Call for faculty project submissions: Global Health Scholars Program - Summer 2026

GHP is now accepting faculty project submissions for the 2026 Global Health Scholars program. Submit your project by November 11th, 2025!

Background

The McGill Global Health Scholars - Undergraduate program provides opportunities for McGill undergraduate students to learn about and gain experience in global health through participating in research projects. Over the summer, each Global Health Scholar is involved in a global health project in either an International or Northern Canada site location or from Montreal or Gatineau, under the mentorship of a McGill faculty member. During the academic year following their summer project, Global Health Scholars benefit from a variety of education, training and networking opportunities organized by McGill Global Health Programs (GHP), including the Insight Nights seminar series custom-designed for Global Health Scholars, GHP's annual Global Health Night event, complimentary access to the McGill Summer Institutes in Global Health, and other activities.

The current call invites McGill faculty to submit proposals for global health research projects that could benefit from the support of an undergraduate Global Health Scholar in summer 2026. Selected projects will be offered to the 2026 cohort of Scholars, with participating faculty serving as the supervisor for the student assigned by GHP. Faculty supervisors are expected to provide guidance and mentorship throughout the summer. GHP will provide funding to support student travel, where applicable, as well as a modest stipend.

Key dates

• Launch of Call for Faculty Project Submissions: October 8, 2025
• Submission Deadline: November 11, 2025 at 11:59 pm
• Announcement of Faculty Project Submission Results: December 9, 2025
• Launch of Call for Student Applications: January 6, 2026
• Deadline for Student Applications: February 8, 2026
• Faculty members evaluate and interview applicants: March 2026
• Announcement of Results to all student applicants: March 20, 2026

Project eligibility:

• The project must address a critical global health challenge or priority with an explicit connection to population health outcomes.
• GHP welcomes project submissions from every Faculty, Department and School within McGill University.
• The faculty member must be prepared to provide hands-on supervision and mentorship to the Scholar throughout their summer 2026 project.
• The Principal Investigator of the project must be a McGill faculty member.
• The project site location(s) must be International, in Northern Canada, or in Montreal or Gatineau.
• All international and Northern Canada projects must identify a site location as well as an onsite partner or supervisor who has agreed to host a McGill undergraduate student in summer 2026. Faculty are encouraged to involve these collaborators in shaping the project objectives outlined in your proposal.
• Global Health Scholars cannot engage in clinical care or clinical training.
• Research projects involving human subjects must have the approval of all appropriate ethics boards by May 2026 to be eligible to receive support via the program.
• GHP only supports travel to countries and regions with a Government of Canada travel advisory risk level of Level-1 (“take normal security precautions”) or Level-2 (“exercise a high degree of caution”).
  • As per McGill’s International Mobility Guidelines, students are not permitted to travel to or through countries or regions with a Government of Canada travel advisory risk level of Level-3 (“Avoid all non-essential travel”) or level Level-4 (“Avoid all travel”).
  • Review the latest Government of Canada travel advisories.

Funding and hours:

• Students completing projects locally (in Montreal or Gatineau) will receive a stipend of $3,000.
• Students completing projects that involve travel (either internationally or in Northern Canada) will receive an additional $3,000, bringing their total stipend to $6,000 to offset travel expenses.
• If a student initially selected for a project that involves travel becomes unable to travel for personal reasons, the award may be rescinded, and an alternate student may be selected, at the discretion of GHP in consultation with the faculty supervisor.
• The first disbursement of funds to students will be in May 2026. A 10% holdback amount will be disbursed to students in March 2027 upon completion of all deliverables of the Global Health Scholars program.
• Selected students must complete 210 hours of work (equivalent of 6 weeks full-time) between May 1 – August 31, 2026. The student and their faculty supervisor will determine the student’s schedule together.
• Any work on the project that exceeds 210 hours is not covered by GHP. In such instances, the student and their faculty supervisor must mutually agree on compensation before extending the project.
• For international or Northern Canada projects, students are expected to spend a minimum of three weeks on site. If there are compelling reasons why this may not be possible, these should be discussed with GHP well in advance of student travel. GHP will review such requests and determine whether the project can proceed with a shorter onsite period.
• For local projects (Montreal or Gatineau), the student must spend the majority of their time onsite, working in a hands-on learning environment and integrated within a team. Projects that primarily entail “working from home” or working remotely are ineligible.
• Costs relating to data usage, graphic design software, and carrying out research are not eligible. Faculty supervisors are expected to cover all research-related costs.

Global Health Scholars application process:

• Students will apply via the Global Health Scholars program application portal, to be posted on the GHP website in January 2026. Applicants cannot apply via faculty members.
• GHP will shortlist the most competitive student applications and share them with faculty members in late February 2026. Faculty members will refrain from contacting or interviewing students before receiving the shortlisted applications from GHP.
• Faculty members conduct interviews in the first half of March 2026 and identify their preferred candidates to GHP. GHP will subsequently notify selected students of their program acceptance.
• Faculty members are encouraged to include their on-site partners or supervisors in the selection process and interviews.
• The faculty member will make the final decision on which student(s) are selected for their project.

Additional instructions relating to travel:

• Students traveling for their project must have access to comprehensive supervision from an established member of the research team. 

• If the faculty supervisor will not accompany the student, they must designate an on-site supervisor and ensure the student is fully briefed on the project before departure.

• Any changes to the student’s project location from what was proposed in the submission must be communicated to GHP in advance.

• The partner institution must be informed that the student will be working at their facility and provided with all relevant travel details and emergency contact information.

• For students traveling for their project, the faculty supervisor must work with the student to ensure that appropriate accommodation is identified and that a clear plan for local transportation between the accommodation and project site is established prior to departure.

Program expectations for faculty members:

• Establish a project workplan with the student at the outset, clearly defining the roles and responsibilities of both parties, outlining the student’s expected deliverables, and, for students who are traveling, including a budget to ensure a shared understanding throughout the collaboration.
• Introduce the student to project staff, communicate the student’s role and responsibilities to the team, involve the student in team meetings or calls with project partners, and provide any reading materials and training necessary for their assigned tasks.
• Offer constructive feedback to the student to support their professional growth.
• Notify GHP in a timely manner if the student is not meeting expectations as outlined in the project workplan established between the faculty supervisor and the student.
• Contact GHP immediately in case of any incident or safety concerns encountered by the student during their project work.
• Complete a mid-point check-in survey in July 2026 and the final survey in October 2026, providing feedback to GHP on your experience with the Global Health Scholars program.

Program expectations for Scholars:

All students selected as Global Health Scholars must:

• Attend a two-part training and orientation on global health research ethics in April 2026.
• Attend a project debrief workshop in September 2026.
• Complete a mid-point check-in survey in July 2026 and a final report in October 2026. These reports serve as reflections on the Global Health Scholars program and facilitate feedback. Report content is used by GHP for communications materials and donor stewardship reports. A comprehensive review paper or journal article is not expected. A template will be provided for both reports.
• Attend at least three events in the Insight Nights Seminar Series tailored exclusively towards Global Health Scholar undergraduates (held once per month between October 2026 and March 2027).
• Present a poster on their Global Health Scholars project at GHP’s annual Global Health Night event in November 2026. The poster is not required to present final research results.

Scholars who are traveling to an international or Northern Canada work site are required to:

• Complete the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS) online pre-departure training at least 4 weeks prior to departure.
• Register their itinerary via the McGill Student Travel Registry at least 4 weeks prior to departure.
• Regularly monitor their McGill email address while abroad as this is the primary way through which we communicate with students.

Additional training opportunities:

• Global Health Scholars have the opportunity to participate (free of charge) in a maximum of two courses offered by the McGill Summer Institutes in Global Health in Summer 2026 or Summer 2027. Participation in Summer 2026 should not disrupt the pre-established work plan between the faculty supervisor and student.
• Scholars are strongly encouraged to take either PPHS 511. Fundamentals of Global Health.  (3 credits) or the Interprofessional Global Health Course during the 2026-2027 academic year.
• Faculty supervisors are encouraged to consult with their Scholar in advance to identify and recommend any training needed to prepare for the upcoming research project.

How to apply:

All faculty project submissions must be submitted through the Global Health Programs online project submission portal.

Additional information:

To learn more about the Global Health Scholars Undergraduate Program please visit the main Global Health Scholars Undergraduate Program page.

Global Health Programs contact:

Please direct all inquiries to studentaffairsghp.med [at] mcgill.ca.