Funding, Scholarships and Awards

Funding and Financial Support

Minimum Financial Support

In accordance with the UTIAS Financial Support policy, students who maintain good academic standing will receive financial support for the first two years of MASc studies and four years of the PhD program.

External scholarships and fellowships will be considered to be part of this support. The minimum financial support for the academic year 2023-24 is: $21,000 plus tuition and fees for PhD and MASc students per 12-month year. It is not necessary to be a teaching assistant to qualify for this support. Any income earned from teaching assistantships is in addition to the minimum financial support.

Effective September 2024, the minimum financial support will increase to $23,000 plus tuition and fees for PhD and MASc students per 12-month year.

Domestic students who have major external scholarships (at a minimum amount of $15,000 per year), such as NSERC, OGS, QEII-GSST, etc., will receive $20,000/year supplements to the scholarships.

Domestic students who have other external scholarships (less than $15,000 per year), will receive the minimum level of support plus up to 50% of the scholarship value inclusive of the scholarship, to a maximum total amount of support as that received by students with external scholarships valued at $15,000 (for 2023 - 24, the cap is $35,000). UTIAS supplements are only available to students within the funding period. Because excellent UTIAS students win many external awards, the average income for UTIAS graduate students is more than the minimum funding package. Please explore the PhD Funding Data page for more info.

International students who have major external scholarships, such as their own government’s scholarship programs, may also receive supplemental financial support at the discretion of the institute. Students are strongly encouraged to apply for external scholarships/fellowships. All external awards, major or otherwise, must be disclosed to the UTIAS Graduate Office at the time of receipt of notification of the award.

Students in years of study not covered by the financial support policy may receive financial assistance from their supervisors’ research grants/contracts.

 

Quick Funding FAQs

How will I be notified of my funding package?

At the outset of every academic year, students in the guaranteed funding period will receive a letter from the Graduate Office explaining the timing and amounts of funding for the upcoming year.

When can I expect to receive my funding, and how is it disbursed?

Stipend payments, which include both tuition support and a stipend to cover the cost of living, are disbursed in September, January and May. The September and January payments include one third of the annual stipend and half the tuition support. The May payment consists of one third of the annual stipend. Funding will be disbursed using ROSI for awards and HRIS for faculty stipends. Provided students maintain bank account information, an email address and both sessional and permanent mailing addresses, any surplus over tuition and fees will be deposited directly to the student’s bank account.

For how long will I be guaranteed funding?

MASc students are guaranteed funding for the first two years of full-time studies. PhD students who enter directly are guaranteed funding for the first four years (twelve sessions). PhD students who transfer directly from the MASc program after one year are guaranteed funding for the first five years in total (fifteen sessions), which includes the year spent in the MASc program. Following the guaranteed funding period, funding arrangements are to be determined in consultation with the supervisor.

Do I need to be a teaching assistant to receive my funding?

No. Any income earned from teaching assistantships is supplementary to the base funding package.

 

Scholarships and Awards

At UTIAS, the Graduate Office will widely distribute information on some scholarships. These include national (NSERC) and provincial (OGS) scholarships, as well as a limited number of other scholarships.

Students are strongly encouraged to apply for external scholarships/ fellowships for which they are eligible. Not only will the external awards trigger the $20,000 supplement, they will also enhance the applicant’s curriculum vitae. Major Canadian scholarships include: NSERC, OGS and QEIIGSST.

NSERC and QEIIGSST are restricted to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, but the OGS is available to visa students. Visa students are strongly encouraged to apply for scholarships in their own countries for studies abroad.

The Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) Momentum Fellowships aim to address the urgent need to provide opportunities that encourage and support the pursuit of PhD graduate studies by equity-deserving groups traditionally underrepresented within STEM research. The IBET Momentum Fellowship, valued at $25,000 per year for four years, is for prospective domestic PhD applicants.

The School of Graduate Studies maintains a more detailed list of a variety of scholarships. The list contains only the most important awards and those directly administered by the University of Toronto. The list is NOT comprehensive. There are many other scholarships, awards and bursaries available to students.

 

Scholarships and Awards2023 - 2024 Deadlines
NSERC Graduate Scholarships Doctoral (PGSD)September 8, 2023, 11:59 PM ET
NSERC Canada Graduate Scholarships Doctoral (CGSD)September 8, 2023, 11:59 PM ET
NSERC Graduate Scholarships Master's (CGSM)December 1 @ 8 PM EST
Vanier CGSSeptember 1, 2023 @ 11:59 PM EST
OGS (domestic)March 25, 2024
OGS (visa)March 1, 2024
Queen Elizabeth II GSSTMarch 25, 2024

Appendices

Please consult with the Appendices to Funding (PDF) document for research-stream students. We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the Funding Terms and Conditions, policies and information provided in the appendices.