Stipend Funding 2024-2025

The information on this page is accurate as of February 2024

Graduate students in the IPN receive guaranteed funding in the form of annual student stipends. McGill University defines a student stipend as "an award paid to a student from a supervisor's research funds which will assist the student in qualifying for a degree or other scholastic recognition in the field in which the research is being carried out." Student stipends are intended to financially support the student, so that they can pay for their tuition and fees, and living expenses. Stipends are given to the student throughout their degree, given that they demonstrate adequate progress and meet the required program milestones. Personal, loan-based funding, or family financing is not permitted as part of stipend funding.

All prospective students, both Canadian and International are encouraged to apply for external funding. This includes fellowships and awards allocated by:

• Federal departments and agencies (i.e. CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC for Canadian applicants)
• Canadian awards for international students (Vanier CGS, Trudeau Scholarship)
• Foreign government awards for study in Canada (check with your country’s educational authority)
• Provincial departments and agencies (i.e. FQRNT, FQRSC, FRSQ)
• Foundations
• Private companies

The estimates below, based on historical levels, are used to determine the IPN minimum stipends. These numbers are calculated before the university sets its new tuition rates around May each year. Although McGill's final tuition and fees may differ from our estimated numbers, the numbers posted below should be used as the minimum stipend students receive for the 2024/25 year.

MSc Students

PhD Students

We will be offering continued financial support for all existing international students to account for the increase in the fees and new international students will have the opportunity to be supported by differential fee support via a competitive mechanism. International PhD applicants who do not win a competitive differential fee support can be recruited with support from their supervisor.

1. International Differential Fee (IDF) Awards bring an international PhD student’s stipend obligations for the supervisor down to Canadian student levels.

2. Existing international PhD students will continue to receive IDF awards if they received them in the past.

3. International MSc’s who successfully fast-track to the PhD will receive IDF awards.

4. Supervisors must nominate new international PhD recruits to be entered in a competition for the fixed number of IDF awards available each term. To nominate a candidate, use this link. 

5. International Ph.D. nominees for the IDF award will be evaluated by the IDF Awards Committee. Supervisor and student will be notified of the result within approximately one week.

6. If your candidate does not win an IDF package from the IPN, you may still recruit them, but will be obliged to support them at the full amounts specified in the table above.

7. The IPN offers recruitment awards to top Master's and Doctoral IPN applicants demonstrating high academic standing and strong research potential in the field of neuroscience. Recruitment awards are above and beyond the annual stipends provided by the thesis supervisor or by other funding agencies, and will go toward paying the incoming student's fees in their first year of the program. The IPN will review applications through an internal committee and contact students who are selected.

8. Supervisors filling out the LOU for an international PhD student who has not yet been awarded the IDF Award may select the option on the online form to create a conditional LOU, which specifies that the student will only be accepted if they receive the award.

Top-up policy for fellowship recipients (as of Jan 1, 2024)

Students are expected to apply for competitive fellowships as these strengthen your CV and provide important financial support for your host lab. As an added incentive and in recognition of your success in these competitions, IPN expects supervisors to provide top-ups that bring your stipend above the mandated IPN minimum stipends. Top-up amounts should be no less than the following:

For awards < living allowance:

Student stipend is the living allowance, plus tuition/fees/insurance, plus at least 10% the value of the scholarship.

For awards ≥ living allowance and <$35,000:

Students receive their full award, plus tuition/fees/insurance, plus at least 10% the value of the award.

For awards ≥$35,000:

Students receive their full award plus tuition/fees/insurance.

IPN Recruitment Awards:

The IPN offers recruitment awards of $2,000-$10,000 to top Master's and Doctoral IPN applicants demonstrating high academic standing and strong research potential in the field of neuroscience. Recruitment awards are above and beyond the annual stipends provided by the thesis supervisor or by other funding agencies, and will go toward paying the incoming student's fees in their first year of the program. The IPN will review applications through an internal committee and contact students who are selected.

IPN policy on stipend payments after thesis submission:

1. Students should receive the full stipend until the final deposition of the MSc or PhD Thesis.
2. Following final thesis deposition, as long as a student continues contributing constructively to the lab (e.g., paper writing, training new students, etc.) they should continue to receive the stipend until the end of the term, unless the student and supervisor mutually agree to terminate the stipend earlier. However, the equivalent of tuition, fees and insurance for the full term must still be covered.
3. An agreement about stipend payment should be reached at the time of initial thesis submission to prevent miscommunication over future timelines.  Students should not be penalized for delays in the scheduling of their thesis evaluation that are outside their control. 

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