSU student societies to see if a society for your program has been ratified for 2025-26. It could also be worth reaching out to the director of your department or program to ask about whether a society exists.
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Yes. A graduate student grant fund has been created specifically to assist graduate students attend conferences, competition, etc., or to help existing societies run new initiatives and/or events. More information on application processes to come.
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My graduate program doesn’t have a society, am I still represented by the DSU graduate office?
Yes. The Graduate Office represents and advocates for all Dalhousie graduate students regardless of if their home department has a ratified student society