UVic graduate funding

FGS scholarships, fellowships, and awards are offered to graduate students entering or continuing at the University of Victoria.

• FGS graduate funding may be held until a student has met the registration and eligibility criteria.
• Renewal of graduate awards is not automatic; consideration of renewal is at the discretion of the department offering the award and is contingent upon the maintenance of a cumulative grade point average of at least 7.0/9.0.
• All graduate award holders must maintain continuous full-time registration for the period in which they hold their award (CAL students must maintain at least 1.50 units of registration per term). A student may interrupt their award only for: parental, medical or compassionate circumstances. Requests for interruptions must be approved by both the student’s academic unit and the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
• Graduate awards are not portable from one department to another nor can they be transferred to a different institution.
• Tuition and fees are not deducted from graduate award payments.
• Communication with students is done by email. Ensure the email you use regularly is identified as your “preferred email address” on your “personal profile” in your UVic Online tools account.
• To receive graduate funding either by direct deposit or a mailed cheque, students must normally have a Canadian address on their UVic Online Tools, Profile account. If an international student arrives after the start of a term, it is their responsibility to inform FGS that their address has been updated in their Online Tools, Profile account to receive payment.
• Award payments will cease at the end of the term the student takes the final oral and/or written examination.
• Any payment made for a period during which a student is not eligible to hold graduate funding must be reimbursed to the university.
• Students who hold a UVic Fellowship or British Columbia Graduate Scholarship cannot hold tri-council (CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC) funding concurrently.
• A scholarship or award may be withheld or cancelled if there is a lack of suitable candidates, if a donor withdraws the scholarship or award, or if the student receiving the scholarship or award withdraws from UVic or fails to meet the requirements for the scholarship/award.
• The university reserves the right to limit the amount of money awarded to any student, and if necessary, to reassign scholarships and awards to other students. 

Funding will not be issued if a student:

• Is not registered.
• Has insufficient registration for the award offered (see above eligibility requirements).
• Has provisional admission.
• Has overdue fees or fines from a previous term.
• Does not have a Canadian address in their Online Tools, Profile account.
• Takes their final oral and/or written examiniation (funding ceases at the end of this term).

1. No duties are attached to these fellowships.
2. All fellowship holders must maintain continuous full-time registration (3.0 units) during the tenure of their award. Full-time registration for students who are registered with the Centre for Accessible Learning (CAL) is 1.5 units. You may interrupt your award only for reasons of maternity, child-rearing, illness or health-related family responsibilities. Requests for interruptions must be approved by both your academic unit and Graduate Studies, and may require additional documentation. Contact the Graduate Studies Scholarship Officer before initiating a leave of absence.
3. There is a limit on the total length of time a student may hold a fellowship. It is the policy of the Faculty of Graduate Studies not to continue fellowships beyond the second year of a master’s program, or the fourth year of a doctoral program. Exceptions may be made upon a departmental request to the Dean of Graduate Studies. In the case of a student proceeding directly from a bachelor’s degree, support may be maintained for four years.
4. Renewal of a fellowship is not automatic. Consideration for subsequent awards is dependent upon the maintenance of a cumulative grade point average of 7.0/9.0 and the recommendation of the department/school. *Starting September 2024, renewal GPA will be 6.0/9.0. 
5. University of Victoria Fellowship holders may not hold another major award (e.g. SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR) in conjunction with an UVic Fellowship. However, Research and Teaching Assistantships (regardless of the source of the payment) may be held together with an UVic Fellowship. Should a student be offered a major award after acceptance of a fellowship, the fellowship must be forfeited. It is the student’s responsibility to write to the Graduate Scholarship Officer at least one month prior to the payment start date of the other major award, to resign the fellowship. If a student fails to do so, and collects fellowship money concurrently with another major award, the amount paid out by Graduate Studies must be repaid. Additional disciplinary action may be taken after consultation with the department/school concerned. *Starting 2024-25 students may hold concurrently a UVic Fellowship and tri-agency funding. 
6. Students are required to notify the Faculty of Graduate studies, attention to a Scholarship Officer in writing as soon as possible if you wish to decline a fellowship offer.
7. Fellowships are not portable form one department/school to another.
8. Award payments will not continue in a subsequent term if fees from the previous term have not been paid in full, or if a student has other unpaid university fees.
9. Tuition fees are not deducted from fellowship payments. Students are responsible for paying their tuition fees through Accounting Services.
10. Fellowship payments will cease at the end of the term the student takes the final oral and/or written examination. Only under exceptional circumstances will there be a continuation of the award into a subsequent term and this must be approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.
11. Any payment made for a period during which you are not eligible to hold the fellowship must be reimbursed to UVic.

General eligibility criteria

To be eligible for graduate funding students must:

• Be unconditionally admitted to their masters or doctoral degree program at UVic.
• Have a minimum 7.0/9.0 (UVic scale) or a first-class standing for a UVic Fellowship, President’s Research Scholarship, Donor Award, or a UVic Graduate Entrance Award.
• *Starting September 2024, UVic Fellowships will require a minimum 6.0/9.0 (UVic scale) or second-class standing for new International students. 
• Have a minimum 6.0/9.0 (UVic scale) or a second-class standing for a UVic Graduate Award.
• *2024-25 UVic Fellowships will replace the UVic Graduate Award.
• Meeting the general GPA eligibility does not guarantee that you will receive a graduate award.
• Students receiving a President's Research Scholarship must have an active tri-agency award. 
• Students awarded a UVic Fellowship need to ensure they have reviewed the UVic Fellowship Regulations to ensure eligibility.

Registration eligibility

To be eligible for graduate funding students must:

• Be in full-time registration each term (minimum 3.0 units) for a UVic Fellowship, President’s Research Scholarship, UVic Graduate Entrance Award, donor award (unless otherwise specified), or any tri-agency funding.
• Be in a minimum 1.50 units per term for a general Graduate Award.
• Be registered with the Centre for Accessible Learning (CAL) to be considered full time when registered in 1.5 units. Students registered with CAL are considered for all UVic graduate scholarships when registered in 1.5 or more units. Students must identify themselves to FGS and send a copy of their CAL letter to scholoff@uvic.ca.

General registration information

• To avoid any delays in funding payments, register at least two-to-three weeks in advance of each term in the required number of units.
• A change to registration status after the start of a term will affect your scholarship. It may result in the loss of the scholarship and a requirement to repay funds to the university.
• Contact the Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) well in advance of any change in registration. Email the Scholarship Officer contact in your offer letter from FGS.
• Retroactive changes to your registration status may also result in a requirement of scholarship repayment, and/or loss of a scholarship.
• Students considering a leave of absence of any kind (personal, parental, medical, or compassionate) need to speak to a scholarship officer (refer to your award offer letter for the contact information) in the Faculty of Graduate Studies. Each type of leave will have a unique impact on graduate scholarships and needs to be addressed individually.
• Overdue tuition and fees or UVic fines of any kind will result in a hold on your FGS payments.

FGS funding may be paid in installments over the academic year depending on the value of the student’s award:

• Funding is disbursed within the academic year (September to August) based on the payment schedule and value of the award.
• Funding value and start and end dates are outlined in the FGS award offer letter.
• Scholarships of $1,000-$3,000 are paid in one installment over one term, typically at the start of the first term of registration, but this will vary depending on when the nomination is made.
• Scholarships of $3,500-$5,500 are paid in two installments over two terms, typically at the start of each term (i.e., September and January term).
• Scholarships valued at $6,000-$10,000 are paid in three installments over three terms, typically at the start of each term of registration (i.e., September, January and May).
• Scholarships of $10,500 and higher are paid in 12 monthly installments over the academic year, typically in time for the first of each month. Federal council awards (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC) and any other externally funded awards will be paid in monthly installments.
• FGS President's Research Funding will cease at the termination of the student's tri-agency funding. 
• Donor awards may be paid on a different installment schedule, as they are disbursed by the fiscal year, not over the academic year.
• If a student’s funding was on hold and is now resolved, payments will resume but it may take up to 10 business days for the payment to be processed; it is not an instantaneous payment.
• Tuition and fees are not automatically paid out of UVic graduate funding; students are responsible for paying their tuition and fees on time.
• Funding is not automatically renewed; renewal is at the discretion of the student's department.

Funding will not be issued if a student:

• Is not registered.
• Has insufficient registration for the award offered (see above eligibility requirements).
• Has provisional admission.
• Has overdue fees or fines from a previous term.
• Does not have a Canadian address in their Online Tools, Profile account.
• Takes their final oral and/or written examiniation (funding ceases at the end of this term).

Scholarships, medals, prizes, and awards are awarded to students primarly on the basis of academic merit. Other additional criteria, as specified in the terms of reference will be considered when selecting recipients. Normally, the department specificed in the terms of reference will select the recipients.  Donor awards are adjudicated over the fall. Successful recipients will be contacted early December. 

• Except where the terms of reference for a graduate scholarship or award otherwise specify, recipients of a donor award must normally register and maintain enrolment in a minimum of 3.0 units in each term in the academic year or,
• Be registered with the Centre for Accessible Learning (CAL) to be considered full time when registered in 1.5 units. Students registered with CAL are considered for all UVic graduate scholarships when registered in 1.5 or more units. Students must identify themselves to FGS and send a copy of their CAL letter to scholoff@uvic.ca.
• Students normally must have a minimum 7.0/9.0 (UVic scale) in order to receive a donor award.
• FGS reserves the right to limit the amount of money awarded to any student, and if necessary, to reassign scholarships and awards to other students.
• A scholarship or award may be withheld or cancelled if there is a lack of suitable candidates, if a donor withdraws the scholarship or award, or if the recipient withdraws from UVic or fails to meet the eligiblity criteria for the scholarship or award. 
• Students understand by accepting donor award funding they are agreeing that their names be released to their department and donor. 

Funding will not be issued if a student:

• Is not registered.
• Has insufficient registration for the award offered (see above eligibility requirements).
• Has provisional admission.
• Has overdue fees or fines from a previous term.
• Does not have a Canadian address in their Online Tools, Profile account.
• Takes their final oral and/or written examiniation (funding ceases at the end of this term).