Merit Scholarship Program for Foreign Students

The Québec Government opens the Merit Scholarship Program for Foreign Students (PBEEE) to support the internationalization of research activities in Québec’s institutions of higher education. Also, this is to attract the best foreign researchers and students, and to promote abroad Québec universities and College Centres for the Transfer of Technologies (CCTT). The scholarship is for Doctoral, Research, Postdoctoral programs.

About the Merit Scholarship Program for Foreign Students

The program covers higher education as a whole by giving to the CCTT researchers and administrators the opportunity to participate.

The program also represents an instrument for the MEES to support the Government of Québec’s scientific policy.

The Merit Scholarship Program for Foreign Students has three components:

• 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

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

Application Deadline

• Submission of applications for preselection: variable
• Submission to FRQNT of the preselected candidates by responsible bodies (universities, Synchronex): September 30, 2022, 4 p.m.
• Submission to FRQNT of the candidates preselected by CSC: before March 31, 2023.
• Submission of application to FRQNT by preselected candidates: November 1, 2022, 4 p.m.

Eligibility Criteria

These scholarships are 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, Synchronex, the China Scholarship Council (CSC), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico (SRE) or the National Council on Science and Technology of Mexico (CONACYT) to begin or continue studies or research activities in Québec. There is no privileged research sector.

Selection Criteria: Candidates

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, Synchronex (for CCTTs) or the China Scholarship Council (CSC) who wish to begin or continue studies or research activities in Québec. No research sector is given preference.

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

Candidates are eligible for doctoral merit program scholarships from MEES in 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 his/her graduate studies (semesters 7 to 15).

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

Postdoctoral scholarships are for researchers who have 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. The candidate’s doctoral supervisors and co-supervisors may not act as his/her 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 in an institution other than the one at which the student was enrolled when he or she applied.

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

Value of Scholarship

Below is the value of each of the scholarships

• Doctoral research scholarships: $25,000 a year. The duration of the scholarship is three years, with a possible extension of up to 12 months (monthly allowance of $1,000).
• Postdoctoral scholarships: $35,000 for one year (this is not renewable).
• Short-term research or professional development scholarships: $3,000 a month for a period of up to four months.
• In addition to the scholarship, MEES 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).

Duration of Award

• Doctoral research scholarships: The maximum duration of the scholarship is three years (nine semesters), with a possible extension of up to 12 months.
• Postdoctoral scholarships: The duration of this scholarship is one year. This scholarship is not renewable.
• Short-term research or professional development scholarships: The duration of this scholarship is four months. The scholarship is not renewable. You can receive a scholarship of lesser duration if the duration of the research is less than four months.

How to Apply

For more information about the scholarship and how to apply, visit the scholarship webpage.