Few full-time graduate students in electrical and computer engineering are expected to finance the costs of their graduate education entirely from personal resources. Graduate students may receive financial support in three forms. The first of these is a scholarship for scholastic achievement. Several external agencies provide substantial scholarships for which electrical and computer engineering students are eligible. Most important amongst these are the scholarships provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) (available only to Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents).
The Province of Ontario provides a limited number of Ontario Graduate Scholarships (OGS) for postgraduate studies in Ontario universities. Preference is given to residents of Ontario, although a small number are also available to foreign students studying in Ontario. The Province of Quebec also provides scholarships through “Le Fonds Québécois de la Recherche sur la Nature et les Technologies” (FQRNT) to Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents resident in Quebec, tenable for graduate studies at the University of Ottawa.
Applications for these scholarships should be made by the end of October through the student’s own university. The earliest the scholarships may commence is May of the subsequent year.
Sources of Funding
Scholarships
Visa students from Commonwealth countries are eligible for Canadian Commonwealth Scholarships. These provide sufficient funding to entirely support a student’s graduate program. Students apply for these scholarships through the Commonwealth Scholarships Committee in their home country. Visa students are also frequently fully funded by agencies of their home government for graduate studies abroad. Applicants with external scholarships should provide evidence of the award of the scholarship and provide full details of the scholarship when they apply.
Scholarships are also provided by the universities to students. No application is required to be considered for these as all eligible students are automatically considered by the departments. Applications for admission should be received in full by April to be assured of consideration for such internal scholarships. NSERC and OGS scholarship recipients should note that they ordinarily will be given supplementary scholarships from the universities.
Graduate Teaching Assistantship
As part of the Graduate Teaching Assistantship, students are required to assist as a demonstrator and/or marker in an undergraduate course. Please note that tuition fee waivers are not part of any offer of a Graduate Teaching Assistantship.
Graduate Research Assistantship
The Graduate Research Assistantship is the major source of funding for most full-time students. This assistantship may be provided by the thesis supervisor for assistance in research work.
Although the value of the various forms of support offered by the departments to their students may vary in composition among the three components, the total support does not vary significantly across the Institute.
Visa students should note that the financial support available from the Institute for them is extremely limited and when offered, is usually insufficient to bear the full costs of graduate study. Consequently, such students must be able to supply part of their own funding and will have to provide proof that they have adequate support to be admitted to Canada.
The funding of students is determined by each department. For more information contact:
Carleton University
University of Ottawa
Tuition Fees
The tuition fees charged by the universities are different for Canadian citizens or Permanent Residents and for foreign students studying in Canada on student visas (except for those who receive for a Differential Tuition Fee Waiver discussed below). In addition to tuition fees, students must also pay various additional small amounts in ‘incidental fees’ (which may total up to almost five hundred dollars annually). The tuition fees are adjusted annually by the universities. Tuition fees are charged on a per term basis.
For current information on tuition fees see:
Carleton University
University of Ottawa
In 1987, the Province of Ontario instituted a program which allowed some visa students to attend universities in the province and be subject only to the regular fees paid by Canadian students. The program provided each university in the province with a limited number of Differential Tuition Fee Waivers which could be awarded to visa students making the recipient subject only to the Canadian fee levels at the particular university for the period of the award. The recipients of these awards are determined on a university-wide competitive basis by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. The number of these waivers is very limited at both universities, so obtaining a Waiver is difficult. No application for these waivers is necessary as all those who are eligible and would require such an award are considered to be put forward by the Institute. All material relating to an application for admission must be received before the end of February to be considered for a Waiver at both universities.
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