Some of the greatest institutions and universities in the world are located in Canada. Many students worldwide see studying in Canada as a way to get a world-class education at a lower cost than in nations like the United States, the United Kingdom, or Australia. Coming to Canada as an International Student also offers the opportunity to be a part of a growing multicultural community and apply for permanent residence after completing your education.
However, one must overlook the reality that foreign education can be costly due to tuition, living expenses, and other fees. As a result, having enough money to support your foreign study is critical.
The good news is that the students in need of financial aid have various choices to consider. We’ll go through these possibilities in-depth in this article and provide some helpful resources to help you get started with your financial assistance application.
Youth Agriculture Education Program
The Youth Agriculture Education programme stream promotes the development and delivery of effective agriculture education programmes that are science-based, topic-driven, and curricular-linked and that encourage students to use critical thinking to engage in meaningful and informed discussions about issues that affect the public trust in agriculture.
Applicants who are eligible:
- A registered agricultural society under the Societies Act.
- a group of commodities
- A college or university*
- A district of schools*
- a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation*, or
- A Municipal District (containing a County and Hamlet), a Special Area, a Specialized Municipality, or an Improvement District is a recognized (as established by the Minister) form of rural municipal government in Alberta.
*Please keep in mind that any non-agriculture industry organizations will need to work with and be supported by the agriculture industry.
Submission Deadline: Ongoing
Contact
- Contact Name: Dean Dyck
- Phone Number: 403-742-7958
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
First Nations Enhanced Education Infrastructure Fund
The Capital Facilities and Maintenance Program includes the Enhanced Education Infrastructure Fund. This programme assists First Nations in the construction of new schools, the renovation and expansion of existing facilities, as well as the operation and maintenance of existing educational infrastructure.
Applicants who are eligible: First Nations communities.
Submission Deadline: September 30, annually
Contact
- Contact Name: Indigenous Services Canada (ISC)
- Phone Number: 1-800-567-9604
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Partnership Engage Grants by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
Partnership Engage Grants should react to the Insight and Connection programmes‘ objectives. Partnership Engage Grants, on the other hand, are unable to respond solely to the Connection program’s objectives.
These grants provide short-term and timely support for collaborative research activities that will inform decision-making at a single public, private, or non-profit partner organization. Partnership Engage Grants support small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships that respond to immediate needs and time constraints organizations face in non-academic sectors.
Applicants who qualify:
- A solitary researcher or a group of researchers (one applicant and one or more co-applicants and/or collaborators) may apply.
- At the time of application, applicants must be affiliated with an appropriate Canadian post-secondary institution.
- Applicants who have received an SSHRC grant of any sort but have not filed an achievement report by the time stipulated in their Notice of Award are ineligible to apply for another SSHRC award until the report has been submitted.
- Postdoctoral scholars who have formally established an affiliation with an eligible institution at the time of application and maintain that connection for the duration of the award period is eligible to apply.
- On a Partnership Engage Grant, students are not eligible for the applicant or co-applicant status.
Institutions that qualify:
- Only an approved Canadian post-secondary institution can manage grant monies. Institutional eligibility must be held or obtained by institutions intending to administer a grant awarded under this funding opportunity.
- To begin the institutional eligibility application process or if they have issues about institutional eligibility, institutions must contact Corporate Strategy and Performance.
Co-applicants who qualify:
- If you are formally linked with any of the following, you are eligible to be a co-applicant:
- Eligible post-secondary institution, not-for-profit organization, philanthropy foundation, think tank, or municipal, territorial, or provincial government in Canada.
- The post-secondary institution is located outside of the United States.
- Co-applicants must be postdoctoral researchers who are affiliated with a post-secondary institution.
Collaborators who qualify:
- Anyone who makes a significant contribution to the project is able to participate as a collaborator. Collaborators do not need to be affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution to participate.
- Only collaborators from the business sector or the federal government are allowed to participate.
Organizations that are partners:
- Only one Canadian or foreign organization from the public, private, or not-for-profit sector can participate as a partner organization. As partner organizations, post-secondary institutions, and any organization or association linked with or serving them, are not eligible.
- Partner organizations are expected to provide cash and/or in-kind resources to the partnership’s activities.
- Partnership Development Grants and Partnership Grants are available to researchers who are engaging in formal partnerships with more than one partner organization.
Submission Deadline: September 15, December 15, March 15 and June 15 (Annual)
Contact
- Contact Name: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council
- Phone Number: 613-943-1007
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Major & Signature Grants by Calgary Foundation
Signature & Major Grants help charity organizations in all industry sections by giving funding for single or multi-year, large-scale charitable activities that have a broad scope and improve our communities. Grants assist local or national programmes that have an impact on Calgary and the surrounding area by tackling key challenges and inspiring a large number of persons to participate in philanthropic activities.
All eligible efforts are welcomed by the Calgary Foundation, especially those that help to address the following issues:
- Poverty reduction
- promoting mental well-being
- Living a life of creativity
- Relationships with indigenous peoples are being strengthened.
- Investing in a future that is both environmentally and economically sustainable
The programme also places a premium on long-term capital projects. Each candidate may submit just one proposal per deadline.
Eligible applicants:
- Charitable organizations that have been registered
- Align with the mission, vision, and priority areas of the Calgary Foundation.
- Having a positive impact on our community by addressing key concerns and encouraging many residents to participate in philanthropic activities.
- Encourage collaborative and innovative partnerships.
- Are at a high level of readiness
- Demonstrate sound planning, a strong financial case, organizational resilience, and stable leadership with a track record of implementing large-scale initiatives.
- Improve the Calgary Foundation’s reputation as a charitable leader by a significant amount.
Submission Deadline: November 1 Annually
Contact
- Contact Name: Calgary Foundation
- Phone Number: 403-802-7700
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Smart & Caring Community Grants Program
Smart and Caring Grants assist in making communities in Southeastern Alberta a better place to live for everyone by increasing citizen belonging and strengthening the non-profit and voluntary sectors. We use a detailed method to assess the most critical community needs using data and evidence-based practice when giving funding. Grants are then given out depending on the potential for impact and the availability of funds. Donors allocate their investment income to their specified organizations or school divisions through Designated Endowment Funds (including Field of Interest, Donor-Advised, and Scholarships).
Eligible applicants:
- It is a charitable organization that serves Southeastern Alberta (the area covered by the foundation)
- It is a registered charity with the Canada Revenue Agency, and it has a charitable registration number (CRA)
- It is a qualified donee, according to the CRA’s website.
Submission Deadline: March 15 and September 15 annually
Contact
- Contact Name: Chris Christie
- Phone Number: (403) 527-9038
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
College and Community Innovation Program (CCI)

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) manages the College and Community Innovation (CCI) Program in collaboration with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). All submissions must be submitted to the National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC). Applied Research and Development (ARD) Grants are available in various fields, including natural and social sciences, engineering, humanities, and health. Grants are granted by NSERC, with the exception of funded projects exclusively in the social sciences, humanities and/or health sciences, which will be given by SSHRC or CIHR, as appropriate.
Applicants who qualify:
Canadian colleges that have been certified eligible to administer funds by at least one of the three federal granting bodies (NSERC, CIHR, and/or SSHRC) may apply. Suppose the intended research and knowledge/technology transfer activities fall wholly under the purview of a single granting agency (NSERC, CIHR, or SSHRC). In that case, the college must be deemed eligible to receive financing from that granting agency.
- The college must offer programmes in natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and/or health sciences and programmes related to the proposed applied research areas.
- Faculty members participating in ARD Grants at the college must be involved in applied research in the natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and/or health sciences.
- Faculty in the natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and/or health sciences must access space, facilities, and services to perform practical research.
For awards up to $75,000 per year, the qualified firm partner(s) must actively participate and offer at least half of the required CCI support, in cash and/or in-kind—of which at least half, i.e. 25%, must be in cash. For example, if the applicant asks for $75,000 per year, the employer must provide at least $37,500 per year, with a cash contribution of at least $18,750.
For grants of $75,000 to $150,000 per year, the eligible firm partner’s contribution(s) must be at least equal to the amount requested in CCI assistance, in cash and/or in-kind—with at least 40% in cash.
Submission Deadline: No deadline.
Contact
- Contact Name: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Phone Number: 1-855-275-2861
Discovery Grants Program by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Rather than a single short-term study or a set of initiatives, the Discovery Grants programme encourages continuing research programmes with long-term goals. These awards honour the ingenuity and invention that are at the heart of all scientific breakthroughs.
Applicants who are eligible:
Applicants who are eligible to apply for and hold money must meet the following criteria:
- Principal investigator in a grant proposal (i.e., university faculty). The candidate must be a designated institutional administrator for the College and Community Innovation (CCI) Program.
- Member of a research group applying for a team grant as a co-applicant (i.e., university faculty or college faculty).
Individual researchers receive Discovery Grants for five years. Researchers can only apply for and hold one Discovery Grant at any given moment. Researchers who have received a Discovery Grant are not eligible to apply for another until the last year of their current award.
Submission Deadline: August 1 (notification of intent to apply); November 1 (application)
Contact
- Contact Name: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Phone Number: 1-855-275-2861
College and Community Innovation Program – Innovation Links Grants
Grants for Innovation Links foster college-university relationships with the private sector in order to achieve effective commercialization. The CCI Program and the company partner(s) split direct project costs. The duration of a project can be up to three years.
Innovation Relationships Grants aim to build and expand research links between colleges, universities, and enterprises to speed the development of innovative ideas and encourage their commercialization in the Canadian market.
Partnership Arrangement for Eligible Applicants:
Links to Innovation Grants take advantage of the diverse range of capabilities found at Canadian colleges and institutions. The project leader can be a college or university candidate. According to the eligibility standards for colleges or universities (as appropriate) of at least one of the three federal granting agencies (NSERC, CIHR, and/or SSHRC), the project lead must be eligible to manage federal granting agency funding. The project lead’s institution will receive and administer the grants. The project lead’s institution will transfer funds to the other institution in accordance with the application’s approved budget once the grant monies have been communicated to the lead institution by NSERC, CIHR, or SSHRC.
The firm partner(s) must engage in the study and pay the needed monetary and in-kind contributions to the direct costs of research. The proposal must specify which academic institution the commercial partner’s contributions would be addressed, including any cash contributions.
Submission Deadline: No deadline.
Contact
- Contact Name: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Phone Number: 1-855-275-2861
Alliance Grants by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Alliance Grants enable university researchers to cooperate with non-profit, public, or commercial sector partners. These funds fund research projects led by strong, complementary, collaborative teams that will generate new knowledge and speed up the application of research findings to benefit Canada.
Applicants who are eligible:
You can apply on your own or in a group with co-applicants who are also eligible academic researchers if you are a Canadian university researcher eligible to receive NSERC money. You must have at least one partner organization (private, public, or not-for-profit) whose cash contributions will be recognized for cost-sharing. Still, you may include other partner organizations that play an important role in your research project regardless of whether their cash contributions will be recognized for cost-sharing.
Submission Deadline: No deadline.
Contact
- Contact Name: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Phone Number: 613-995-1111
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Engage Grants by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
Engage Grants are intended to provide access to the unique knowledge, skills, and capabilities offered at Canadian institutions and colleges to creative enterprises with a Canadian base (see the List of Eligible Institutions). These funds are intended to support short-term research and development projects targeted at tackling a company-specific problem, that is, a challenge connected to the company’s core competencies or activities, to stimulate the establishment of new research partnerships.
Because of the shortened application and decision processes, university and college researchers can swiftly start new research collaborations that apply academic expertise to these issues. The mutually beneficial projects are expected to generate economic benefits for both the applicant and Canada and impactful long-term relationships between the two parties.
Eligible Applicants:
Engage Grants are open to researchers at either universities or colleges. The partnering company must be involved in the project and provide in-kind support, and the company and the researcher must not have worked together before.
Submission Deadline: Ongoing
Contact
- Contact Name: NSERC – Prairies Regional Office
- Phone Number: 1-877-767-1767
- E-mail Address: [email protected]
Conclusion
Fundings and grants are financial aid provided by institutions, organizations, governments, or individuals to assist international and domestic students and organizations in funding their education.
Students in Canada can apply for a variety of grants. The grants are non-repayable and can be one-time or recurring annual payments for the duration of your post-secondary education. They are frequently awarded based on academic achievement or achievements in sports, philanthropy, or the arts.
Grants can be obtained from various places, including post-secondary institutions, non-profit foundations, community organizations, government agencies, and private businesses.
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