Prestigious awards are an opportunity for University of Waterloo researchers to be recognized and rewarded by external organizations for the value of their research.
The Waterloo Awards Committee promotes and facilitates the submission of high-quality nominations of Waterloo scholars across all disciplines for prestigious awards and honorific titles.
The list below provides detail categorized by discipline with further detail about eligibility requirements, etc.
Please note that deadlines or anticipated deadlines change often so check the website for the organization that is presenting the award regularly to be sure of the deadline.
Humanities and Social Sciences
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Awards
Upcoming Deadlines
All dates and links are anticipated but may change between now and the final deadline. Please note that many sponsors do not update their websites until 2-3 months before the deadline date. Always double-check sponsor websites before committing to a nomination.
Watch for updates on deadlines for awards in the following categories:
General Interest
All dates and nomination requirements are subject to change. Please consult the sponsor’s websites before committing to a course of action.
Federation of Chinese Canadians Award of Merit
The Award has been given annually since 1985 to recognize the outstanding professional achievements of distinguished Chinese-Canadians. Of note, the Award of Merit is intended for and has traditionally been bestowed upon senior academics who have made significant contributions to their field of scholarly work.
| Value of award | $2,500 |
| Eligibility requirements | Nomination is open to both academic and public institutions. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by two distinct nominators by individual letters. An application consists of:
Applications may be e-mailed to rtsao@epsteincole.com or mailed. |
| Deadline | August 30 |
| Website | https://fccpontario.com/ |
John Simon Guggenheim Fellowships
The purpose of the Guggenheim Fellowship program is to help provide Fellows with blocks of time in which they can work with as much creative freedom as possible. Fellows may spend their grant funds in any manner they deem necessary to their work.
| Value of award | Amounts vary year-to-year; Minimum of six months and a maximum of 12 months |
| Eligibility requirements |
Canadian/American citizen (or permanent resident). No second fellowships are granted. |
| Submission process |
No nomination required: candidates apply directly to sponsor. An application consists of the completed online form and three supporting documents submitted in PDF format. |
| Deadline | September 15 |
| Website | http://www.gf.org/applicants/the-united-states-canadian-competition/ |
Humanities and social sciences
All dates and nomination requirements are subject to change. Please consult the sponsor’s websites before committing to a course of action.
Molson Prize
The Molson Prizes are intended to encourage continuing contributions to the cultural and intellectual heritage of Canada. The prizes are awarded annually to distinguished Canadians, one in the arts and the other in the social sciences and humanities.
| Value of award | $50,000 (two prizes) |
| Eligibility requirements |
Canadian citizen or permanent resident. Candidates must have made a substantial and distinguished contribution over a significant period. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by either an individual or an organization. An application consists of:
|
| Deadline | October 1, 2022 |
| Website | http://canadacouncil.ca/funding/prizes/molson-prizes |
Health Sciences
All dates and nomination requirements are subject to change. Please consult the sponsor’s websites before committing to a course of action.
Canada Gairdner International Award
The Foundation's aim is to honour and reward outstanding biomedical scientists who have made original contributions to medicine with the ultimate goal of contributing through research to the conquest of disease and relief of human suffering.
| Value of award | $100,000 (5 awarded annually) |
| Eligibility requirements |
Open to residents of any country without restriction. Candidates must have seminal discoveries or major scientific contributions that constitutes an original and significant achievement in biomedical science. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by someone from the scientific community. An application consists of:
|
| Deadline | October 1, 2022 |
| Website | https://gairdner.org/awards/international-awards/ |
Canada Gairdner Global Health Award
The John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global Health Award recognizes the world’s leading researchers who have used rational, scientifically based research to improve the wellbeing of those facing health inequalities worldwide. While a single significant scientific discovery would continue to be sufficient evidence to select a nominee, the Award will also recognize outstanding researchers who apply rational scientific approaches to successful implementation, evaluation and policy interventions.
| Value of award | $100,000 (1 awarded annually) |
| Eligibility requirements |
Open to residents of any country without restriction. Candidates must have seminal discoveries or major scientific contributions that constitutes an original and significant achievement in biomedical science. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by someone from the scientific community. An application consists of:
|
| Deadline | October 1, 2022 |
| Website | https://gairdner.org/awards/global-health-award/ |
Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)
All dates and nomination requirements are subject to change. Please consult the sponsor’s websites before committing to a course of action.
The Douglas R. Colton Medal for Research Excellenc
Candidates for the award will have made significant contributions while completing graduate studies in the form of a Master's or PhD degree sometime during the three years prior to nomination for the award. The three-year period provides time for the impact of the contribution to become more apparent, for example, through publications, citations, or commercial interest.
| Value of award | $4,500 award; Medal |
| Eligibility requirements |
Candidates for the award will have made significant contributions while completing graduate studies in the form of a Master's or PhD degree sometime during the three years prior to nomination for the award. The three-year period provides time for the impact of the contribution to become more apparent, for example, through publications, citations, or commercial interest. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by a university, a microelectronics or microelectronics-related company in Canada or jointly by a company and a university An application consists of:
|
| Deadline | August 26, 2022 |
| Website | https://www.cmc.ca/awards/ |
Abel Prize
The Abel Prize recognizes outstanding scientific work in the field of mathematics, including mathematical aspects of computer science, mathematical physics, probability, numerical analysis and scientific computing, statistics, and also applications of mathematics in the sciences.
| Value of award | 7.5 million Norwegian Kroner |
| Eligibility requirements | The prize is meant to recognize contributions of extraordinary depth and influence to the mathematical sciences. Such work may have resolved fundamental problems, created powerful new techniques, introduced unifying principles or opened up major new fields of research. The intent is to award prizes over the course of time in a broad range of fields within the mathematical sciences. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated. An application consists of:
|
| Deadline |
September 15, 2022 |
| Website |
Sloan Research Fellowships
The Sloan Research Fellowships seek to stimulate fundamental research by early-career scientists and scholars of outstanding promise. These two-year fellowships are awarded yearly to 126 researchers in recognition of distinguished performance and a unique potential to make substantial contributions to their field. Candidates must hold a Ph.D. (or equivalent) in chemistry, computer science, earth system science, economics, mathematics, molecular biology, neuroscience, physics, or a related field.
| Value of award |
USD $75,000 Two-year period to cover costs of equipment, technical assistance, professional travel, trainee support, summer salary, or any other activity directly related to the Fellow's research. |
| Eligibility requirements |
Candidates must hold a tenure track (or equivalent) position at a college, university, or other degree-granting institution in the United States or Canada Tenure track faculty positions at the candidate's institution must include a yearly teaching requirement Candidates must hold a Ph.D. (or equivalent) in chemistry, computational or evolutionary molecular biology, computer science, economics, mathematics, neuroscience, ocean sciences, physics, or a related field Candidates' most recent Ph.D. (or equivalent) must have been awarded on or after September 1, 2010. Exceptions may apply. |
| Submission process |
Candidates must be nominated by a department head or other senior researcher. Maximum of 3 nominees from the same department. Applications for a Sloan Research Fellowship must be uploaded and submitted to the Foundation through the Foundation’s online web portal on SurveyMonkey Apply. |
| Deadline | September 15, 2022 |
| Website | https://sloan.org/fellowships |
Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement
Prizes are awarded for outstanding achievements in any one of the following:
- The protection, maintenance, improvement, or understanding of an ecological or an environmental condition anywhere in the world.
- The discovery, further development, improvement, or understanding of known or new sources of energy.
- Discoveries or achievements with such worldwide implications that significantly benefit environmental aspects of human health.
| Value of award | USD $200,000; a gold medallion |
| Eligibility requirements | Living individuals or public or private institutions of any nation are eligible for nomination. Persons or institutions eligible to make nominations include, but are not limited to: any individuals or entity in fields such as biology, oceanography, geology, medicine, public health, chemistry, physics, engineering and social sciences. |
| Submission process |
Nominations must be submitted in the English language and include the following information as requested on the Nomination Form and emailed to: nominations@tylerprize.org.
|
| Deadline | August 12, 2022 |
| Website | https://tylerprize.org/ |
Stockholm Water Prize
This is the most prestigious prize for outstanding achievements in water-related activities. It recognizes women, men and organizations who have made outstanding contributions to the sustainable use and protection of the world’s water resources. The main achievements of the candidate should be within one or both of the following categories:
- Policy and Practices: This broad category covers achievements in the continuum from political initiatives to practical implementation that has improved the governance and management of water, as a natural and economic resource and/or as a human right and basic service.
- Research: This category includes both basic and applied research to develop new knowledge of and scientific leadership.
| Value of award | 1,000,000 SEK; A crystal sculpture |
| Eligibility requirements | A candidate for the Stockholm Water Prize shall have attained outstanding achievements of lasting significance for sustainable use and protection of the world’s water resources. The results achieved by the candidate shall have proven impact or great potential and provide stimulation for further important contributions to the conservation and protection of water resources and to improved health and well-being of the planet’s inhabitants and ecosystems. |
| Submission process |
Anyone can submit a nomination for the Stockholm Water Prize, however, self-nominations or nominations by persons with direct professional or family ties to the candidate are not permitted. |
| Deadline | September 30, 2022 |
| Website | https://www.siwi.org/prizes/stockholmwaterprize/ |
