Merit scholarship program for foreign students (PBEEE) 2024-2025

1. Objectives

In support of the Québec government’s science policy, the Merit Scholarship for Foreign Students program has the following objectives:

• Support the internationalization of research activities in Québec’s higher education institutions;
• Attract top foreign researchers and students and promote international recognition of Québec universities and College Centres for the Transfer of Technologies (CCTT);
• Create cultural links and pave the way for the setting up of joint scientific research projects.

The Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies (FRQNT) is responsible for managing the program. It was commissioned by the Ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur du Québec (MES) which provides the funding.

2. Characteristics

The program has a component open to students of all countries and five specific components reserved for students from Brazil, China, India, Israel and Wallonia. These specific components arise from agreements concluded between Québec and foreign governments.

This program covers higher education as a whole by providing CCTT researchers and administrators with the opportunity to participate.

The Merit Scholarship Program for Foreign Students has four components:

• Master’s research scholarships (VM)
• Doctoral research scholarships (V1, 1B, 1C, 1I, 1IS, 1W)
• Postdoctoral scholarships (V2, 2B, 2C, 2I)
• Short-term research or professional development scholarships (V3, 3B, 3C, 3I, 3IS, 3W)

All-countries scholarships

• Master’s research scholarships (VM)
• Doctoral research scholarships (V1)
• Postdoctoral scholarships (V2)
• Short-term research or professional development scholarships (V3)

Québec-Brazil scholarships

• Québec-Brazil Doctoral research scholarships (1B)
• Québec-Brazil Postdoctoral scholarships (2B)
• Québec-Brazil Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3B)

Québec-China scholarships 

• Québec-China Doctoral research scholarships (1C) 
• Québec-China Postdoctoral scholarships (2C) 
• Québec-China Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3C) 

Québec-India scholarships

• Québec-India Doctoral research scholarships (1I)
• Québec-India Postdoctoral scholarships (2I)
• Québec-India Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3I)

Québec-Israel scholarships

• Québec-Israel Doctoral research scholarships (1IS)
• Québec-Israel Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3IS)

Québec-Wallonia scholarships

• Québec-Wallonia Doctoral research scholarships (1W)
• Québec-Wallonia Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3W)

The annual value of a Master’s research scholarship (VM) is $20,000. The maximum amount that can be awarded is 6 instalments (6 semesters) totalling $40,000.

The annual value of a Doctoral research scholarship (V1, 1B, 1C, 1I, 1IS, 1W) is $25,000. The maximum amount that can be awarded is 9 instalments (9 semesters) totalling $75,000. It is also possible to obtain an extension of up to 12 months.

The annual value of a Postdoctoral scholarship (V2, 2B, 2C, 2I) is $35,000. The maximum amount that can be awarded is 3 instalments (one year) totalling $35,000.

The value of a Short-term research or professional development scholarship (V3, 3B, 3C, 3I, 3IS, 3W) is $3,000 per month. The maximum amount that can be awarded is 4 instalments (4 months) totalling $12,000.

In addition to the scholarship, MES offers all scholarship recipients an exemption from paying the higher tuition fees required for foreign students and the medical insurance coverage offered by the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ).

3. Eligibility

Candidates must meet all eligibility requirements in effect at the time of application as set out in the program rules and the CGR.

3.1 Target group and eligibility period

These scholarships are intended for foreign students or researchers from all research sectors (health, humanities and social sciences, arts and letters, natural sciences, and engineering) preselected by a Québec university or the CCTT network or the China Scholarship Council (CSC) who wish to begin or continue studies or research activities in Québec. No research sector is given preference.

Master’s research component (VM)

Master’s research scholarships are intended for students who wish to undertake or continue a master’s research program. To be considered a research program, a master’s program must lead to the writing of a thesis (note that an essay, research report, dissertation or paper are not accepted). Professional master’s programs are not eligible.

Candidates are eligible for master’s research scholarships for the first six semesters of their master’s studies. To apply, candidates must have been enrolled in a master’s program for up to three full-time semesters (1 year) or less before May 1, 2024. Semesters already completed in a master’s program (or equivalent) at the time the scholarship takes effect are subtracted from the funding period.

Doctoral research component (V1, 1B, 1C, 1I, 1IS, 1W)

Candidates are eligible for doctoral merit program scholarships for the first nine semesters of their doctoral studies. All doctoral semesters, funded or unfunded, completed before the scholarship takes effect, are subtracted from the eligibility period.

A candidate admitted into a doctoral program from a bachelor’s program and one who fast-tracks into a doctoral program without writing a thesis must apply to the doctoral scholarships competition to obtain the scholarship during the 3rd, 4th, and 5th years of their graduate studies (semesters 7 to 15). In this case, candidates can first apply to the Master’s research component (VM) in order to obtain a scholarship during the first six semesters of their doctoral studies.

Postdoctoral component (V2, 2B, 2C, 2I)

Postdoctoral scholarships are intended for researchers who have obtained their PhD no more than two years before the competition deadline or who submitted their doctoral dissertation by January 15, 2024.

The postdoctoral research must be conducted in an institution other than the one that granted the doctoral degree. A candidate’s doctoral supervisors and co-supervisors may not act as their postdoctoral supervisor, even if they have changed institutions.

The maximum duration of this scholarship is 12 months. This scholarship is not renewable.

Short-term research or professional development component (V3, 3B, 3C, 3I, 3IS, 3W)

Short-term research or professional development scholarships are intended for technical and university students (option A) or researchers who have completed a doctorate no more than five years before the deadline for the competition (option B).

The short-term research or professional development must be conducted in an institution other than the one at which the student was enrolled when they applied.

The duration of this scholarship is four months. The scholarship is not renewable.

Exceptions in calculating the eligibility period

The only exception to the rules governing the eligibility period concerns circumstances beyond the candidate’s control.

Candidates who suspend their studies due to maternity or parental leave can request an extension of their eligibility period for a maximum of 12 months. The FRQNT reserves the right to refuse any request that is not sufficiently justified.

3.2 Citizenship and residence requirements

This competition is open to all candidates who are not Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada and who have not applied for permanent residence under Canadian immigration laws.

 3.3 Restrictions

Cannot have already received a Merit Scholarship for Foreign Students from MEES. 

Québec-Wallonia scholarship candidates must have previously studied in a French-language university-level institution in Belgium at the time they are awarded their scholarship.

4. Preselection of candidates

Only candidates preselected by a Québec university or the CCTT network as of September 30, 2023 can be part of this competition. Candidates to the Québec-China scholarship must be preselected by the CSC as of March 31st, 2024.

The universities and the CCTT network and the CSC assume full responsibility for candidate preselection. You can consult the various deadlines for the preselection competition of each Québec university and the CCTT network on the FRQNT website.

Those in charge of candidate preselection must refer to the instructions for candidate preselection available on the program web page.

Those in charge of candidate preselection in a Québec university or at Synchronex must complete the form for nominating candidates for the Merit Scholarship Programs for Foreign Students available through the FRQnet system of the FRQNT. It must be transmitted electronically by 4 p.m. on September 29, 2023.

Candidates must meet all the eligibility requirements of this program. Candidates proposed by a Québec university or the CCTT network or the CSC may be declared ineligible by the FRQNT if these criteria are not met.

Candidates preselected for the general program components (V1, V2, V3) can also be preselected for the Québec-Brazil-India-Israel-Wallonia program components.

All-countries scholarships (V1, V2, V3)

Universities can recommend four candidates per year for each of these three components.

The CCTT network can recommend four candidates for Postdoctoral scholarships (V2) and Short-term research or professional development scholarships (V3).

There are no quotas per country.

Québec-Brazil scholarships (1B, 2B, 3B)

Universities can recommend one candidate per year for each of these three components.

The CCTT network can recommend one candidate for Postdoctoral scholarships (2B) and Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3B).

Québec-China scholarships (1C, 2C, 3C) 

The CSC will recommend at least 10 applicants for each of the competition’s three components. The CSC must take into account Québec’s linguistic specificities. 

Québec-India scholarships (1I, 2I, 3I)

Universities can recommend one candidate per year for each of these three components.

The CCTT network can recommend one candidate for Postdoctoral scholarships (2I) and Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3I).

Québec-Israel scholarships (1IS, 3IS)

Universities can recommend one candidate per year for each of these two components.

The CCTT network can recommend one candidate for Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3IS).

Québec-Wallonia scholarships (1W, 3W)

Universities can recommend one candidate per year for each of these two components.

The CCTT network can recommend one candidate for Short-term research or professional development scholarships (3W).

5. Applications

Once preselected, the candidate must create an account in the FRQnet system. The FRQNT will then contact all preselected candidates to complete an electronic form to which the required documents will be attached, and which must be submitted electronically by the competition deadline time and date set by the Fonds.

For information on the language of submitted forms and documents, please refer to Section 3.6 of the Common General Rules.

Please refer to the Presentation Standards for Attached Files in the FRQnet electronic Portfolio when preparing the files to be attached to the form.

Files cannot be updated after the application deadline.

Required documents

All required documents must be included in the application for it to be considered eligible. Any documents that are illegible, of a poor resolution or that do not allow verification of the application’s eligibility will be rejected.

Documents submitted in a language other than French or English must be accompanied by a basic translation.

For all components of the program

• A photocopy of the identification page of a passport from the candidate’s country of origin or any other official document establishing the candidate’s citizenship;
• Transcripts for every year of all university studies, whether completed or not (certificates, diplomas, Bachelor’s, Master’s, Ph.D. etc.). You do not have to include a copy of the diploma unless it shows academic grades. Transcripts for equivalences granted for courses taken at other institutions or for previous programs must be included. For transcripts from outside North America, candidates must enclose a letter explaining the grading system used by the institution concerned. The FRQNT reserves the right to verify with institutions the authenticity of any information given by candidates. Transcripts must be organized chronologically from newest to oldest;
• Acknowledgements of receipt from the publisher for all articles submitted and notices received from editors for articles accepted for publication (acknowledgements of receipt for articles already published are not sent to the evaluation committee);
• Two letters of recommendation. To allow the respondent to complete the letter, the candidate must enter the respondent’s account information in the FRQnet form. The respondent will then have access to the letter of recommendation through their Portfolio in the “As a Respondent” section. Candidates are responsible for ensuring that their respondents submit their letters of recommendation by the competition deadline.

In order for the Fonds to verify the authenticity of the letters submitted, respondents must submit the letter themselves using the procedure described above. Under no circumstances may candidates create an account on behalf of a respondent in order to submit a letter of recommendation themselves. If they do, their application may be considered incomplete and therefore ineligible.

Additional document for the Master’s and Doctoral research components (VM, V1, 1B, 1C, 1I, 1IS, 1W)

• If applicable, an attestation from the registrar’s office identifying part-time or unregistered semesters;
• If applicable, an official attestation of interrupted enrolment and, if necessary, a medical certificate indicating the duration and the reasons for the interruption.

Additional document for the Postdoctoral scholarship component (V2, 2B, 2C, 2I)

• A copy of the doctoral diploma (or attestation of the first reading of the dissertation). If these documents cannot be provided, a copy of the doctoral transcript is required.
• A letter of acceptance from the supervisor. To allow the supervisor to complete the letter of acceptance, the candidate must enter the supervisor’s account information in the FRQnet form. The supervisor will then have access to the letter of acceptance through their Portfolio in the section “As a Director, Supervisor or Mentor”. Candidates are responsible for ensuring that their supervisor submits the letter of acceptance by the competition deadline.

In order for the Fonds to verify the authenticity of the letters submitted, respondents must submit the letter themselves using the procedure described above. Under no circumstances may candidates create an account on behalf of a respondent in order to submit a letter of recommendation themselves. If they do, their application may be considered incomplete and therefore ineligible.

Additional document for the Short-term research or professional development component (V3, 3B, 3I, 3IS, 3W),

• A letter of acceptance from the supervisor. To allow the supervisor to complete the letter of acceptance, the candidate must enter the supervisor’s account information in the FRQnet form. The supervisor will then have access to the letter of acceptance through their Portfolio in the section “As a Director, Supervisor or Mentor”. Candidates are responsible for ensuring that their supervisor submits the letter of acceptance by the competition deadline.

In order for the Fonds to verify the authenticity of the letters submitted, respondents must submit the letter themselves using the procedure described above. Under no circumstances may candidates create an account on behalf of a respondent in order to submit a letter of recommendation themselves. If they do, their application may be considered incomplete and therefore ineligible.

Notice

A notice of the application’s transmission for evaluation or of its non-eligibility will be sent to you by email in December at the latest. A candidate who has not received this notice should contact the program manager before December 15.

6. Evaluation

To find out more about the rules governing the scholarship evaluation process, please refer to Section 4 of the CGR.

Applications are assessed according to the following evaluation criteria and weighting:

7. Awarding of scholarships

Scholarships are offered by competition, on a merit basis.

Scholarship holders are selected by multidisciplinary committees formed of professors/researchers.

Scholarships are offered according to the available budget.

Decisions are final and cannot be appealed. There is no review process.

8. Rules for using scholarships

Scholarship holders must comply with all the rules described in detail in the scholarship holder’s guide.

IMPORTANT

Please note that scholarship payments will only begin after the Fonds has received a copy of the study permit (for doctoral scholarships) or a copy of the work permit (for postdoctoral scholarships).

At the time candidates receive their scholarship payments, they must be working full-time on the program of study, research, or professional development for which they were awarded the scholarship.

Scholarships are awarded for the duration of the eligibility period and are subject to the presentation of progress reports deemed satisfactory for each full year of funding in the case of doctoral scholarships (V1, 1B, 1C, 1I, 1IS, 1W) scholarships, and at the midpoint of the funding period in the case of postdoctoral scholarships (V2, 2B, 2C, 2I).

By accepting the grant, you grant a non-exclusive, irrevocable, non-transferable licence to the Ministre de l’Enseignement supérieur or its partners and to the FRQNT on the final report and the research findings that have been made public. This licence allows them to reproduce, adapt, publish, translate, make public by any means whatsoever, represent or demonstrate these findings in public, and carry out further research studies based on these findings. This licence is granted without territorial limits and for an unlimited period of time.

By accepting the grant, scholarship holders undertake to clearly indicate in any report, article, presentation or other communication that the research was funded by the Ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur in partnership with the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies.

Period for using scholarships

The scholarship period must begin between May 1, 2024, and January 15, 2025.

Barring exceptional circumstances, scholarships cannot be carried over from one year to the next. It is therefore not possible to delay the scholarship starting date after January 15, 2025.

The scholarships are not retroactive and semesters completed before summer 2024 cannot be funded.

Place where scholarship is used

Scholarship recipients must attend the Quebec university or the College Centre for Technology Transfer (CCTT) at which they were preselected and study or conduct their research there.

Joint (cotutelle) degree programs are not eligible.

Rules regarding concurrent scholarships

The scholarship may not be held concurrently with:

• Scholarships granted by government departments or by Canadian or Québec government grant agencies.

The scholarship may be held concurrently with:

• Scholarships from the private sector, from the government of the scholarship holder’s country of origin, and university scholarships.

Paid employment

The scholarship holder must respect the requirements of their study permit or work permit with regard to part-time work. These requirements are specified by Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Part-time work, if any, may be accepted only if the supervisor of the scholarship holder does not object and if such activities do not affect the research program.

The salary that students receive from their supervisor for working solely on their research project is considered a scholarship for which concurrent funding is permitted.

9. Effective date

The rules apply to the 2024-2025 fiscal year.

10. Contact person

Michel Garceau
Program manager
FRQNT Training Awards
Phone: 418 643-8560 ext. 3459
Email: pbeee@staging.frq.gouv.qc.ca