Vanier Scholarship

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Deadline
Likely in August 2024
Annual Value
$50,000
Citizenship
Canadian
Permanent Resident
International
Degree Level
Doctoral

 

The Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS) program is designed to attract and retain world-class doctoral students by supporting students who demonstrate both leadership skills and a high standard of scholarly achievement in graduate studies in the social sciences and humanities, natural sciences and engineering, and health-related fields. The Vanier CGS is valued at $50,000 per year for up to three years.

 

Eligibility

Please see the Vanier CGS website for complete eligibility criteria .

Evaluation Criteria

Nominees will be evaluated and selected based on the following three criteria, which will be weighted equally by the selection committees:

• Academic Excellence
• Research Potential
• Leadership (Potental and Demonstrated Ability)

Please see the Vanier CGS website for complete selection criteria .

Application Procedures

UBC Vanier applicants will complete their Vanier application using ResearchNet , an online application system. Applicants to UBC must submit their complete Vanier application package via ResearchNet by 12 noon (PDT - Vancouver time) on Thursday, August 31, 2023.  Late applications will not be accepted.

Applicants should refer to the Vanier CGS website for step-by-step application instructions .

To apply, applicants must do the following by the deadline noted above:

Notify their chosen UBC graduate program that they intend to apply for the Vanier CGS.  

• This is an important step as your UBC graduate program should be aware of your intention to apply for the Vanier as they must support (nominate) your application in order for it to reach the university-wide stage of the award competition.

Provide official, up to date transcripts to their UBC graduate program for all post-secondary studies (including studies that did not lead to a degree, e.g., exchange / transfer course grades) up to 31 August 2023.

• UBC transcripts:
  • The “Academic History” document (provided by graduate program – not available on SSC) is acceptable. Official UBC transcript is also acceptable.
  • For applicants registered at UBC in the 2023W1 (Fall 2023) term, the UBC transcript (or Academic History) must list the student’s 2023W1 (Fall 2023) registration. 
  • Must include UBC transcript key. The current version is available here .
• Other transcripts:
  • Only official transcripts will be accepted by Vanier.
  • Acceptable:
    • Official transcripts from UBC admission application (evision system): Scanned copies of official transcripts, accessed by the UBC graduate program from evision, that were validated and uploaded by G+PS (i.e., transcripts listed as “Transcripts & Diplomas – Official” under ‘Document Type’ in evision)
    • "Certified true" copies of official transcripts from the UBC graduate program’s own files.
    • Official transcripts sent directly from the issuing institution to the UBC graduate program.
  • Not acceptable:
    • Unofficial transcripts (no water mark or registrar’s signature or registrar's stamp and/or may note ”unofficial” on each page and/or copied from institution student account)
    • Transcripts uploaded by the applicant for UBC admission (ie. transcripts in evision system that are not verified by G+PS)
    • Applicant’s personal copies of official transcripts
  • Official transcripts: Typically include a watermark from the institution and/or a registrar’s signature and/or stamp. Must be easily legible for selection committees, and must include the institution’s name and/or logo.
  • Up to date transcripts: Dated or issued in the summer session (summer 2023) (if currently registered) or after the last term completed (if not currently registered).
  • International transcripts: For students including foreign transcripts, if the transcripts are not presented in one of Canada’s two official languages (English or French), a certified translation must be provided, in addition to the official transcripts in its original language.
  • Include one copy of marking key / legend (usually on back of transcript) for each institution.
• The graduate program may have some of the applicant's transcripts on file already; if so, well in advance of the application deadline, the applicant must confirm with the graduate program which transcripts the program has on file and will provide to support the Vanier CGS application, and which transcripts the applicant must still provide to the graduate program.
• If the applicant needs to provide any transcripts in support of their Vanier CGS application, the graduate program must receive the original, official transcripts from the issuing institution.
• Note: “transcripts for post-secondary studies” includes transcripts from transfer credit courses and exchange or study abroad terms.
  • Example: UBC transcript lists study abroad terms at “Sciences Po” institute in Paris. The courses are listed as transfer credit on the UBC transcript, but the grades are not listed. The official Sciences Po transcript must be provided.
• Questions about transcript requirements should be directed to the graduate program; the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies does not provide transcripts for Vanier applications
• It is the applicant's responsibility to confirm that their graduate program has all of their required transcripts for their Vanier application
• Transcripts are not attached to the Vanier application by the application deadline.  The nominating institution will attach the official transcripts later, should the application be nominated to the Vanier CGS national competition.

Request letters of support from four referees:

• two letters from referees assessing the applicant's academic excellence, research potential and demonstrated and potential leadership ability are submitted electronically through ResearchNet by the referee
• two leadership reference letters ; two PDFs are provided to the applicant, who uploads the letters to his or her electronic application file
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI): Referees are encouraged to review Vanier’s EDI resources to incorporate EDI considerations in their reference letters.
• See further information regarding referee assessments.

Create a “Vanier-Banting Academic” CV

Prepare the other required documents (Research Contributions, Personal Leadership Statement, Special Circumstances [if applicable], Research Proposal, Project References, and Voluntary Self-Identification Form for Indigenous Applicants [optional], Part time and joint research graduate program information document [if applicable]).  The presentation standards  and page limits set by Vanier must be followed.

Submit a completed Vanier CGS application via ResearchNet

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI): Applicants are encouraged to review Vanier’s EDI resources to incorporate EDI considerations in their application package.

Self-Identification of Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and/or Métis) Applicants

Additional funding allocations may be made available to the University to accommodate applicants who self-identify as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and/or Metis). Applicants who choose to self-identify as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and/or Metis) should complete the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship (Vanier CGS) Voluntary Self Identification Form and upload it within their application. Research administrators will use this information to identify Indigenous students, but will not be shared with selection committees.

 

Please see the Vanier CGS website for detailed application/nomination instructions .

Nomination Procedures

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies will provide electronic copies of applications submitted by their current and prospective students to UBC graduate programs shortly after the applicant deadline. Graduate programs are to review their applications for eligibility and completeness, rank their applications, and select their nominees.

Transcripts for applicants should be collected by graduate programs. Transcript requirements are described under "Application Procedures" above. Please make sure that transcripts are legible.

Graduate programs are required to review their applicants and submit their nominees to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies by 4:00 pm PT on Tuesday, September 19, 2023.

A complete nomination package will consist of the following:

Cover memo listing nominated applications in rank order (only required from graduate programs submitting more than one nominee)

Nomination letter for each nominee

• Must be 2 pages maximum
• Must be signed by the Department Head or Program Director, on the institution's letterhead
  • If signed by someone other than the Department Head, it should be clearly indicated in the letter that the signee has authority to nominate candidates to the Vanier CGS program.
• Refer to Vanier’s instructions for the content of the nomination letter (scroll to halfway down the page in link above)
• If submitting more than one nominee, do not include internal graduate program ranking in the nomination letter

A complete set of official, up to date post-secondary transcripts (both sides scanned, arranged in order from most recent to oldest). Format:  PDF, with a separate file for each nominee.

• Note: Vanier indicates that a summary of international grading systems must be provided for transcripts from international institutions.  This document will be appended to the nomination package by G+PS, should the applicant be selected to be nominated to the national competition.  Graduate programs do not need to include such a document in their nomination packages.

Please follow our file naming conventions:

cover memo - Vanier_PROGRAM_memo (e.g., Vanier_MEDG_memo.pdf)

nomination letter - Vanier_AGENCY_PROGRAM_LastName_FirstName_Nomination.pdf (for example, Jane Xu from Medical Genetics who is applying for CIHR Vanier - Vanier_CIHR_MEDG_Xu_Jane_Nomination.pdf)

transcripts - Vanier_AGENCY_PROGRAM_LastName_FirstName_Transcripts.pdf (ex. Vanier_CIHR_MEDG_Xu_Jane_Transcripts.pdf)

Additional resources for graduate programs are posted on the Awards Administration webpage .

The nomination packages are to be submitted by programs via your department’s UBC Sharepoint folder (within the umbrella folder ‘Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies – Programs – Folder Structure”)(named “FACULTY – DEPT“; e.g., “ARTS – PSYC”).

Adjudication Procedures

The Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies will convene an adjudication committee composed of UBC faculty members to review nominations submitted by graduate programs and select UBC's nominees to the national competition. This committee is made up of three subcommittees, one for each of the federal funding agencies.

Canadian universities each have a limit to the number of nominations they may submit to the Vanier CGS competition. The deadline for universities to submit their nominations to the national competition is 1 November 2023.

Results of the national competition are to be released to applicants in April 2024. For details about the adjudication process at the national competition level, please see the selection committee guide on the Vanier CGS website.

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Further Information

Official Vanier CGS website: https://vanier.gc.ca/en/home-accueil.html