International student funding

An IDSA will be provided automatically to eligible international students registered full-time in a doctoral program at the University of Waterloo. Students must meet the eligibility requirements as outlined in our IDSA database entry.

Effective May 1, 2019 (spring 2019 admissions cycle), the International Master’s Award of Excellence (IMAE) will be awarded to eligible international master’s students normally entering a research-based graduate program at the University of Waterloo. The award will be valued at $2,500 per term for a maximum of five terms. Faculties will nominate eligible students based on their award allocation and select recipients based on academic excellence as demonstrated through their application for admission to the graduate program and other criteria as identified by the Faculties.

Interested students can refer to our IMAE database description for detailed eligibility criteria. 

The Canada Graduate Research Scholarship - Doctoral (CGRSD) program recognizes and supports the next generation of outstanding innovators, knowledge workers, creative thinkers and researchers. Funded by the three federal granting agencies (CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC), this scholarship supports domestic and international doctoral students with up to $40,000 per year for three years.

The OGS program is funded by the provincial government to encourage excellence in graduate studies at the master’s and doctoral levels. It is a merit-based scholarship and awards are available to students in all disciplines of academic study. A small number of these awards are available to international students. Interested students can refer to our OGS web page for eligibility criteria and Waterloo’s internal application process.

The Trudeau Scholars Program grants up to fifteen new scholarships every year to outstanding doctoral candidates in the social sciences and humanities. The Foundation supports doctoral candidates pursuing research of compelling present-day concern, touching upon one or more of the four themes of the Foundation: human rights and dignity, responsible citizenship, Canada in the world, and people and their natural environment. Trudeau Scholars are actively engaged in their fields, in which they are expected to become leading national and international figures.

Trudeau Scholars are selected through a process that involves nomination by a university, an application supported by references and transcripts, internal and external review and selection panels, an interview, and the formal approval of the Board of Directors.

Interested students can refer to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Scholarship website for more information.

For additional scholarship resources, please visit our financial need funding web page.