External scholarships
There are a number of national and provincial granting agencies that annually fund graduate students and their research. These are merit-based fellowships that must be applied for individually. Most of the agencies have specific application guidelines and deadlines.
The funding opportunities below all require an internal pre-selection process coordinated through the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
Transcripts required for external competitions
Most external scholarship competitions require official transcripts for all your completed post-secondary studies. It is your responsibility for ensuring that transcripts are official or unofficial (if allowed for the competition) and are either attached to the application or delivered to FGS, depending on the requirements of the competition. Make sure you are aware of the deadlines for any external scholarships you are applying for. Transcripts must be complete, official copies. Make sure to order transcripts very early and have them sent directly to you, not to a UVic office.
*If your transcript includes any transfer credits from another post-secondary institution, you must include an original official transcript from that institution or your application will be ineligible. It your responsibility to ensure transcripts are uploaded or sent to FGS (check application instructions) by the required deadlines.
If you have any questions or concerns about transcripts, please contact Donja Roberts, Kathy McCarthy or Lisa Pender.
Other external funding opportunities
There are many external funding competitions that you can apply for directly. These do not involve an extra pre-selection step at the university level. As we find out about opportunities, we forward the information to departmental graduate secretaries across campus. They'll send out the announcements through their student email distribution lists. Make sure that you have your preferred email address on your graduate secretary's email list.
| Name | Deadline | Amount | Audience | Department |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
British Columbia Graduate Scholarship (BCGS) The Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills funds the British Columbia Graduate Scholarship (BCGS) program to support excellence in British Columbia’s graduate programs. |
No application required | $17,500 | External awards Masters PhD | ​Available to all |
|
Canada Graduate Scholarships - Doctoral (CGS D) program The Canada Graduate Scholarships – Doctoral (CGS D) program is a federal program of scholarships awarded through national competitions by the granting agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). |
Thursday, October 3, 2024 by 12:00pm (noon, PT) | $40,000 *Effective September 01, 2024 | External awards PhD | ​Available to all |
|
Canada Graduate Scholarships - Master's The objective of the Canada Graduate Scholarships - Master’s Program (CGS M) is to help develop research skills and assist in the training of highly qualified personnel by supporting students who demonstrate a high standard of achievement in undergraduate and early graduate studies. |
December 2, 2024 Before 5pm PT | $27,000 *Effective September 01, 2024 | Masters External awards | ​Available to all |
|
German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) The German Academic Exchange Service - Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) - provides study and research scholarships to highly qualified graduate students. |
UVic internal deadline: Tuesday, October 15, 2024. DAAD external deadline: Thursday, October 31, 2024. | Varies: includes monthly amount, travel allowance, health insurance costs, and optional German language course. Successful recipients may apply for further funding for rent subsidies, accompanying family members, and costs associated with a disability or chronic illness. | PhD External awards Masters | ​Available to all |
|
Google PhD Fellowship Google PhD Fellowships directly support graduate students as they pursue their PhD. Fellowships provide financial support as well as connecting recipients to a Google Research Mentor. |
Closed for 2024 | Full tuition and fees (enrollment fees, health insurance, books) plus a stipend to be used for living expenses, travel and personal equipment. | PhD External awards | ​Available to all |
|
Michael Smith Foreign Study Supplement (MSFSS) The MSFSS program supports active Tri-Council master's and doctoral CGS award holders with travel supplements of up to $6,000. These supplements are available to help offset the costs of undertaking research studies outside of Canada for a defined period. |
June or October | Up to $6,000 | Masters External awards PhD | ​Available to all |
|
Rhodes Scholarship A Rhodes Scholarship at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom includes course fees, an annual stipend, a settling in allowance, and two economy class flights for the beginning and end of studies in Oxford. |
Varies by Rhodes constituency. Refer to 'How to apply' section below. | Varies | Masters PhD External awards Undergraduate | ​Available to all |
|
Sara Spencer Foundation Graduate Scholarship One or more scholarships, to a maximum of $3,000 each, are awarded to academically outstanding graduate students who are doing research in applied social sciences focusing on cultural, environmental, or social studies within/encompassing the Capital Regional District (CRD). |
Closed for 2024 | up to $3000 | External awards Masters PhD | ​Available to all |
|
Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships Prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (CGS) are available to Canadian and international graduate students who demonstrate both leadership skills and a high standard of scholarly achievement and are pursuing doctoral study at a Canadian university. |
Application by invitation only. UVic internal deadline: 12:00pm (noon PDT), September 3, 2024 | Annual Value $50,000/year for 3 years (2024 applications for 2025) | Masters External awards PhD | ​Available to all |
Application help
We have many resources to help you apply to external funding competitions.
Our resources include tips for scholarship referees. You can give this information to the academic professionals who are contributing letters of reference to support your funding application.