Killam Doctoral Scholarships

Research ability and potential – 50%

• Quality of research proposal
  • specific, focused and feasible research question(s) and objective(s)
  • clear description of the proposed methodology
  • significance and expected contributions to research
• Relevant training, such as academic training, lived experience and traditional teachings.
• Research experience and achievements relative to the applicant’s stage of study, lived experience and knowledge systems.
• Quality of contributions and extent to which they advance the field of research. Contributions may include: publications, patents, reports, posters, abstracts, monographs, presentations, creative outputs, knowledge translation outputs, community products, etc.
• Demonstration of sound judgment and ability to think critically.
• Demonstration of responsible and ethical research conduct, including honest and thoughtful inquiry, rigorous analysis, commitment to safety and to the dissemination of research results and adherence to the use of professional standards.
• Enthusiasm for research, originality, initiative, autonomy, relevant community involvement and outreach.
• The ability or potential to communicate theoretical, technical and/or scientific concepts clearly and logically in written and oral formats.

Relevant experience and achievements obtained within and beyond academia – 50%

• Scholarships, awards and distinctions (amount, duration and prestige)
• Academic record:
  • Transcripts
  • Duration of previous studies
  • Program requirements and courses pursued
  • Course load
  • Relative standing in program (if available)
• Professional, academic and extracurricular activities as well as collaborations with supervisors, colleagues, peers, students and members of the community, such as:
  • teaching, mentoring, supervising and/or coaching
  • managing projects
  • participating in science and/or research promotion
  • community outreach, volunteer work and/or civic engagement
  • chairing committees and/or organizing conferences and meetings
  • participating in departmental or institutional organizations, associations, societies and/or clubs

Part III – Applicant’s statement

In this section, group your comments under the following headings:

• Research experienceDescribe the scientific or engineering abilities that you have gained through your past research experience, including special projects, honours thesis and co-op reports. If you have relevant work experience, discuss the relevance of that experience to your proposed field of study or research and any benefits you gained from it. Do not repeat any information you provided in Part II.
• Relevant activities

Describe your professional, academic and extracurricular activities, interactions, and collaborations that best demonstrate your relevant experience and achievements obtained within and beyond academia. Examples of these include:

• • scholarships, awards and distinctions
  • academic record
  • teaching, mentoring, supervising or coaching
  • managing projects
  • participating in science promotion, community outreach, volunteer work or civic engagement
  • chairing committees or organizing conferences and meetings
  • participating in departmental or institutional organizations, associations, safety committees, societies or clubs

• Submitted via the Killam Doctoral Scholarships Reference for Award Form (see below)
• Students must send their referees the Killam Doctoral Scholarships Reference for Award Form link for completion
• References must be submitted by the application deadline, or your application will be deemed incomplete and ineligible

• Referees should have had sufficient opportunity to assess your research ability and potential and the relevance of your experience and achievements obtained within and beyond academia, as described in the selection criteria.
• One referee should be familiar with your research and abilities (i.e. current or previous research supervisor) and the other should be sufficiently familiar with your research and abilities to provide a meaningful commentary.
• Only reference forms submitted by the person providing the reference is acceptable.
• Emails or any other reference submission, other than the reference form provided here, are not acceptable under any circumstances.
• Reference forms are confidential, and the contents of the reference forms are not to be viewed by the applicant.
• Reference forms MUST be received by our office by the application deadline, late references will not be accepted.

Presentation Standards:

Please ensure your attachments are presented according to these specifications:

• Explain any acronyms and abbreviations fully;
• Pages must be 8 ½” x 11″ (216mm x 279mm);
• Pages must be single-spaced, with no more than six lines of type per inch;
• All text must be in 12 pt Times New Roman font*;
• Condensed fonts will not be accepted;
• All text should be black, and no colour images should be used;
• Margins must be set at a minimum of ¾” (1.87 cm)

Adjudication Procedures

• The College of Graduate Studies Scholarship and Awards Committee will convene an adjudication committee composed of UBC faculty members to review applications and select the top-ranked applicants.
• Results are released to applicants in Spring 2025.

Additional Resources

• Tri-Agency Scholarship Support
• One-on-one support for writing research proposals is offered by the Centre for Scholarly Communication
• General Tri-Agency Information Session, July 26, 11AM-12PM
• Q&A Sessions (please come with questions):
  • July 31, 10-11AM
  • August 15, 2-3PM
• Canvas Module (opens July 12)

Application Forms

• Application Form
• Reference Form

Conditions for Award Holders   

Satisfactory Progress

• Award holders must maintain satisfactory progress in their program of study and remain registered as full-time students for each term of the scholarship payment
• If the College of Graduate Studies determines that a student is making unsatisfactory progress, the College of Graduate Studies reserves the right to cancel any awardst

Deferrals

• Students receiving an award cannot defer the award to a subsequent fiscal year

Leave of Absence

• Students granted a leave of absence or parental leave retain the full value of any university graduate fellowship or other award whose terms and conditions are established by the College of Graduate Studies. Awards will be suspended at the onset of the leave, and reinstated at the termination of the leave period, provided the student returns to full-time study within the same academic year

Withdrawals

• If an award holder withdraws from the faculty that nominated them for the scholarship, the funding received during the term for which the withdrawal is processed will be recovered by the College of Graduate Studies and returned to the nominating faculty for further allocation

Other Funding

• If a recipient of the Killam Doctoral Scholarship receives other significant funding, their Killam award funding may be rescinded or reduced
• Students who currently hold, or will hold, a CGS-D are not currently eligible to receive funding via the Killam award, but may receive the award in name only