Funding opportunities

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Awards | Employment | Loans & Bursaries


AWARDS

Graduate Assistantship

The Department awards many graduate assistantships to qualified full-time graduate students. These are usually funded from research grants or contracts awarded to individual faculty members. In return, we expect that the graduate assistants perform research-related tasks assigned by the professor from whose grant the assistantship is paid. A good part, but not necessarily all of this work, can be used for preparing a thesis. There are no special application forms for graduate assistantships. Applicants who indicate a need for support on their application form will be considered.

Fonds de recherche du Québec - Nature et technologies

Master's and Doctoral students, who are residents of Quebec, are encouraged to apply for provincial, Fonds de recherche du Québec - Nature et technologies (FRQNT), graduate research scholarships.

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

Master's and Doctoral student, who are Canadian or Permanent Residents of Canada, are encouraged to apply for federal, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), graduate research scholarships.

McCall MacBain Scholarships

The McCall MacBain Scholarship is a full graduate scholarship at McGill University. Please visit https://mccallmacbainscholars.org/ for details.

Master's Top-Up Award

Domestic Master's students who are Tri-Council or Provincial award recipients (NSERC, FRQNT) will automatically be considered for a Master's Top-Up Award. Please notify the grad.ece [at] mcgill.ca (ECE Graduate Program Office) if you believe you are eligible.

McGill Engineering Undergraduate Student Master's Award (MEUSMA)

McGill Engineering undergraduate students entering the Master's program directly from their undergraduate program may be eligible for the Faculty of Engineering MEUSMA. Please notify the grad.ece [at] mcgill.ca (ECE Graduate Program Office) if you believe you are eligible.

Graduate Excellence Fellowship

Master's students may be eligible for Faculty of Engineering awards. Students are nominated by the department to which they have applied. A separate application is not necessary.

McGill Engineering Doctoral Award (MEDA)

Domestic and International Doctoral students may be eligible to receive a Faculty of Engineering MEDA. Students are nominated by their department to which they have applied. A separate application is not necessary.

McGill Engineering International Tuition Award (MEITA)

International Doctoral students may be eligible to receive a Faculty of Engineering MEITA. Students are nominated by their department to which they have applied. A separate application is not necessary.

Vanier Fellowship

Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada and International students pursuing a first Doctoral degree may be eligible to apply for the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (Vanier CGS).

Graduate Research Enhancement and Travel Awards (G.R.E.A.T.)

Administered by the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), the purpose of the G.R.E.A.T. Awards is to support Graduate Students in ECE in their research efforts by partially funding travel to scholarly meetings or conferences where the student is presenting a paper related to their research.

Value

Each award is valued at CAD $750.00 maximum.

Eligibility

  • At the time of application and presentation, applicants must be registered as full-time graduate students (or additional session students, working full-time on their degree), in good academic standing, in a Research Master's (M1 or M2) or Doctoral (PhD 1 to PhD 5) program in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at McGill.
  • At the time of taking up the award, applicants must have been accepted to present a paper or poster at a scholarly meeting or conference that falls within the specified time period of the competition.
  • Students may apply prior to receiving confirmation of acceptance, but must have been accepted to present a paper or poster in order to be eligible to take up the award. Students who do not expect to receive confirmation of acceptance to the meeting before the competition deadline MUST still abide by our competition deadline - no extension will be granted.
  • In the case of multiple-authored papers, only the presenter may apply for a travel grant.
  • Applications for conferences that have already taken place will not be considered.
  • Preference will be given to applicants who have not already received a G.R.E.A.T Award.
  • Results will be emailed to all applicants approximately 2 weeks after the application deadline date.
  • G.R.E.A.T. Application Form [.pdf]

Deadlines

July 31 (for travel from September 1 to December 31)
November 30 (for travel from January 1 to April 30)
March 31 (for travel from May 1 to August 31)

Note: Should the deadline date fall on a weekend or holiday, the deadline will be the following working day.

Email your application to: gradadministrator.ece [at] mcgill.ca (ECE Graduate Administrator)

Required Payment Documents

  • The GREAT Payment Request Form [.pdf], including the required supervisor's signature. (To be submitted only after attending the conference or scholarly meeting.)
  • Confirmation that your paper was selected for presentation at the conference (if not already submitted when you applied for the GREAT award).
  • Proof of participation in the conference or scholarly meeting as defined on the payment request form.
  • Completed "Direct Deposit Bank Account" information under the Financil Aid menu on Minerva.
  • GREAT Expense form, if supervisor is not paying your expenses.

Submit your payment documents (no later than 3 weeks after the end of the conference or scholarly meeting) to: gradadministrator.ece [at] mcgill.ca (ECE Graduate Administrator)

Payment of the Award

Payment of the award will be made directly to the awardees bank account as a one-time lump sum award payment.

Graduate Research Mobility Awards

The Graduate Research Mobility Awards are designed to support non-conference related graduate student travel outside of Canada, specifically for the purpose of research related trips, field work and training programs related to methodologies and research techniques.

Value

Between CAD $750 and $1,500 per month. The amount will be prorated for travel less than one month.

Eligibility

In addition to the eligibility requirements list on the Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (GPS) website (https://www.mcgill.ca/gps/funding/travel/grad-mobility-award) students must also meet the following eligibility requirement:

  • Must be in a Master's Thesis (M1 or M2) or Doctoral Thesis (PhD1 to PhD5) program in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at McGill.

How to Apply for Funding

See "How to Apply" on the GPS website for instructions and application forms.

EMPLOYMENT

Teaching assistantships

Graduate students who work as Teaching Assistants are paid $32.38 per hour (effective August 2021). Usually, units of 50 hours each are granted to qualified students. For more information, see Teaching Assistant Position Postings.

Work Study Program

Through the Scholarships and Student Aid office, the Work Study Program offers students with financial need the opportunity to work on campus.

LOANS & BURSARIES

Graduate students can also receive financial aid through loans and bursaries.

  • To receive support from the Quebec Loans and Bursaries Program, students must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents, and be residents of Quebec registered as full-time students.
  • Canadian residents from provinces other than Quebec can apply for Canada Student Loans and for loans from their province of residence. Information about Quebec, or Canada Student Loans is available from the Scholarships and Student Aid office.

 

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