Funding for International Students

All our students are automatically entitled to a cost of living stipend from their supervisor. Our minimum stipend package is $32,000 per annum. You can also apply for external scholarships. These awards can replace or supplement any funding provided by your supervisor.

The awards listed below are the main source of scholarships for International students. The Faculty of Graduate Studies also maintains a comprehensive list of upcoming funding competitions.

Vanier Canada Graduate Schlarship
Valued at $50,000 per year up to 3 years, the Vanier Program aims to attract and retain world-class doctoral students. The competition is open to both domestic and international students. The Vaniers are administered by the three federal funding agencies: the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).
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International Tuition Award
International graduate students are eligible for an International Partial Tuition Scholarship. The value is up to $3,200 per year, and once applied it will reduce your tuition fees to a cost similar to domestic students rates. This is a automatic award and you do not need to apply separately.
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Affiliated Fellowships (AF)
This is UBC’s graduate funding agency. It is actually the umbrella term for a collection of awards which are supported by government and university funds as well as private donors. Funding levels go from $175 to $30,000 per year with most in the $16,000 range.
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Faculty of Medicine
The Faculty of Medicine has a number of funding opportunities which are supported by private donors. Awards are based around particular research areas and are worth up to $20,000 per year.
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Teaching Assistantships
Each year we hire graduate students to help our lecturers teach our undergraduate courses. These posts are open to all admitted students and are advertised via the careers section on the department website and by email. Posts are usually advertised during the spring for the following academic year. We also hire students on an adhoc basis to provide extra help during exam periods.

Centre for Blood Research
The CBR provides funds for stipend and travel allowances for all levels of students. They accept applications for conference travel expenses throughout the year. Applications for stipend support should be sent by mid May of each year.
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Government of Canada International Scholarship Programs
There are a number of federally provided scholarship programs available for international students who wish to study in Canada. These include the (but are not limited to):

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The SH Zbarsky Scholarship, #470
This is a departmental award which was created in honour of Dr Sidney Zbarsky, one of our founding members. When he retired his friends and colleagues generously donated enough money to create an annual prize. This year the award value is $3500. The award is presented to a third year doctoral candidate who gives the best presentation in the BIOC 530 seminar class, as voted on by their fellow students.

Marianne Huyer Memorial Award, #4855
This is another yearly departmental award which was endowed in memory of Marianne Huyer by Dr. Michael Smith. Marianne was a PhD student in his lab who was tragically killed in a traffic accident in 1996. This $1,450 prize is given to the biochemistry student who submits the best PhD thesis. Nominations are made by the thesis supervisors and the graduate committee decides on an overall winner.

Biochemistry PhD Travel Award
We offer up to 7 awards of $500 each for post-doctoral and grads to help pay expenses incurred for presenting at conferences. Competition announced in October with a November deadline.