2027 Canada Graduate Research Scholarship - Doctoral Competitions now open

July 16, 2026

The Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS-D) supports outstanding doctoral students across all disciplines. Administered by CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC under the Canada Research Training Awards Suite, the award program aims to develop research excellence, innovation, and the development of highly qualified researchers.

The Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) coordinates the process for selecting UVic’s top doctoral students for nomination to the national CGRSD competition. Applicants must complete and submit their applications through the appropriate tri-council portal.

UVic internal deadlines:

NSERC & CIHR: September 24, 2026
SSHRC: September 22, 2026

Please note that deadlines vary slightly by agency.

Applicants who are current UVic students, or who have been registered during the calendar year of application, must apply by the UVic internal deadline.

Award Value and Duration

$40,000 per year
Up to 36 months

Eligibility

Applicants should review the complete eligibility criteria on the CGRS-D program website. FGS also strongly recommends that applicants consult the Tri-agency’s guidance on Selecting the Appropriate Agency before beginning an application.

Applicants must be enrolled in a doctoral degree program that must be predominantly research oriented, leading to the completion of a thesis, major research project, dissertation, scholarship publication, performance, recital and/or exhibit that is merit-/expert-reviewed at the institutional level as a requirement for completing the program.
Applicants must have completed no more than 36 months of doctoral study completed by December 31 of application year.
The Tri-councils count all studies toward the doctoral degree for which funding is requested, regardless of whether or not they were completed in the same program or at the same institution.
Applicants may submit only one tri-agency doctoral application per year.
Applicants may apply for this funding opportunity a maximum of three times, provided that each application advances to the national competition stage.

International Students

Must be enrolled in a Canadian doctoral program at time of application
Limited to approximately a maximum of 15% of tri-agency awards nationally and at UVic

Nomination Procedures

Applicants submit an application through the appropriate CGRS-D portal (CIHR, NSERC, or SSHRC).
Completed applications must be submitted by the applicable UVic internal deadline.
Departments review applications and nominate their top candidates to the FGS.
FGS conducts a comprehensive review of nominated applications to ensure they are complete and meet all competition requirements.
A UVic campus-wide adjudication committee reviews and selects applications that will advance to the national competition.
UVic submits selected applicants to CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC.
Funding decisions are made by the respective tri-council.
Competition results are typically announced mid- to late May each year.

UVic Tri-council Information Sessions

Both Zoom and in-person information sessions will be offered in mid- to late August 2026. The timing reflects the later September 9, 2026, start of the academic year and aligns with UVic’s internal application deadlines.

These sessions will provide an overview of the CGRS-D competition process, application requirements, tips for preparing a strong application, and an introduction to the UVic faculty coaches, who offer feedback on research proposals and writing.

Before attending the UVic Tri-Agency Information Sessions, students are encouraged to review the Learn About the Scholarship materials available on the FGS website.

	CIHR	NSERC	SSHRC
ZOOM	August 12, 2026	August 20, 2026	August 12, 2026
	1:00pm - 2:00pm	11:00am - 12:00pm	10:00am - 11:30pm

IN-PERSON	August 25, 2026	August 19, 2026	August 25, 2026
	9:00am - 10;00am	11:00am - 12:00pm	10:00am - 11:30am
	CLE A225	JCC, Senate Chambers	JCC, Senate Chambers