Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies

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On the campus of the University of St. Michael’s College, U of T. From left: Carr Hall, Teefy Hall, Fisher Hall, More Hall, and the Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies.

The Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies (commonly known as "PIMS") is an independent research institute at the University of Toronto, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Institute was founded in 1929, as the Institute of Mediaeval Studies, at the University of St. Michael's College at U of T. Étienne Gilson, then of the Sorbonne, was instrumental in its foundation, along with Henry Carr and Edmund J. McCorkell of the Congregation of St. Basil and St. Michael's College. In 1939 it became associated with the Papacy, and was given the power to grant doctorate degrees. The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Toronto, currently Thomas Christopher Collins, acts as the Chancellor of the Institute. The President of the Institute is Rev. James K. McConica, CSB, who was formerly president of St. Michael's College.

In 1964 the Institute established the Centre for Medieval Studies as part of the School of Graduate Studies, for students pursuing a master's degree or doctorate in medieval studies. (The Centre officially uses the spelling "medieval" while PIMS uses "mediaeval".) As of 1998 however, the Institute became an exclusively postdoctoral research centre, and it accepts students who have completed their doctoral studies recently and wish to conduct specialized research in medieval studies. Graduates of the Institute are normally awarded the Licence in Mediaeval Studies (LMS).

Faculty are divided into Senior Fellows, Junior Fellows, Visiting Fellows, and Associate Fellows. The Institute also has its own library with over 100,000 volumes, one of the largest collections of medieval documents in North America.

Professors associated with the Institute include Jacques Maritain, Leonard Boyle and Joseph Owens.

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