Financial Support for IPN Students
Guaranteed Funding
Stipends for all our Students
As of September 2008, gradute students in the IPN are guaranteed annual Stipends, provided that they make adequate progress through the program and meet program milestones. These stipends are intended for student living expenses and tuitions and fees. Stipends come from the thesis supervisor, from external fellowships and from awards provided by the IPN.
Differential Fee Waivers for International PhD Students
IPN will cover the tuition fee differential between International and Canadian Ph.D. students, as done previously under the MIDAs program. This means that, effectively, international PhD students pay the same tuition fees as students from Quebec. An exception to this will be in the case of international students who enter into the program with their own external sources of funding. These students will be expected to cover their own international fees.
In the case of students who are entering with external awards that do not fully cover their international tuition, the supervisor will be asked to split half the cost of tuition with the IPN.
Recruitment Awards
Overview
The Integrated Program in Neuroscience administers recruitment awards to new applicants applying to our Masters and PhD programs. This includes students transferring within the IPN from the Masters Program to the PhD Program. These are one-time awards; they are above and beyond the stipends that supervisors pay. We reserve funds for recruiting outstanding students who demonstrate high academic ability and display a strong desire to pursue graduate research in neuroscience. Early application to IPN is encouraged, as it is at the discretion of the IPN to allocate these funds based on available resources; we terminate the competition when available funds have run out.
Be sure to look through:
IPN Recruitment Awards [.pdf]
Masters Recruitment Awards
The goal of the Masters Recruitment Awards is to attract top-flight undergraduate students to our Masters program. The IPN awards committee will allocate Recruitment Awards based on available funds to newly applying students with a cumulative undergraduate GPAs ≥ 3.65, once they have found a supervisor and committed to graduate work in the IPN. It is not necessary for students to apply directly for these awards because they are considered when they submit a completed application to the IPN. Please note that funds are limited and it is at the discretion of the IPN to terminate recruitment once all available funding has been disbursed.
Awards for Students transferring from the Masters program to the PhD Program
The purpose of these awards is to encourage outstanding students, who are completing their Masters work in the IPN, to stay in the program and pursue PhDs. Transferring students who wish to be eligible for these awards must submit a short application form, along with graduate and undergraduate transcripts and letters from their thesis supervisor and one member of their advisory committee to the IPN office before the application deadline, which for this year is May 14, 2011.
PhD Recruitment Awards
The goal of the PhD Recruitment Awards is to attract top-flight MSc students to enter the IPN PhD program. The criteria for these awards include the students' publication records, undergraduate and graduate grades and letters of recommendation. The Recruitment Awards are signing bonuses and their intent is to attract the best students to our PhD program. Students do not need to apply for these awards, because they are automatically considered when they submit a completed application to the IPN. Please note that funds are limited and it is at the discretion of the IPN to terminate recruitment once all available funding has been disbursed.
Internal Sources
McGill participates in a number of inter-departmental/inter-disciplinary training programs. Below are details of two of them that are relevant to IPN. These programs can be excellent sources of graduate student funding.
NSERC-CREATE Program in Medical Image Analysis
"The purpose of the NSERC Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE), industrial stream, is designed to help new researchers transition into the workforce. It provides them the opportunities to acquire professional skills and on-the-job experience in industry in tandem with participating in leading-edge research in areas considered to be of top priority for Canada's future."
"CREATE-MIA will provide up to 50% of the trainee's funding. The amount will depend on the amount of funding they are getting from other sources. Current NSERC guidelines for recommended funding levels will be taken into account."
NSERC-CREATE training in Auditory Cognitive Neuroscience
"The National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) funds our six-year mission to prepare researchers in Auditory Cognitive Neuroscience to be mobile among academic, industrial, and health care settings. Our training program provides financial assistance during internships and practicum placements with industry, academic, and health care partners across Quebec and Ontario."
"We provide awards to undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scholars from around the world who wish to pursue research training in Auditory Cognitive Neuroscience with with an ACN faculty mentor at one of our partner institutions. In addition, we offer workshops each year in relevant research topics and in professional development themes. Our mentors and curricula are distributed across McGill University, McMaster University, and University of Montreal. Students of all nationalities are eligible to apply to our program."
NSERC-CREATE Training Program in Neuroengineering
"The Neuroengineering CREATE team is based at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and brings together chemists, physicists, biomedical engineers, and neuroscientists to generate innovative techniques to study mechanisms of axon guidance and synaptogenesis. The CREATE team is also developing new techniques for using the output signals from synapses on synthetic matrices to control effector organs."
"The NSERC CREATE Neuroengineering training program seeks trainees at the graduate and post-doctoral levels. Canadian citizens, Permanent Residents of Canada, and International students are all eligible to apply."
CIHR Training Program in Neuroinflammation
"The Neuroinflammation Training Program has 16 Principal Investigators working on various aspects of neuroinflammation (see Research Areas ) whose laboratories are spread across Montreal: The Montreal Neurological Institute, Centre for Research in Neuroscience, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center, INRS-Institut Armand Frappier, Douglas Hospital Research Centre, Centre de recherche du CHUM, Centre for the Study of Host Resistance (MUHC), The Alan Edwards Centre for Research on Pain and others."
"Since 2002 we have given out 90 Graduate studentships and Postdoctoral fellowships, and 130 Travel Awards for travel to national and international meetings and conferences."
Apply for CIHR Training Program in Neuroinflammation graduate awards
External Sources
A number of external awards exist that IPN students are eligible to apply for. IPN students have secured funding from many sources including some of the following:
Vanier Fellowships The IPN does an internal pre-selection of Vanier nominees (applicable to both international and Canadian students). M.Sc. applicants who plan on pursuing a Ph.D. and Ph.D. applicants seeking a nomination for the Vanier Fellowship should submit with their application a self-assessment detailing the impact of their activities and accomplishments, and how they judge themselves to be a potential Vanier CGS recipient and a leader in their research and global communities.
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada
Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada
The Graduate and Postdoctroral Studies website has links and information about other fellowships that students may wish to consider. See the table below.
Which award is right for me?
Click to enlarge chart
