Canada Graduate Research Scholarships

The master's award is worth 27,000 dollars for 12 months. It is open to Canadian citizens, permanent residents and protected persons who are registered in, or have applied to, an eligible research-based graduate programme at a Canadian institution with a master's allocation. The programme must lead to a thesis, major research project or equivalent, and applicants need a first-class average, as defined by the institution, in each of their last two completed years of study.

The doctoral award is worth 40,000 dollars a year for 36 months. Canadian citizens, permanent residents and protected persons can apply, and up to 15 percent of awards go to international students, who must already be registered in a doctoral programme at a Canadian institution by the deadline and can hold the award only in Canada. Up to 20 percent of doctoral awards can be held outside Canada, by Canadians and permanent residents who have a previous Canadian degree. Applicants must have completed no more than 36 months of full-time doctoral study by 31 December of the application year, must not already have held a doctoral scholarship from any of the three agencies, including a Vanier, and may apply to the doctoral programme at most three times.

The awards are joint, but each application goes to one agency, chosen by subject: CIHR for health research, NSERC for the natural sciences and engineering, SSHRC for the social sciences and humanities. You may apply to only one CRTAS programme per academic year across the three agencies; if you apply twice, only the first eligible application is kept.

The routes differ by level. Master's applicants apply through the Research Portal to up to three Canadian institutions, each of which has its own allocation of awards. Doctoral applicants at a university with a doctoral quota apply through that university, which sets an earlier internal deadline and can forward no more applications to each agency than its quota allows; applicants who are not registered at such a university apply directly to the agency. A small number of awards in each agency are reserved for Indigenous and Black student researchers.

Master's applications are scored on academic excellence (50 percent), research potential (30 percent), and personal characteristics and interpersonal skills (20 percent). The application is short: a one-page outline of the proposed research, a one-page bibliography, a plain-language summary of up to 1,800 characters, a Canadian Common CV, transcripts and two reference assessments.

Doctoral applications are scored on research potential (50 percent) and relevant experience and achievements (50 percent). Research potential covers the quality and feasibility of the proposal, contributions to the field, critical thinking, attention to equity, diversity and inclusion and to research ethics, originality and initiative, and clear communication. Experience and achievements cover training, awards, the academic record and activities such as teaching, mentoring, outreach and committee work. SSHRC's 2026 instructions ask for a research proposal of up to two pages, a bibliography of up to five pages, two pages on research contributions and experience, two one-page letters of appraisal, transcripts and a CV.

Master's offers appear in the Research Portal from 1 April, and institutions can make offers to alternates until 31 January of the next year. Doctoral results are released by 30 April. The conditions for holding an award, including part-time holding, are set out in the Tri-agency research training award holder's guide.

Doctoral and master's holders who need to do research abroad can apply for a Research Travel Supplement of 9,000 dollars for a stay of two to six months. In its 2026 to 2027 plan, SSHRC also announced a new Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards initiative, with 133 million dollars over three years, to attract international doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers.