Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral program

Available Fields

• Data Science & Artificial Intelligence
• Engineering
• Natural Sciences
• Population, Health, Development
• Public Health
• Social Sciences

The Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D) is a major Canadian doctoral research scholarship jointly administered by NSERC, CIHR, and SSHRC. It supports doctoral researchers across natural sciences and engineering, health, social sciences, humanities, and interdisciplinary fields. The award provides CAD 40,000 per year for 36 months.

Opportunity

Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D)

Type

Government-Funded Doctoral Research Scholarship

Country

Canada

Administered By

• NSERC
• CIHR
• SSHRC

Applicants apply through the agency that best matches their research field.

Study Level

PhD / Doctoral

The doctoral programme must be predominantly research-oriented and normally lead to a thesis, dissertation, major research project, scholarly publication, performance, recital, or equivalent merit-reviewed research output.

Fields of Study

The scholarship covers a broad range of disciplines, including:

• Natural Sciences
• Engineering
• Health Sciences
• Social Sciences
• Humanities
• Interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research

Scholarship Value

CAD 40,000 per year

Duration

36 months

Total potential value: CAD 120,000 over three years.

Who Can Apply

Applicants must generally have completed no more than 36 months of full-time-equivalent doctoral study by December 31 of the application year. Additional rules apply to joint, fast-track, and professional/PhD programmes.

International Students

Yes, international students can apply, but there is an important restriction.

International applicants must already be registered in a doctoral programme at an eligible Canadian institution by the application deadline. Up to 15% of the awards are available to international applicants.

So this is not a scholarship that an international student outside Canada can normally use first to gain admission to a Canadian PhD.

Selection Criteria

Applications are evaluated based on two main components:

Research Potential – 50%

• Research proposal quality
• Methodology
• Research significance
• Research contributions
• Originality and initiative
• Critical thinking
• Communication ability
• Research ethics and responsibility

Relevant Experience and Achievements – 50%

• Academic record
• Awards and distinctions
• Relevant training
• Professional experience
• Teaching and mentoring
• Research activities
• Leadership
• Community involvement and extracurricular activities

Application Deadline

Direct applications to NSERC/CIHR/SSHRC:
17 October, before 8:00 PM ET.

If October 17 falls on a weekend, the deadline moves to the following business day.

Institutional Deadline

If applying through a Canadian university, the university sets its own internal deadline, which can be significantly earlier than October 17. Applicants must check with their graduate studies office.

Results

Applicants are notified of results by April 30.