Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship 2024 – Application, Eligibility & Application Deadline

Origins and Objectives

Named after Major-General Georges P. Vanier, who served as Canada’s Governor General from 1959 to 1967, the scholarship program reflects his legacy of leadership, dedication, and humanitarian values. The Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship program strives to recognize and support doctoral students who demonstrate exceptional leadership skills, academic achievement, and a deep commitment to advancing research, innovation, and societal betterment.

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Selection and Prestige

The Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship is highly competitive, with a rigorous selection process designed to identify the most promising and innovative scholars. Candidates are evaluated based on their academic records, research potential, leadership qualities, and the potential impact of their research on their chosen fields and on society. The program aims to support research that is not only intellectually stimulating but also has the potential to drive positive change and contribute to Canada’s knowledge economy.

Building a Community of Leaders

One of the remarkable aspects of the Vanier Scholarship is its emphasis on building a community of leaders and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. Scholars from diverse academic backgrounds come together to exchange ideas, share perspectives, and contribute to a broader intellectual discourse. This collaborative environment nurtures innovation, as scholars draw inspiration from each other and tackle complex challenges from multiple angles.

Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship Eligibility

Confirm that you and your nominating institution meet all the criteria below before you apply for a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS).

Nominations that do not meet all of the eligibility criteria will be deemed ineligible.

Candidate eligibility for Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship

Citizenship

Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada and foreign citizens are eligible to be nominated for a Vanier CGS.

Eligibility To Apply For a Vanier CGS

To be considered for a Vanier CGS, you must:

• be nominated by only one Canadian institution, which must have received a Vanier CGS quota;
• be pursuing your first doctoral degree (including joint program such as MD/PhD, DVM/PhD, or JD/PhD, MBA/PhD – if it has a demonstrated and significant research component);
• intend to pursue, in the summer semester or the academic year following the announcement of results, full-time doctoral (or a joint graduate research program such as MD/PhD, DVM/PhD, JD/PhD, MBA/PhD) studies and research at the nominating institution; For joint graduate research programs, only the PhD portion of the program is eligible for funding.
• have completed no more than 20 months of full-time study in your doctoral program as of May 1, 2024;
  • The doctoral program would begin after the completion of a master’s degree. The months of study completed are calculated from the doctoral enrolment date.
• have completed no more than 32 months of full-time study in your doctoral program (i.e., joint graduate research program, directly from bachelor’s, previously enrolled without obtaining master’s degree), by May 1, 2024 if:
  • enrolled in a joint graduate research program, e.g., MD/PhD, MA/PhD, MS/PhD, DVM/PhD. Applicants in this category have access to the 32-month window whether or not they were previously enrolled in a master’s program:
    • The months of study are calculated starting from the date on which an applicant is officially registered in the joint graduate program. (For MA/PhD or MS/PhD, this will be the master’s registration date).
  • enrolled directly from a bachelor’s to a PhD program (without having been previously enrolled in another graduate program);
    • The months of study completed are calculated from the doctoral enrolment date.
  • previously enrolled in a master’s program without obtaining the degree and subsequently starting a doctoral program.
    • The months of study completed are calculated from the original master’s enrolment date.
• have achieved a first-class average, as determined by your institution, in each of the last two years of full-time study or equivalent. Candidates are encouraged to contact the institution for its definition of a first-class average; and
  • Note: Institutions may, at their discretion, accept Vanier CGS applications from individuals who have not obtained a first-class average; contact your proposed host institutions to determine their use of this eligibility criterion.
• cannot have already received a doctoral-level scholarship or fellowship from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC to undertake or complete a doctoral program.

Please note that only the PhD portion of a joint program is eligible for funding.

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Eligibility of program of study

• An eligible doctoral program must include a significant research component that leads 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 requirement for a completion of the program.
• Joint graduate research programs with a professional degree (e.g., MD/PhD, DVM/PhD, JD/PhD, MBA/PhD) as well as clinically-oriented programs of study, including clinical psychology, are eligible programs if they have a significant autonomous research component, as described above.

Number of months of doctoral studies

Regardless of disciplines, all prior doctoral-level studies that started in Canada or abroad, are considered in the evaluation of eligibility, and are considered to be continuous, full-time, and uninterrupted unless otherwise confirmed by the institution (including the summer months, unless on official leave). The Vanier-Banting Secretariat (the Secretariat) will count two months of part-time study as one month of full-time study.

Students who studied on a part-time basis must outline their part-time study in the Other Application material task attachment. The information also must be reflected in the transcripts.

Eligibility to hold a Vanier CGS

Without exception, the Vanier CGS is tenable only at the eligible Canadian institution that submitted the nomination.

To hold the Vanier CGS, the candidate must:

• be registered in a full-time doctoral program (or joint graduate research program MA/PhD, MSc/PhD, or MD/PhD) at the nominating Canadian institution;
• not hold a faculty appointment concurrently with a Vanier Scholarship unless they arrange for a leave of absence from the appointment;
• remain enrolled and demonstrate continued satisfactory progress in their doctoral program;
• not hold, or have held, a doctoral-level scholarship or fellowship from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC to undertake or complete a doctoral program;
• not be concurrently holding any other SSHRC, NSERC or CIHR training award (note: Michael Smith Foreign Studies Supplement excepted); and
• begin their award within 12 months of the earliest possible start date and start on May 1, September 1, or January 1 following the offer of award.Read Common Wealth Scholarships

Part-time studies

A Vanier CGS may be held by students who are registered part-time due to disability, parental or medical reasons, or family-related responsibilities. For eligible part-time students, the Vanier CGS will be equivalent to full-time funding spread over a longer period of time.

Joint graduate research programs

If you are registered in a joint graduate research program, and a master’s degree is obtained as part of the program (for example, MA/PhD, MS/PhD), the months of study are calculated starting from the date on which you are officially registered in the joint program (including the master’s portion of the program).

If you are registered in an MD/PhD joint program, only the months of study in the PhD portion will be counted.

Nominating institution

The nominating institution must have received a Vanier CGS quota.

Canadian federal government employees

Please refer to the Tri-agency policy on the use of funds for federal government employees applying to granting agency programs to determine eligibility.

Multiple applications

Eligible candidates may apply to both the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships program and other agency-specific doctoral-level scholarship/fellowships programs (whether to the same or a different federal granting agency) in the same academic year, provided that the research proposed in each application falls within the mandate of the federal granting agency to which the application is submitted. For more information, please refer to Identify area of research.

Note: since eligibility, evaluation criteria and competition deadlines are different; applications submitted to Vanier CGS are not considered in agency-specific doctoral award competitions. You must apply to each program individually.

Candidates who are successful in both competitions will have to choose which award to accept.

EVALUATION CRITERIA

Application / Nomination process

The sections below provide specific information for candidates and nominating institutions.

Tips for applicants new to the Canadian academic system

Step 1: Begin your application by researching Canadian institutions through the Universities Canada website. We recommend browsing each university’s respective website and thoroughly researching the program of interest in which you would like to complete your doctorate degree, as well as supervisors for your proposed research.

Step 2: Consult the Vanier CGS quota page in order to ensure that your institution of interest has a quota for the year in which you are applying.

Competition process

1. Applications are initiated in one of two ways. Either:
   1. the student informs the faculty of graduate studies at the selected institution of their intent to apply to the Vanier CGS program; or
   2. the institution initiates the nomination process by contacting the desired candidate.
2. Applications are prepared by the student and submitted to the nominating institution by their internal deadline (set in ResearchNet by the nominating institution) using the ResearchNet application system.
3. The nominating institution performs the internal candidate selection process.
4. The nominating institution forwards recommended nominations to the Vanier-Banting Secretariat (the Secretariat) by November 1, 2023 (20:00 Eastern Time).
5. The Secretariat coordinates the review process.
6. The Secretariat presents the recommendations to the Tri-agency Programs (TAP) Steering Committee.
7. The TAP Steering Committee endorses and approves final decisions for the Vanier CGS program.
8. Nominated candidates are notified of the competition results in April 2024.

Important notes:

• Each student can only be nominated once per competition. If more than one institution is interested in nominating an individual student for a Vanier CGS, the student must choose one institution to submit their nomination. Multiple nominations will not be accepted.
• The institution is responsible for notifying candidates if their application is not selected for nomination to the Secretariat. The timing for this notification may vary by institution.
• Students are responsible for contacting the institution for more information about selecting the appropriate federal granting agency, finding the appropriate contact person within a department/faculty, and for advice or questions related to content and how best to present the information in their application.
• Information provided in your application package must be self-contained. Links to external websites or documents hosted on a drive should not be included in the application.

Application/nomination instructions For Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship

Individual application documents can be submitted in either English or French. If another language is required to express a particular idea (e.g., specialized concept), be sure to provide an explanation in French or English.

A complete Vanier CGS application package includes:

• ResearchNet application form (includes two letters of reference, each with three sections)
• CCV (limited entries; please see Completing the Common CV (CCV) for complete information)
• research contributions (maximum one page)
• personal leadership statement (maximum 2 pages for English applications; maximum of 2.5 pages for French applications)
• special circumstances (maximum 1.0 page, optional)
• two leadership letters of reference (maximum 2 pages)
• research proposal (maximum 2 pages for English applications; maximum of 2.5 pages for French applications)
• project references (maximum 5 pages)
• transcripts

Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship General Application Process

1. Applications must be prepared, finalized and submitted by applicants using ResearchNet.
2. Any information that is not required or exceeds the page/character limits will be removed from the application prior to the review without notification.
3. Applicants must preview all components of their application to ensure its completeness.
4. Applicants who wish to self-identify as an Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis) applicant to their Canadian institution may do so by completing the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships ( Vanier CGS) : Voluntary Self-Identification Form for Indigenous Applicants [ PDF (409 KB) ] and uploading it to their application. Please note that selection committee members will not be made aware of which applicants have self-identified as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis).
5. The Vanier-Banting Secretariat cannot legally accept an application until the “Consent and Submit” task is completed on ResearchNet.
6. These pages provide general instructions, but do not necessarily represent an exhaustive list of all information required to complete an application.
7. Format of documents: Refer to “Presentation standards for documents” for the required format. All attachments to your application must be prepared according to the standards provided. Applications submitted that are not prepared according to the instructions provided may be deemed ineligible.
8. For technical help, call 1-888-603-4178 or 613-954-1968 or email [email protected] from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
9. For program-related help, contact [email protected].

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Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship Application Deadlines

Please see the Vanier CGS website for Application deadlines and Information for Institutions.