In today’s world education is a fundamental need of a human being. It may be your primary or higher studies. Students tend to seek new opportunities to achieve their lifelong target. The scholarship is a one such opportunity students tend to seek. When it comes to university’s Canadian scholarships have a higher value in their education system. To find out why it has a higher value and why you should study in Canada refer to this article. In this article, we will look at how to achieve your lifelong dream by finding a scholarship in Canada.
Each and every year Canada welcomes students from all around the globe. Most of them come to study here by applying through scholarships. Canada ranks in 3rd place when it comes to the leading place for foreign students to study globally, with over 642,000 students.
The Government has therefore introduced a number of fully-funded scholarships and rewards programs, under the Global Affairs Canada (GAC) Program to help students to reach their goals. In this article, you will learn more about these government-funded scholarships as well as scholarships offered by universities.
Types of scholarships
As mentioned in the above paragraph, there are mainly several types of scholarships provided by Canada. Here we categorize them by Government-funded scholarships, Scholarships provided by Universities, and other types of scholarships.
1. Government Funded Scholarships
This type of scholarship is highly competitive. These government-funded scholarships come under the Global Affairs Canada (GAC) program. This kind of Scholarships will cover most of the expenses you have to bare throughout the study program. So you don’t need to worry about air tickets, tuition fees, health insurance and many more. These scholarships will also provide you with a monthly living expense. These scholarships are solely aimed at students. Below we listed out especial programs conducted under this program.
- African Leaders of Tomorrow- Especially focus on African countries and scholarship lasts 12-24 months. Focuses on a Master’s degree.
- Killiam Fellowship Program- This program focuses on undergraduates around the globe.
- Canada-Brazil Awards – Last 4-6 months. Students who seek to do their Master’s and Ph.D. can apply.
- Emerging Leaders in Americas Program – Program duration is 4-12 months. The program focuses on scholars who are in their mid of their careers.
- Canada-Chile Leadership Exchange Scholarship- This scholarship is provided for Chilie students who seeking opportunities in Masters’s and Ph.D. levels.
- Canada-CARICOM Leadership Scholarships Program – Focus on students in Masters and Ph.D.
- Canada-China Scholars’ Exchange Program – Program is focused on students in China who willing to study in Canada.
- Dobbin Scholarship – Students who see to do their graduate research can apply to this program.
More scholarships provided by the Canadian government are listed below.
- Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships – These were created to attract and retain world-class doctoral students. The scholarship is worth CAD$50,000 (£31,000) per year for three years and can be used towards a doctoral degree or combined master’s and Ph.D.
- Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships -These are offered to international students doing postgraduate study in natural and social sciences or health sciences.
- IDRC Doctoral Research Awards -These are for students from developing countries that are already studying at a university in Canada.
2. Scholarships funded by universities in Canada.
There are plenty of universities giving scholarships for fellow students to study. Have a read down below to find out about these scholarships and university programs who provide them.
Note: We have only listed selected number of the main scholarship from selected universities. There are much more opportunities in each university. More details can be find our university and scholarship finder.
- York University International Student Program – York University offers several international scholarships for undergraduate students to study in Toronto. These scholarships are worth CAD$60,000-$100,000 for a four-year degree program for international students who have displayed academic excellence.
- University of Winnipeg– Scholarships are given to international students from undergraduate level up to M.Sc. The award is a partial tuition fee waiver of $3,500.
- University of Manitoba (UMGF) – These awards are open to students of any nationality who have applied to be full-time graduate students at the University of Manitoba. They are valued at $18,000 for PhD students or $14,000 for master’s students.
- University of Toronto Ontario – Scholarships for domestic and international students to study at the University of Toronto’s School of Graduate Studies.
- British Columbia Institute of Technology – The university dedicates more than $10 million annually towards awards, scholarships, and other forms of financial assistance for international undergraduate students.
- McGill University – Various funding opportunities, including the McGill Entrance Scholarship Program and the PBEEE – Quebec Merit Scholarship for Foreign Students, for international students enrolled in graduate and postdoctoral studies.
- University of Waterloo – The master’s of excellence awards are open to international master’s students starting a research-based graduate program. Students will receive $2,500 per term for a maximum of five months.
- University of Alberta – A range of scholarship options for international students to study at the undergraduate/graduate level at the University of Alberta.
- University of Calgary – There are many funding opportunities for international students of up to $40,000.
- Simon Fraser University – A range of scholarships and other funding opportunities for domestic and international students currently studying or planning to study at Simon Fraser University.
- University of Saskatchewan – Merit-based ‘excellence’ scholarships to study in Canada, for undergraduate international students at the University of Saskatchewan.
- University of British Columbia– A searchable database of scholarships for master’s and Ph.D. students at the University of British Columbia, including the university’s four-year doctoral fellowships and Graduate Support Initiative.
- The University of Queen’s – A number of scholarships for international students to study in Canada at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. Some awards are solely open to students from India, Pakistan, and the US.
- University of Carleton – Scholarships to study in Canada at Carleton University, open to all graduate students, who are automatically considered for the awards upon application. These worth $4,000 – $16,000 to students who meet the admission average criteria of 80 percent and above.
- Concordia University – Various scholarships for international students to study in Canada at Concordia University in Montréal, open to international students at the undergraduate level.
And below are some more Canadian universities that provide opportunities for students.
- The University of Brandon
- University of Toronto
- The University of Western Ontario
- University of Windsor
3. Financial scholarships
These type of scholarships are for students who need of financial assist. Canada offers this type of scholarships mostly for US residents. Even though some universities provide assist to international students.
Students who comes from a financial/economic problems and are also good at studies are eligible for these type of scholarships.
4. Merit scholarships
Merit are for exceptional students who are active in many aspects such as education as well as other extracurricular activities.
It’s not only about academics as mention above. Merit means that ‘ to be worthy of or to deserve’. So, if you are a brilliant athlete and excel in a specific sport, or you are a talented singer, musician, or dancer and you excel in a specific performing art you may still get a ‘merit scholarship’.
Top exam scores like SAT,ACT, TOFL, IELTS will be also considered when awarding merit scholarships.
5. Country-based scholarships
Canada gives country based scholarships to developing countries. If you are student who did your education in a developing country you may be eligible for this type of scholarships.
6. Privately funded scholarships
These types of scholarships are funded by private companies or by donors who are willing to help. They may be targeted on specific research areas or it may be also targeted to developing countries. So those scholarships are tightly bound with university.
7. Partial scholarships
If you apply for a partial or part scholarship you may be need to pay a amount to study in that particular university. You are agreeing to these terms when applying this kind of scholarship. So it’s not like above types and you have pay a considerable amount.
Preparation work to be eligible
If you found a scholarship program to study from the above list, the next step is to see how you can secure that position. So you need to be eligible when applying to that position.
Scholarships are available in both graduates as well as undergraduate levels. So each level criteria will be different. And also the eligibility of a scholarship may vary from one university program to another.
But here we will look at some general criteria you should be able to match to apply for a scholarship.
- Good academic result. You have a good GPA in your previous degree.
- Research experience, published research papers and interest when you apply for research based graduate studies.
- No disciplinary actions taken against you. This may be affect to you when you are acquiring a recommendation letter from your university.
- You need exam scores such as SAT,IELTS and TOFL to prove your English knowledge.
General requirements to secure a scholarship
Below we briefly discuss a few ways to secure your scholarship opportunities. When you are finding scholarships to study and if you found a chance you should follow the below steps to secure that position.
- If you are planning to start your education next year planned ahead of time. Start your scholarship search at least 6 months before.
- Apply to many scholarships if you are eligible. More the applications more the chance. There is no specific limit when applying.
- And when applying check your eligibility carefully. Apply for scholarships which are you are eligible. There may be restrictions based on your country, age or financial status. Read those carefully when applying.
- Keep track of deadlines when applying. With a busy schedule, people have these opportunities that may be lost from your hand.
- When applying you may need references from your previous education institute, So prepare those details in advance and find a professor who is willing to help you.
Myths and wrong assumptions on international students getting scholarships
There are several myths or wrong assumptions made by students when applying for international scholarships. In the below section we will address these.
1. Only the best students get scholarships
Students think that only the brightest will get the chance. It’s not true because it’s not always about academic excellence. There are many different criteria. So you should be wise to find out which are fit for your character well.
2. Expenses will be too much to bare
As described above there are different types of scholarships awarded by universities. Some may be partial scholarships. If you are applying for that type you may have to bare a amount. But there are many types that bare the full amount. Government provided scholarship will bare air tickets expenses too. In that kind of a scholarship you will be provided with a living expense to live. Even if some scholarship doesn’t provide the full amount you can cover it by doing a part time job.
3. Finding scholarships takes lot of time with no guarantee
A few years ago it’s been a tedious task when finding scholarships. But now you have lots of resources to find your matching scholarship. You can take few hours of your day, and can do a little bit of researching to find best international scholarships.
4. Less number of scholarships to apply
As you see, even this article contains many details on scholarship. So imagine the number of scholarships available throughout the internet, the more research you do the more results you will get.
5. Getting a scholarship have a less chance
Every scholarship have different criteria when it’s comes to applications. You should apply accordingly to get the right scholarship which suits for you. So that trick will land you in a good scholarship. Actually it’s not luck , it’s how you apply.
6. Not having financial needs will reject my application
In above scholarship types you can see that there is a type called financial scholarships. Only these kind of scholarship will be restricted for you .
7. Scholarship applicants require exceptional talent
To apply these you don’t need to be a exceptional person with extra ordinary skills.Try to be honest when it comes to your application. Indicate your talent,skill or expertise which will dictate any scholarship you applying for.
From going through this article you will have a good understanding on how to find the best scholarships in Canada. There are a few things you need to consider to get selected and choose to go abroad. These information can be found here.
Wish you good luck finding your dream university………….!
