Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Master’s Program Grant

The Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Master’s Program supports high-achieving students in pursuing master’s and doctoral studies in Canada. With up to 2,500 scholarships awarded annually, it aims to enhance research skills and training for qualified personnel. Eligible applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents, enrolled in an eligible program, and maintain a first-class academic average. The program is jointly administered by CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC, ensuring broad support across disciplines.

Background
The objective of the Canada Graduate Scholarships-Master’s (CGS M) Program 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.
The CGS M Program provides financial support to high-calibre scholars who are engaged in eligible master’s or, in some cases, doctoral programs in Canada.  This support allows these scholars to fully concentrate on their studies in their chosen fields. The CGS M Program supports up to 2,500 students annually in all disciplines and is administered jointly by Canada’s three federal granting agencies: CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC.
Deadlines
Depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for, there are a number of deadlines to keep in mind when submitting an application to NSERC.
If the deadline falls on a weekend or federal holiday, your application must reach NSERC by the following working day. Most institutions also have internal deadlines; contact your scholarship liaison officer for those deadlines. Late applications will not be accepted.

Eligibility

To be eligible to apply, you must:be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada;be enrolled in, have applied for, or will apply for full-time admission to an eligible graduate program at the master’s or doctoral level at a Canadian institution with a CGS M allocation;Refer to the Canada Graduate Scholarships-Master’s Award Holder's Guide for details regarding part-time admission.have completed, as of December 31 of the year of application, between zero and 12 months of full-time studies (or full-time equivalent) in:the master’s program for which you are requesting funding; orthe direct-entry doctoral program for which you are requesting funding; orthe combined master’s-doctoral program for which you are requesting funding; ora master’s program that was or will be fast-tracked to a doctoral program, and you are requesting funding for the first 12 months of this doctoral program; andnot have previously held a CGS M;have achieved a first-class average, as determined by the host institution, in each of the last two completed years of study (full-time equivalent); and submit a maximum of one scholarship application per academic year to either CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC.An eligible graduate program must have a significant research component. A significant research component is considered to be original, autonomous research 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 a requirement for completion of the program.Joint programs with a professional degree (e.g., MD/PhD, DVM/PhD, JD/MA, JD/PhD, MBA/PhD, MA/MBA) are eligible if they have a demonstrated and significant research component as described above.Clinically-oriented programs of study, including clinical psychology are also eligible programs if they have a demonstrated and significant research component as described above.Without exception, CGS M awards are tenable only at eligible Canadian institutions.

Ineligibility

Applicants are not eligible to receive or accept a CGS M offer from an institution where they are not currently enrolled in, nor have applied for admission to, an eligible program of study.Master’s programs that are based only on course work are typically not eligible since they do not include a significant research component.Applicants may accept only one CGS M offer. If they accept an offer, any other potential or actual offers (if applicable) will be declined automatically by the Research Portal, and they will not be eligible to receive further offers.