Ontario Graduate Scholarship

The Ontario Graduate Scholarship is awarded to graduate students pursuing master’s or doctoral (PhD) level courses at universities in Ontario, Canada. The programme encourages excellence in graduate study at Ontario’s publicly funded universities. The scholarship programme is co-funded by the Ontario government and the participating universities. The government donates two-thirds of the award amount, while the university contributes the remaining one-third. Let’s know more about the Ontario Graduate Scholarship in this blog. 

Scholarship Type	Merit-Based and College-Specific
Offered by	Government bodies
Organization	Province of Ontario
No. of Scholarships	22
Applicable for	PG and doctoral courses
Amount	$10,000 (INR 7 Lakhs for 2 consecutive study terms $15,000 (INR 11 Lakhs) for 3 consecutive study terms
Renewability	One Time Payment
International Students Eligible	Yes
Scholarship Website Link	https://www.sgs.utoronto.ca/awards/ontario-graduate-scholarship/

Value & Duration of Ontario Graduate Scholarship

The OGS recipients may get $10,847 (INR 7.49 lakhs) for two or three consecutive sessions. In all cases, the graduate unit awarding the award will donate one-third of the total award earned by the students. Each scholarship is for one year only (i.e., two consecutive or three academic sessions). The granting graduate unit will establish the value and length of each OGS award, which will be specified in the offer letter.

Purpose of Ontario Graduate Scholarship

The Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) programme promotes academic performance in Ontario’s publicly funded universities. Since 1975, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship programme has awarded merit-based scholarships to Ontario’s top graduate students in all fields of study. The Ontario Graduate Scholarship programme is co-funded by the Province of Ontario and all the participating universities. The province assigns OGS awards to universities and specifies the number of prizes each institution may present to its students each year.

Winter Intake in Canada: Here Is What You Need To Know!

Ontario Graduate Scholarship Eligibility

Candidates who wish to apply for Ontario Graduate Scholarship must be aware of the eligibility criteria as specified by the granting authority: 

1. The Ontario Graduate Scholarships are open to both domestic and foreign students. According to the rules, the candidate must be: 
   • A Canadian citizen or permanent resident at the time of application; and
   • A foreign student studying at a university in Ontario who has a valid Canadian study permit.
2. Before being awarded the scholarship, the candidate must have an A–Average (the Ontario equivalent of 80%) in both years of full-time study.
3. Candidates must be enrolled in a full-time postgraduate course that is:
   • 60% or more of a full course load as prescribed by the university
   • 40% or more for students with disabilities.
4. Candidates must be proficient in English by the time of application.
5. Candidates pursuing Master’s courses can receive the scholarship for 2 years while those pursuing doctoral courses may receive the scholarship for 4 years.
6. A single candidate cannot avail of two government-funded scholarships together. 

Note: If marks used for calculating an applicant’s grade point average (GPA) are not available (e.g., courses were graded on a pass-fail basis), then the next most recent available undergraduate or graduate marks should be used to determine eligibility.

How to Apply?

Candidates who meet the eligibility criteria can apply for the Ontario Graduate Scholarship by following a step-by-step application process. The application process for the same is given below:

1. Candidates must be updated about the latest deadline on the official website.
2. The form can be accessed by candidates through the online portal.
3. Candidates must carefully fill up the application form and upload the required documents the portal asks for.
4. Finally, candidates are requested to submit the application form. Thus, successfully completing the application process.

Note: Candidates are advised to adhere to the deadlines released by the organisation.

Important Documents 

Candidates must keep the following documents handy while applying to the Ontario Graduate Scholarship:

• The Ontario Graduate Scholarship application form
• 2 LORs or academic references
• Study plan of maximum 2 pages (1 page for Plan of Study, 1 page for references/citations)
• All official academic transcripts
• Copy of visa documentation
• Previous awards or publications or research experience

Participating Universities 

Here is a list of all the participating universities in Ontario for the Ontario Graduate Scholarship programme:

1. Brock University
2. Carleton University
3. University of Guelph
4. Lakehead University
5. Laurentian University
6. McMaster University
7. Nipissing University
8. OCAD University
9. University of Ontario Institute of Technology
10. University of Ottawa
11. Queen’s University
12. Ryerson University
13. University of Toronto
14. Trent University
15. University of Waterloo
16. Western University
17. Wilfrid Laurier University
18. University of Windsor
19. York University

Explore these Top Universities in Canada for MBA!

Important Things to Remember 

Here are some important things to remember about the Ontario Graduate Scholarship: 

1. Candidates must be enrolled for a full-time graduate course in any chosen subject at a Canadian University.
2. The scholarship is awarded for a minimum of two terms and a maximum of three terms.
3. Applications for this scholarship are administered by the university’s graduate unit individually.
4. In total, 22 merit-based scholarships are offered across all disciplines of academic study.

Ontario Graduate Scholarship Selection Process

Ontario Graduate Scholarship Selection Process is carried out on merit-based evaluation. Student profiles are evaluated on the basis of previous awards or publications or research experience. Students are also evaluated on the basis of their previous experiences and their study plan. The selection process is carried out after a careful evaluation of the profiles. The weights assigned to each of the following criteria are determined by the respective programme departments and faculties.

OGS Selection Criteria for Masters Level

Criteria	Weightage
Academic Excellence	30%
Research Potential and Statement of Interest	30%
Personal Characteristics/ Academic Assessment from Referees	20%
Total	100%

OGS Selection Criteria for Doctoral Level

Criteria	Weightage
Academic Excellence	30%
Research Potential	50%
Personal Characteristics/ Academic Assessment from Referees	20%
Total	100%

Conditions for Acceptance and Continuance of OGS

An Ontario Graduate Scholarship recipient must:

• Work no more than 10 hours each week on average per academic session.
• Ensure that their Social Insurance Number (SIN) is saved in WebAdvisor because the reward will not be processed without it. International students are exempt from this requirement.
• Accept no research assistantships, part-time teaching jobs, or other paid work that would jeopardise their status as full-time graduate students.

Leverage Edu Study Abroad Scholarship

You must have come across many fully financed study abroad scholarships that pay the entire cost of tuition fees. But have you heard of the well-known Leverage Edu scholarship worth INR 7,00,000? Yes, you read it correctly! Leverage Edu is offering an international scholarship of INR 7 crore exclusively for Indian students. The largest study abroad scholarship in India is intended to assist hundreds of Indians by waiving tuition and living expenses, as well as reducing costs associated with visa applications, excursions, and on-campus expenses.

FAQs

Exploring scholarships to study in Canada? But not sure how to go about it? Let the professionals at Leverage Edu take care of your academic journey! Reach out to our experts at 1800572000 and get assistance in not only finding the most suitable scholarship/financial aid but also in completing the application formalities!