Graduate Student Scholarship: Eligibility, Deadline & How to Apply

The Alberta Advanced Education, in partnership with Alberta Innovates invests in the support of academically superior graduate students undertaking full-time research education at an Alberta university, leading to a research-based Master's or Doctoral degree.

Master's full value: $26,000
Top-up value: $12,000

Notes:

• Tri-Council Scholarships (Doctoral and Master's), China Scholarship Council and other major award (valued at $17,500 or higher) holders who win an AI GSS will receive a top-up value for the duration of their eligibility, and the AI GSS start date will align with the other external scholarship start/renewal date, as determined by the GPS
• AI GSS years of funding vary depending on the student’s program admit term. Please refer to the Eligibility and Term of Scholarship Chart under Alberta Innovates GSS Program Guidelines and Handbook
• This award can be held concurrently with Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship (AGES).

Eligible applicant requirements:

• There are no citizenship restrictions on this award.
• A minimum of 3.5 GPA is an eligibility requirement for all applicants. The GPA will be calculated based on the current graduate program graded coursework at the University of Alberta, or, if a student is newly admitted, the admission GPA (AGPA) will be used to determine eligibility.
• Students applying for a master's level Alberta Innovates GSS must have been admitted to their master's program no earlier than Spring 2024.
• Students applying for a doctoral level Alberta Innovates GSS must have been admitted to their doctoral program no earlier than Spring 2022. This includes any time spent in a master’s program (if transferred from master’s to doctoral program). 
• Areas of study and research must fall into the categories funded by Alberta Innovates: Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies (AMM).
  • Note: If the research project involves developing or advancing an emerging technology (ET) listed here, it is considered development (eligible). The primary objective must be the advancement of the ET itself, rather than improvements in other products. Conversely, if the project involves developing a technology that is not an ET but utilizes ET as a tool, it would be categorized as the use of ET (ineligible), rather than ET development.
• Each candidate must be sponsored by a faculty supervisor, possessing both a record of productive research within an Alberta Innovates-funded research area (ICT and AMM) and sufficient resources to ensure the satisfactory conduct of the research.
• For those not yet registered in a graduate program at U of A, your eligibility to apply for the Alberta Innovates GSS is contingent upon meeting all eligibility requirements for admission to a U of A graduate program. Applicants are to contact their prospective department for information on those requirements.
• Students cannot simultaneously hold and/or receive more than a total of four years of combined master’s/doctoral support from Alberta Innovates (across all programs). This includes support from the Alberta Innovates Graduate Student Scholarship, Alberta Innovates Graduate Student Scholarship for Data-Enabled Innovation, the Alberta Innovates Graduate Studentship (Health), and the Alberta SPOR SUPPORT Unit (AbSPORU) Graduate Studentships.

Students must apply directly to GPS via the GSMS Awards Portal.

A complete application includes:

1. Alberta Innovates Graduate Student Scholarship Application Form - for questions related to the content of each section, students are encouraged to seek advise from their program supervisor(s) or department.

Students may also refer to the Tips & Tools for a Successful Scholarship Application located under Award Resources webpage.

2. Up-to-date Transcripts of the student's complete academic record (this includes all undergraduate and graduate studies, completed or ongoing):

a. Unofficial U of A transcript (can be obtained from BearTracks) that shows current term registration

3. Two Letters of Reference. Referees must complete their assessments using the Google Form. Students are responsible for providing this link to their referees, and the documents necessary for them to write their respective letters.

Students should contact their referees well in advance and follow up with their referees to ensure the form is submitted by the deadline.