• Tuesday, September 22, 2026, 11:59 p.m. – McMaster internal deadline
• Early October 2026 – Quotas or competition processes given to departments by Associate Dean
• Monday, November 2, 2026, noon – Recommended Candidates due to SGS from departments or Associate Deans.
• No later than Monday, November 23, 2026, 8:00 p.m. – McMaster will submit the selected applications to CIHR and inform all the applicants of the internal results.

• $40,000 per year for 36 months

NSERC provided national quotas to universities for the number of Recommended Applicants that can be submitted to the national NSERC competition. McMaster University’s quota is 50.

If you are a Canadian citizen, permanent resident or protected person:

Where to submit your application based on applicant status at the time of application

• If you are currently registered in a degree program at a Canadian institution with a doctoral award quota for the selected agency (This includes if you are registered concurrently at a Canadian institution and at a foreign institution (e.g., in a cotutelle))
  • Submit your application to the Canadian institution where you are currently registered.
• If you are not currently registered in a degree program but were registered at any other time during the calendar year of application in a degree program at a Canadian institution with doctoral award quota for the selected agency.
  • Submit your application to the Canadian institution where you were registered.
• If you are currently registered at a foreign institution or a Canadian institution without a doctoral award quota for the selected agency.
  • Submit your application directly to the appropriate agency.
• If you were not registered at any time during the calendar year of application in a degree program at a Canadian institution with a doctoral award quota for the selected agency.
  • Submit your application directly to the appropriate agency.

If you are an international applicant:

• If you are currently registered in a degree program at a Canadian institution with a doctoral award quota for the selected agency.
  • Submit your application to the Canadian institution where you are currently registered.
• If you are currently registered at a Canadian institution without a doctoral award quota for the selected agency.
  • Submit your application directly to the appropriate agency.

Note: If you are on an approved leave of absence from an institution you are considered to be registered at that institution.

If you are unsure of your registration status in the calendar year of application, please contact The School of Graduate Studies at graduatescholarships@mcmaster.ca.

NOTE: Failure to submit an application through the correct channel will result in an application being rejected.

Citizenship

To be eligible to apply, you must be a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident of Canada, a Protected Person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada), or an international student*.

*If you are not a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada or protected person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada), you must be registered in your doctoral program of study at McMaster by November 3, 2026. Up to 15% of awards will be available to international applicants.

Months of study

To be eligible to apply to the CGRS D program, you must have completed no more than 36 months of full-time equivalent study in the doctoral program, the PhD portion of the joint professional undergraduate/PhD program or the joint program for which you are requesting funding by December 31, 2026.

Months of study are calculated as follows:

• all months of full-time study, including summer months, count toward the degree for which you are requesting funding
• two terms of part-time study count as one term of full-time study
• the agencies count all studies toward the doctoral degree for which funding is requested, whether or not they were completed in the same program or at the same institution

The following rules apply to specific program types:

• Fast-track programs: If you were registered in a master’s program and subsequently transferred to a doctoral program (fast-track), the months of study completed are calculated starting from the date on which you transferred into the doctoral program.
• Joint programs: If you are registered in a joint program and will obtain a master’s degree as part of the program (for example, MA/PhD, MSc/PhD, MBA/PhD), the months of study are calculated starting from the date on which you officially registered in either portion of the joint program (including the master’s portion of the program).
• Joint professional undergraduate/PhD programs: If you are registered in a joint professional undergraduate/PhD program (such as MD/PhD, JD/PhD, DVM/PhD), only the months of study in the PhD portion will be counted.

Proposed locations of tenure

You may take up your CGRS D at any eligible Canadian degree-granting institution. To be eligible to hold your award at an international degree-granting institution, you must:

• be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada, or protected person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada) as of the application deadline; and
• have completed at least one previous undergraduate or graduate degree at a Canadian institution.

Up to 20% of all doctoral awards will be eligible to be held abroad.

Other restrictions

• You can apply to only one CRTAS program per academic year through CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC. If you apply to more than one program, only the first eligible application submitted to the agencies will be retained.
• You can apply a maximum of three times to the CGRS D program.
• You cannot have already received a doctoral-level scholarship from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC (including a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship).
• If you receive an award from CIHR or NSERC, you cannot hold a tenure or tenure-track appointment or be on leave from such an appointment concurrently with your CGRS D award.

Program of study

An eligible doctoral program must be predominantly research oriented, leading to the completion of a thesis, major research project, dissertation, scholarly publication, performance, recital and/or exhibit that is merit-/expert-reviewed at the institutional level as a requirement for completing the program.

Joint programs with a professional degree (for example, MD/PhD, DVM/PhD, JD/PhD, MBA/PhD), as well as clinically oriented programs of study, including clinical psychology, are eligible if they have a significant autonomous research component as described above.

NSERC applications are submitted through the NSERC – On-line Services

We have provided key application instructions below, please be sure to review all the information and instructions on the following web pages Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral Program (CGRS D) and NSERC – Online Services – Instructions. The onus is on the applicant to provide a clear and complete application that demonstrates attention to detail and permits a comprehensive assessment.

McMaster internal deadline:  Tuesday, September 22, 2026, 11:59 p.m.

Applications are prepared and submitted by students in the NSERC On-line System by the internal deadline set by McMaster. Students will not be able to submit their applications to the NSERC On-line System until all their required tasks are completed, including referee letters of support.

Personal identification number (PIN)

All NSERC applicants have received, or will receive, an NSERC PIN. Refer to your PIN each time you apply for an award and in future correspondence with NSERC. If you have not previously applied to NSERC, leave the field blank and a PIN will automatically be assigned to you by the online system. If you have previously applied to NSERC and do not remember your PIN, contact the online services helpdesk. If you have your PIN, log on the NSERC online system. Then, go to the eConsole web page, select Maintain user profile under Account management and enter your PIN. It will then appear on the Person profile page of your application.

Note: Your NSERC PIN is different from your application ID. Every application created and submitted is assigned a unique application ID while your NSERC PIN remains the same.

When completing your application, you must choose one of the following that applies to your situation. This selection will determine whether your application is submitted through McMaster University or directly to NSERC. If you fail to submit your application through the correct channel, your application will not be considered.

Options for applying directly to NSERC (not through McMaster):

• Option A: You are currently registered at an institution (Canadian or foreign) without a quota for NSERC.
• Option B: You are not currently registered in a degree program and you were not registered during the calendar year of application in a degree program at a Canadian institution with a quota for NSERC.

Options for applying through McMaster University for NSERC: You must choose either C or D.

• Option C: You are currently registered in a degree program (including if you are on an approved leave of absence) at a Canadian institution with a quota for NSERC.
• Option D: You are not currently registered in a degree program but were registered during the calendar year of application in a degree program at a Canadian institution with a quota for NSERC.

A complete NSERC application package includes the following:

• Application profile
• Personal profile
• Addresses
• Academic background
• Academic, research and other relevant work experience
• Awards
• Proposed location(s) of tenure
• Scholarship information
• Theses completed or in progress
• Keywords and research subject code
• Equity, diversity and inclusion considerations in the research process
• Outline of proposed research (attachment; two pages)
• Bibliography (optional attachment; five pages)
• Justification for eligibility of proposed research (optional attachment; one page)
• Contributions and statements (attachment; two pages)
• Special circumstances (optional attachment)
• Transcripts and proof of registration (attachment)*
• Reference letters

Note: For complete description of each item above please go to the NSERC – Completing the application – Instructions.

*Transcripts and proof of registration (attachment)

Important

At McMaster you must provide up-to-date official transcripts.  If you start a degree program at McMaster in the Fall 2026, you must still provide a transcript that demonstrates registration in your program (proof of registration).

Note: Proof of registration is defined as a document that confirms the status of your current registration in a program. It is only required in cases where the transcripts do not confirm eligibility.

• You must include transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate studies.
  • All programs of study listed in the Academic background section of the application, even if not completed, must be accompanied by transcripts.
  • Transcripts are an integral part of the material evaluated by review committee members.
  • Applications must include all complete and up-to-date transcripts to be considered.
• If a transcript includes transfer credits from another institution, the grades for these credits must be shown. If the grades are not shown, the original transcript from the other institution must be included in the application. This includes international exchange programs. Exception: Canadian college and CEGEP transcripts are not required (even if they contain transfer credits).

In addition:

• If you have transcripts written in a language other than English or French, you must provide a certified English or French translation.
• Paper transcripts and additional supporting documents, such as proofs of registration must be scanned (black and white recommended) and saved as a single PDF file.
• You must include only one copy of the legend (for each transcript). Do not scan the legend multiple times.

NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure that your transcripts are complete and legible once uploaded. This is particularly relevant for transcripts with security features in place to prevent duplication. In all cases, you are responsible for ensuring that your application is complete by reviewing and previewing the final version of the online application before it is submitted to NSERC. Updates to your application package will not be accepted after submission.

In Budget 2024, funding was provided to support an increase in the number of awards, a portion of which will be dedicated to supporting priority research areas. The agencies will make additional award offers for select meritorious applications that align with one or more of the following priority research areas:

• Advanced digital technologies (including AI, quantum, and cybersecurity)
• Health, including biotechnology
• Clean technology and resource value chains
• Environment, climate resilience, and the Arctic
• Food and water security
• Democratic and community resilience
• Manufacturing and advanced materials
• Defence and dual-use technologies

NSERC will make additional award offers for select meritorious applications that align with one or more of the priority areas. If your research is aligned with one or more of the priority research areas and you would like to be considered for these additional awards, you must select the appropriate checkbox.

For information concerning Indigenous student researchers and Indigenous research and Black student researchers, please go to Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral program | Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

For information concerning regulations, policies and guidelines including equity, diversity and inclusion please go to Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral program | Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

Notification of results

Applicants will be notified of the results by April 30.

Canada Graduate Research Scholarships – Doctoral Program (CGS D)
NSERC – Online Services – Instructions
NSERC – On-line Services

Research ability and potential (50%)

• quality of research proposal
  • specific, focused and feasible research question(s) and/or objective(s)
  • clear description and soundness of the proposed methodology
  • significance and expected contributions to research in the fields of health, natural sciences, engineering, social sciences and/or humanities research
• relevant training; such as academic training, lived experience and traditional teachings
• demonstration of ability and potential to carry out proposed research relative to the stage of study, lived experience and knowledge systems
• quality of contributions and extent to which they advance the field of research. Contributions may include publications, patents, reports, posters, abstracts, monographs, presentations, creative outputs, knowledge translation outputs, community products, etc.
• demonstration of sound judgment and ability to think critically
• demonstration of responsible and ethical research conduct, including honest and thoughtful inquiry, rigorous analysis, commitment to safety and to the dissemination of research results and adherence to the use of professional standards
• demonstration of originality, initiative, autonomy, relevant community involvement and outreach
• ability to communicate theoretical, technical and/or scientific concepts clearly and logically in written and oral formats

Relevant experience and achievements obtained within and beyond academia (50%)

• scholarships, awards and distinctions (amounts, duration and prestige)
  • academic record, such as:
  • transcripts
  • duration of previous studies
  • program requirements and courses pursued
  • course load
  • relative standing in program (if available)
• professional, academic and extracurricular activities, as well as collaborations with supervisors, colleagues, peers, students and members of the community, such as:
  • teaching, mentoring, supervising and/or coaching
  • managing projects
  • participating in science and/or research promotion
  • participating in community outreach, volunteer work and/or civic engagement
  • chairing committees and/or organizing conferences and meetings
  • participating in departmental or institutional organizations, associations, societies and/or clubs

NSERC Contact Information

For all inquiries please contact: schol@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

SGS Contact Information

graduatescholarships@mcmaster.ca