The CGS M Awards Program supports students in all research disciplines and is administered jointly by Canada’s three federal granting agencies: the Canadian Institutes for Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). The selection process and post-award administration are carried out at the university level, under the guidance of the three agencies.

For a recorded information session about the Fall 2023 application process, click on the Learn More button.

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The Dr. J. A. Campbell Young Investigator Award of $5,000 for any kind of research into celiac disease and / or gluten sensitivity is available to students and those who have recently completed degrees.

Eligibility criteria, application details and deadlines available on the Canadian Celiac Association website.

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Traditional Fulbright Canada Student awards are intended for Canadian citizens who are graduate students, prospective graduate students, or promising young professionals who wish to study and/or conduct research in the United States. Awards may be held at any university, research centre, think tank, or government agency in the United States.

For eligibility criteria, award values, application details and deadlines, visit the Fulbright Canada website.

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All incoming Indigenous graduate students who are studying in a graduate program located within the Faculty of Health Sciences, are eligible to apply for this award.

Applicants who are completing a FIAP application for a facilitated graduate program, will be automatically considered for this award.

For full eligibility criteria, application details and deadlines, visit the Faculty of Health Sciences website. (Link below.)

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Established in honour of McMaster Faculty of Engineering PhD students Iman Aghabali and Mehdi Eshaghian, and a former Faculty of Health Science Post-Doctoral Fellow, who lost their lives on the downing of Ukrainian International Airlines Flight PS752. To be awarded by the School of Graduate Studies, on the recommendation of the Associate Deans responsible for graduate studies, to international graduate students from Iran who demonstrate academic excellence.

In honour of the achievement of John Charles Polanyi, recipient of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, the Government of the Province of Ontario has established a fund to provide annually up to five prizes to outstanding researchers in the early stages of their career who are continuing to postdoctoral studies or have recently started a faculty appointment at an Ontario university.

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Manulife has introduced the first Life Lessons Scholarship Program in Canada, for students who’ve experienced the death of a parent or guardian with little to no life insurance. The Scholarship Program helps combat the financial burden of paying for post-secondary education during an emotional time and recognizes the perseverance that so many youth show in such adversity.

The next application call for this scholarship opens on February 1, 2024. Visit the Manulife website for details on that date.

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What is a bursary?

A bursary is based solely on financial need. In most cases, information from your OSAP application is used to determine your financial need (some students who don’t receive OSAP can still apply for a bursary).

The McMaster Graduate General Bursary Program application opens mid-August in AwardSpring. Funding is paid out in mid-February.

Who can apply?

Graduate students who demonstrate financial need can apply for the McMaster Graduate General Bursary Program.

Please note: The McMaster Graduate General Bursary Program is not open to international students enrolled in graduate studies, MBA, medicine or physician assistant programs.

Bursary eligibility requirements:

• Be enrolled at McMaster
• Submit a completed application by the bursary deadline
• OSAP students who receive an income update request must complete it by the income update deadline
• Continue to demonstrate financial need throughout the study period
• OSAP is used to demonstrate financial need. Students must accept both loan and grant portions of their OSAP. ONLY graduate students in the following groups will be considered for a bursary without an OSAP application:
  • Indigenous students
  • students with OSAP government aid restrictions include:
  • academic progress restriction
  • income verification restriction
  • provincial and/or federal default restriction
  • credit check restriction
  • students with a disability taking a reduced course load
  • students with out-of-province student aid
  • part-time students
  • students receiving social assistance

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At least three awards, each in the amount of $4000, will be awarded annually to the women graduate students who have demonstrated outstanding leadership in the university or general community while maintaining exemplary academic records.

Women registered in master’s or PhD programs within a designated region. Regions and number of awards rotate each year. SWAAC has designated Ontario as the region for this 2023 competition. There are five awards available for this competition. Each university may nominate one person for the award.

Read about McMaster PhD student Liza-Anastasia DiCecco, who received the 2023 SWAAC Award of Merit.

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Established in 2013 to honour the memory of Dr. Colin Webber, McMaster University professor, physicist, radiation safety expert, teacher, mentor, and leader in the field of bone research. To be awarded by the School of Graduate Studies to master’s or doctoral students. Preference will be given to students who demonstrate interest in bone research.

Value: Minimum $1,600

Established in 2022 by the family of Edna Howard, this bursary honours the support Edna offered graduate students through her work as a cook at The Phoenix Bar and Grill, owned and
operated by the Graduate Students Association. Her food warmed the hearts of the McMaster campus community for many years until her retirement. To be granted by the School of
Graduate Studies to full-time students in any program who demonstrate financial need.

Established in 1995 with funds from the estate of Helen S. Harvey.  James F. Harvey was a member of the first McMaster graduating class in Hamilton in 1935.  This travel scholarship will enable students to engage in research requiring travel.  To be awarded by the School of Graduate Studies to graduate students who demonstrate academic excellence.

Established in 2022 by the Lambda Scholarship Foundation Canada. To be awarded by the School of Graduate Studies to a graduate student who is currently enrolled in their first year of any program who identifies as a member of the queer, trans community and is Black, racialized, or Indigenous.

The SGS Grant is not intended to replace sources of funding already available from the tri-agencies (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC), other external granting sources, or internal scholarships and bursaries.
The SGS Grant is intended to be a grant-in-aid of research; students should not expect the grants to cover the full cost of travel or field work.
It is not intended to fund the research itself, but the travel to do the research.

Eligibility

• Only in-time, full time PhD students;
• Canadian citizens and Visa students from all Faculties;
• Students must have completed their comprehensive examinations and formal PhD research proposal before travel occurs;
• Students must have their supervisor committee’s approval to travel, and
• Students are eligible to receive this funding only once during their PhD studies;
• Travel to locations for the completion of course work or conferences are NOT eligible for consideration.

Guidelines

Grants are awarded on a competitive basis for projects that have clearly defined objectives and methods, and that meet the criteria established. Departments submitting more than one application must provide a nomination letter with rankings and commentary for all the applicants. The same letter may be submitted with each application from a single department/program.

Awards are for a minimum period of four weeks, and a maximum period of twelve months.
Individual awards will be given with a minimum of $1,000 to a maximum of $3000 for trips of up to 3 months, $5,000 for trips of up to 6 months, and $7,500 for trips of up to one year. Note that the award is not intended to cover the full cost of travel or field research, and the number of awards given in each competition will vary, and are subject to the discretion of the School of Graduate Studies.

Funding will not be provided for research equipment, computer hardware and most software, office supplies, communication costs, medical, toiletry or other personal items. Because funding is limited, and intended to defray essential research costs rather than fully fund fieldwork, the following items will receive highest priority:

• significant travel costs for field and archival research activities, including economy travel (air, rail, bus) or travel by car (for distances greater than 200km); visas, required research permits and/or site entrance fees;
• medical supplies and/or immunizations mandated by international health regulations that are not covered by health insurance; and
• in extraordinary circumstances (e.g., documented higher than typical costs), housing and food costs over and above the expenses normally incurred while not in the field (please itemize current expenses and estimated expenses while in the field)

It is the responsibility of the student to ensure the application is complete and has been through the appropriate approval channels. Final complete applications will be submitted to the School of Graduate Studies by the student’s department.

All funds are fully accountable. All awardees are required to fill out travel expense forms within 30 days after the student’s return and submit original receipts and boarding passes accounting for the full sum of the award.

Students are required to complete an outcomes assessment (of their own design, proposed in the application) within 30 days after the student’s return.

Arrangements regarding pre-paid expenses may be made separately with the student’s department administrator, at the department’s discretion. In all cases, a proportion of the award will be withheld until the expense forms, receipts for the full amount of the award, and outcomes assessment have been received by the School of Graduate Studies (normally 10% of the total award, with a minimum of $250).

Application Date

The application will open in Mosaic on January 2, 2023 and close on February 27, 2023. You can access the application by going into your student centre in Mosaic.