Master’s and doctoral students may only apply to one of Canada’s three major research grant agencies in a given academic year: the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council (NSERC); the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council (SSHRC); and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). It is imperative that students contact their department well before the online application is due to inquire about possible departmental deadlines, submission details and other requirements.

The School of Graduate Studies offers Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS) and Vanier Scholarship recipients receive the Dean’s Excellence Award valued at $7,500 per year for the duration of the scholarship. (Note: If a student is receiving The Dean’s Doctoral Award, the award is renamed to the Dean’s Excellence Award upon receipt of the CGS scholarship. Students cannot hold both Dean’s Excellence and Dean’s Doctoral concurrently.)

The CGS-Doctoral and Vanier Scholarship occurs in several separate competitions during the fall semester each year, with applications frequently being subject to review. Students should check the appropriate agency website for detailed instructions and requirements on applying for, activating, holding and renewing awards.

The CGS-Master’s are reviewed and awarded through Memorial University. Complete details and the application process can be found here. The process and conflict of interest statement for the CGS-M Review committees are outlined below.

Students are encouraged to attend Tri Council information sessions and workshops offered during the fall semester each year. More details can be found here.

Process and Conflict of Interest Statement (CGS-M Review Committees)

The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) forms three separate and distinct multidisciplinary review committees to do the work of selecting CGS-M award recipients according to Memorial’s institutional quota.

One review committee has representatives from SSHRC disciplines; another review committee has representatives from NSERC disciplines; and, a third committee has representatives from CIHR disciplines.

The review committees will have either 3 or 5 members, depending on faculty workload and time constraints. The voting members are always an odd number and never fewer than three. The Dean and the Associate Dean of SGS normally chair the committees, but do not vote or rank applications.

Applications in both official languages will be reviewed.

The purpose of the review is to identify those who will be offered a CGS-M and to establish a ranked list of alternate meritorious candidates. This process is both rigorous and transparent in order to identify applicants to whom an award should be offered.

Only application material submitted using the Research Portal will be considered during the merit review. Pages in excess of the number permitted wil be removed before the selection process begins.

The merit review is done according to the Selection Criteria.

Criteria are weighted, and committee members must take each criterion into consideration when assigning a global score to an application.

Committee members will declare a conflict of interest if their relationship with the student is other than an academic one: that is, if they supervise or have provided a letter of reference for the applicant; or, if they have a direct or indirect financial interest in the application being reviewed.

Note: An administrator in the student’s program or on the student’s supervisory committee (excluding the supervisor) is not considered a conflict unless they have provided a letter of reference for the applicant.

For more information about Memorial University Conflict of Interest Policy, please visit University Policies website. 

Membership of 2018-19 CGS-M Committees: TBD.  Scholarship Information and Application Writing

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)

NSERC is a federal research funding agency that aims to make Canada a country of discoverers and innovators for the benefit of all Canadians. The agency supports university students in their advanced studies, promotes and supports discovery research and fosters innovation by encouraging Canadian companies to participate and invest in post-secondary research projects. NSERC researchers are on the vanguard of science, building on Canada’s long tradition of scientific excellence.

Learn more about NSERC

Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

SSHRC is a federal research funding agency that promotes and supports post-secondary-based research and training in the humanities and social sciences. SSHRC-supported research enhances our understanding of modern social, cultural, technological, environmental, economic and wellness issues. It raises profound questions about who we are as human beings, what we need in order to thrive in complex and challenging times, and where we are headed in the new millennium. By focusing on developing talent, generating insights and forging connections across campuses and communities, SSHRC strategically supports world-leading initiatives that reflect a commitment to ensuring a better future for Canada and the world.

Learn more about SSHRC

Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)

CIHR is the federal government's health research investment agency. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support to more than 14,100 health researchers and trainees across Canada. CIHR was created to transform health research in Canada by funding more research on targeted priority areas; building research capacity in under-developed areas such as population health and health services research; training the next generation of health researchers; and focusing on knowledge translation, so that the results of research are transformed into policies, practices, procedures, products and services.

Learn more about CIHR