Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) and the Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology (QEII-GSST) Application Instructions

• Complete this section with your information. 
• Applicants who identify as Indigenous on the application form must complete the Indigenous verification process prior to submitting their application.

• Indicate the details of your current or proposed department where you are planning to hold the scholarship if you are successful. This is the department to which you will submit your application. 
• Indicate the level of studies that you will be in when starting the scholarship, if successful.
• If you are applying to multiple graduate departments at Waterloo, you must select one of those departments and submit your OGS/QEII-GSST application there. Applicants may only submit one OGS/QEII-GSST application per annual competition at Waterloo. 
   

• Complete this section with your information. 

• Indicate the full names and email addresses of the referees that are submitting letters for you as part of your OGS/QEII-GSST application.
• Referees must email a typed and signed letter on letterhead (if available) to the department graduate co-ordinator of the department to which you are submitting your OGS/QEII-GSST application.

• If you currently hold or previously held federal/provincial awards, indicate the total number of years you were awarded the scholarships.
• The number of years indicated should include the entire duration of the award up to the end date, even if you have not received the full award yet.
• This section is used for determining eligibility and, therefore, should not include any declined awards. Only include awards that you accepted and received. Declined awards can be included in Section 6.
• If you have not received any federal or provincial awards, check the box at the end of this section.
   

• In the table, indicate ALL current, previously held, or declined post-secondary competitive scholarships. 
• You may include other academic or professional awards that you think would be most pertinent to the adjudication of your application.
• Repeat all federal and provincial awards from Section 5.
• Abbreviate scholarship/agency names where possible to fit within the character limit of cells.
• Declined awards can be included; indicate DECLINED in the # of months held column.
• Do NOT list high school awards.
• Do NOT list non-competitive awards such as Graduate Experience Awards (GEA), Graduate Research Studentships (GRS), or International Doctoral Student Awards (IDSA). 

If typing directly into the text box, a font style and size will automatically be assigned to typed text. If you are copying/pasting from another document, use Helvetica, Arial or Calibri font, size 10 or more in the original document. Applicants must use the space provided in each field. Text that extends beyond the available text box will not be visible or considered as part of the application.

All fields of this section are required for all applicants, including those in course-based programs. All applicants must provide sufficient information to demonstrate evidence of all criteria under which their application will be evaluated, including research ability.

• Research or project title: Provide a concise title that clearly identifies your research, project, or topic.
• Summary: Provide a brief overview of your research, project, or topic using plain language. Highlight what you plan to investigate or explore, how you will approach it, and its significance or potential contribution, as appropriate. Use the space provided.
• Research proposal / Statement of Interest: Provide a detailed description of your proposed research, project, or area of study. Explain what you propose to investigate or explore, why it is important, and how you plan to carry out the work. The proposal should demonstrate your research ability and provide sufficient detail for reviewers to evaluate the application against the OGS/QEII-GSST selection criteria.

State the objectives; outline the experimental or theoretical approach to be taken; and explain the methods and procedures that will be used. Provide a detailed description of the planned research and/or project during the period in which the award will be held. If a specific project has not been decided upon, you must still provide a detailed description of research or a project/topic that you would like to explore.

While you should be as specific as possible, you must use plain language so that it can be read by someone without any specific knowledge of your particular area of research, but who is familiar with your broader discipline.

• Provide background information to position the proposed research or project/topic within the context of the current knowledge in the field. State the significance of the research or project/topic in the particular field.
• Do not refer to or include URLs as reviewers do not have time to look up the information.
• Waterloo expects applicants to write their own research proposal/statement of interest independently, and that ideas and/or texts belonging to others are properly referenced.
• Use the bibliography/citations section to acknowledge any works referred to or used in preparation of your research proposal or statement of interest. You may use whichever official style guide you are most comfortable with, as long as you are consistent. 

Appendix A (if applicable): One additional page may be included for formulas, schemes or drawings if needed. This page should be labelled as “Appendix A”. A one-sentence caption can be included to label the object(s), if needed. No additional text can be included on this extra page. Appendix A can either be merged with the application as the last page in the PDF, or attached as a separate PDF when emailed to the department graduate co-ordinator.

If typing directly into the text box, a font style and size will automatically be assigned to typed text. If you are copying/pasting from another document, use Helvetica, Arial or Calibri font, size 10 or more in the original document. Applicants must use the space provided in each field. Text that extends beyond the available text box will not be visible or considered as part of the application.

Do not include any articles that are currently in preparation (excluding thesis) or those on which you do not appear as an author.

List your contributions chronologically, beginning with the most recent, within each applicable heading. Each contribution should appear on a new line. Use only the headings that apply to you, and list them in the order indicated below.

1. Thesis/Dissertation (completed and/or in-progress)
2. Articles published or accepted in peer-reviewed journals
3. Articles submitted to peer-reviewed journals (provide submission number, if available)
4. Other peer-reviewed contributions (for example, communications, papers in peer-reviewed conference proceedings, posters) 
5. Non-peer-reviewed contributions (for example, specialized publications, technical reports, conference presentations, posters)
6. Patents and copyrights awarded (for example, software, but not publications)
7. Patents and copyrights submitted

Use the following format:

• Full authorship as it appears or as it will appear in the original publication (with your name in bold), Year, Title, Publication name and volume, First and last page numbers

Example: 

a. Articles published or accepted in peer-reviewed journals

Li, H., Surname, X.X., and Kay, M. (1994) Protein-structure interactions in cell membranes. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 269: 1120-1124 (PhD work).

What does “peer-reviewed” or “refereed” mean?

It is the process used by publishers and editors of academic or scholarly journals to ensure that the articles they publish meet accepted standards of their discipline. Manuscripts under consideration for publication are sent to independent experts in the field (the author's scholarly/scientific peers). These experts evaluate the quality of the scholarship, reliability of findings, relevance to the field, appropriateness for the journal, etc. Most scholarly journals are peer-reviewed.

If typing directly into the text box, a font style and size will automatically be assigned to typed text. If you are copying/pasting from another document, use Helvetica, Arial or Calibri font, size 10 or more in the original document. Applicants must use the space provided in each field. Text that extends beyond the available text box will not be visible or considered as part of the application.

List any relevant professional/community involvement, extracurricular activities, and academic work experience.

• You may include a short description of items if you wish (i.e., TA duties, etc.). 
   

If typing directly into the text box, a font style and size will automatically be assigned to typed text. If you are copying/pasting from another document, use Helvetica, Arial or Calibri font, size 10 or more in the original document. Applicants must use the space provided in each field. Text that extends beyond the available text box will not be visible or considered as part of the application.

In the space provided, you may describe any special or extenuating circumstances that have affected your academic progress, performance, or productivity. These may include administrative responsibilities, parental leave, medical or illness-related circumstances, disability, cultural or community commitments, family responsibilities, or other circumstances that have affected your progress, including delays in disseminating research results or completing your degree.

If you are beyond your program term limits, use this section to describe any extenuating circumstances that have contributed to your extended program duration.

The weight given to any special circumstances will be determined by the faculty/department OGS/QEII-GSST ranking committees.