Scholarship at a glance
Institutional deadline: Monday, October 5, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. (AT)
Value: $40,000 per year for up to three years
Scholarship type: Entrance or in-program
Degree level: Doctoral (PhD)
Available to: Canadian and International applicants
Description
The Canada Graduate Research Scholarship — Doctoral (CGRS D) is a scholarship in the Canada Research Training Awards Suite (CRTAS) administered by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). The program recognizes and supports the next generation of outstanding innovators, knowledge workers, creative thinkers and researchers. By providing support for a high-quality research training experience to awardees, the program strives to foster impacts within and beyond the research environment.
Eligibility
- You must have completed no more than 36 months of full-time equivalent study in the doctoral program for which you are requesting funding by December 31 of the calendar year of your application.
- If you are not a Canadian citizen, permanent resident of Canada or protected person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada), you must be registered in your doctoral program of study at an eligible Canadian institution by the application deadline.
- You can apply a maximum of three times to the CGRS D program.
- You cannot have already received a doctoral-level scholarship from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC (including a Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship).
- More details regarding eligibility can be found on the .
How to apply
The application channel you choose depends on your registration status on the application deadline date and/or your registration status during the calendar year of application. Where you intend to hold the award has no impact on the channel through which you must apply. If you fail to submit your application through the correct channel, your application will not be considered.
More information on selecting the correct channel can be found under the heading Where to submit an application.
- Visit the for information on selecting the appropriate funding agency and follow the instructions found on the individual agency links listed there.
- For those applying through , applications must be submitted to the relevant agency portal by ’s institutional deadline of Monday, October 5, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. (AT).
- In addition to submitting your application to the relevant agency website, you must also create an application in the Faculty of Graduate Studies’ online to assist in conducting the internal review process. To do so, please click the link to the platform, create a new application under Major Scholarship Competitions 2026/2027 and select the Tri-Agency CGRS D Internal Review category. This also must be completed by Monday, October 5, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. (AT). Note: If you are a student with a NetID and password, please access the platform by clicking “Use NetID”
Please contact fgs.slo@dal.ca for more information.
Acceptance of awards
Tri-Agency Doctoral awards (CGS-D, PGS-D, or SSHRC Doctoral Fellowships) may be taken up in May, September or January in the year following the competition provided the student meets all eligibility criteria for the award.
For CIHR awards, offers must be accepted or declined by completing the Response to Offer task in and other required steps, if applicable.
For NSERC and SSHRC awards, award recipients must accept or decline by sending an email to the appropriate , stating whether you accept or decline, and confirming the start date.
Doctoral students wishing to activate a Tri-Agency award in May must submit a copy of the Notice of Award and a completed and signed ٴ fgs.slo@dal.ca as soon as possible to avoid delays in payment, and should consult with their department on the impact this might have on other department-level funding over the summer.
Doctoral students wishing to activate the Tri-Agency award in September/January must provide this documentation to fgs.slo@dal.ca by July 1st to avoid delays in payment in the fall or winter.
Eligibility criteria
You must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada.
As of December 31 of the year you are applying for the scholarship, you must have completed no more than 24 months of full-time study in your doctoral program if previously enrolled in a master’s program.
Requirements vary if you are enrolled in a joint master’s/PhD program (such as MD/PhD) or if you enrolled in a PhD program directly from a bachelor’s program (with no time spent in a master’s program). Visit the for complete eligibility requirements.
Application overview
SSHRC, CIHR and NSERC doctoral competitions each have their own eligibility and application requirements. This may include specific priority research areas for each funding body which may change year-over-year.
Applications must be submitted through the respective Tri-Agency portal. To facilitate the internal review process, you are also required to create a Tri-Agency Doctoral application in FGS’s . This application is for internal purposes only and does not replace your Tri-Agency application.
Please see above for detailed guidelines on the application process for each of the three competitions.