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| FINANCIAL
AID |
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Limited
financial assistance is available for students coming
from abroad. However, some schools may offer scholarships
(based on academic merit) specifically for foreign students.
It is best to ask the student advisor at your school to
see what is available. However, keep in mind that many
people apply for these awards, and scholarships do not
cover the entire cost of study. |
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| 1. Types
of Scholarships |
| 2. University
Funding |
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| Types
of Scholarships |
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| The
Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan |
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The
Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan enables Commonwealth
students of high intellectual promise to pursue studies
in Commonwealth countries. Awards comprise of travel,
a living allowance, and all compulsory tuition fees. |
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| Shastri
Indo-Canadian Institute |
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Shastri
Indo-Canadian Institute offers a number of fellowships
at various levels from graduate to post-doctorate and
from research and training fellowships to lectureships. |
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| Ontario
Graduate Scholarship Programme |
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Ontario
Graduate Scholarship Programme scholarships are available
to graduate students in a wide variety of disciplines.
Students must have been accepted to a Ontario university,
and obtained a valid student authorization. Social Science
and Humanities Research Council is Canada's funding agency
for university based research and graduate training in
social sciences and humanities which embrace a wide range
of disciplines and fields of knowledge. |
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| NSERC |
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National
Science and Engineering Research Council is a national
instrument for making strategic investments in Canada's
capability in science and technology. NSERC supports both
basic university research through research grants and
project research via partnerships of universities and
industry. |
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| National
Research Council of Canada |
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National
Research Council of Canada Research Associateships are
offered to masters degree holders in engineering, and
Ph.D. holders in natural science or engineering disciplines. |
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| Quebec
Provincial Government Scholarships |
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Quebec
Provincial Government Scholarships are available to those
studying in Quebec.Teaching/ Research Assistantships are
assessed in the general application.Financial assistance
is frequently available to students studying at the masters
level and above, the amount of funding is likely to increase
with the level of study. Full funding, tuition and expenses,
is more common at higher levels of studies, however, each
application is assessed individually on the basis of merit. |
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| University
Funding |
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| Graduate
Courses |
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Students at the graduate
level may qualify for teaching and research assistantships
based on their academic abilities. Applications for this
type of assistance are made through the university's financial
aid office. |
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| Types of Assistance |
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Merit based assistance
is awarded in many forms, from tuition waivers, various
types of assistantships, to fellowships. The most common
are listed here : |
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1. Tuition
Waiver : This means that the student does
not have to pay the tuition fees at the university. However,
general fees (for the use of university facilities like
the library, computers, and sports and health services)
usually have to be borne by the student. A tuition waiver
is frequently awarded in conjunction with a scholarship
or teaching/research assistantship. |
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2.
Scholarship/Fellowship : This is usually an outright
grant based on the student’s academic ability and
performance. Hence, Only a truly outstanding student may
be considered for this type of award, before enrolling
at the university. A full scholarship would pay for a
student’s entire living expenses at that university,
whereas a partial scholarship would require additional
funds from the student. |
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3. Assistantship
: Most students who receive assistance do so in
the form of an assistantship, i.e. is usually a cash stipend,
sufficient for their living expenses, and/or tuition waiver,
in return for which they have to work for a maximum of
20 hours per week which normally consists of teaching
and research activities. These are usually for graduate
courses. Teaching assistantships are more likely to be
in universities, which have large undergraduate classes
whereas research assistantships tend to be more common
in those fields and universities in which considerable
research is going on. Information brochures of most universities
give this information. Often, teaching and research abilities
must be proved before assistantship is granted. Hence,
many universities grant this only after the first semester.
You may also be required to take TSE (Test of Spoken English)
to qualify for a teaching assistantship. |
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| Who Should Apply? |
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Students will have
a greater chance of getting financial aid if they : |
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1. Show
evidence of a high level of academic achievement.
2. Achieve high
Standardized Examination scores (GRE, GMAT, TOEFL etc.)
3. Demonstrate
financial need but have private funding to cover some
of the cost. Financial need
is not crucial for some awards.
4. Enroll in
a field or have teaching experience in a subject offered
at the undergraduate level (to
increase opportunities for a teaching assistantship)
5. Specialize
in a field or have a research interest which parallels
that of the department and
faculty or private funding source (which increases opportunities
for research assistantships
and grants)
6. Have outstanding
letter of recommendation and an impressive statement
of purpose.
7. Send a sample
of professional writing, published or otherwise. |
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| THE IMPORTANCE OF NETWORKING
IN FINANCIAL AID |
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Many graduate departments
at universities offer teaching assistantships or research
assistantships to their graduate students (students pursuing
a master's or doctoral degree particularly in engineering).
Assistantships usually involve a tuition award and some
sort of salary in return for teaching or research duties.
Every school has a limited number of openings for assistantships
based on the amount of funding allocated. As a result,
such scholarships are merit-based, meaning they are competitive,
based on your academic performance to date.
Individual departments at the university generally
control funds. It always helps to write directly to
the department to inquire about available funding. Students
who are research oriented or have published papers in
a particular field should contact professors interested
in that field. By contacting professors in advance and
building a relationship, you can greatly enhance your
chance of getting aid.
Unfortunately, there are many deserving students who
do not get aid along with the admission. If you are
one of them and plan on joining anyway, we strongly
recommend you arrive a few days prior to the registration
time. This will give you an opportunity to personally
talk with the professors and sell your skills. Professors
usually have funding available for various projects
and you may be able to find something that matches your
skill set. We also strongly recommend that you don’t
restrict yourself to your particular department. There
are several opportunities in other departments particularly
for students with strong computer skills. You have to
be aggressive and persistent in your approach. Although
there is no guarantee that you will get financial aid,
it is well worth the try. Always remember, if you don’t
ask, you don’t get. (Information compiled from infozee.com)
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