International students on study permits comprise up to 25 per cent of the graduate student population at McGill University and are integral to maintaining McGill's standing as a world-class, research intensive institution. McGill is committed to supporting its international students and addressing the unique financial concerns of this group. As an international student, you may find yourself ineligible for certain awards and bursaries that are only available to Canadian students. To help offset this imbalance, McGill offers a number of tuition differential awards and international fee waivers to certain groups of students. These are available through several different programs.
3. All students from France and a limited number of students from countries party to bilateral agreements with Quebec may be granted exemptions from differential fees. With the exception of French citizens, students must apply to their home country for an exemption concurrent with their application for admission. Please consult
section 2.1.1, “Exemptions from the International Tuition Supplement” to determine whether you are eligible for this program.
There are a number of funding programs aimed specifically at international students embarking on study in Canada. These include: the Quebec Merit Fellowships for International Doctoral Students (
Programme de bourses d'excellence pour étudiant étranger - PBEEE); the Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Program; the Government of Canada Awards to Foreign Nationals; the Organization of American States; the Canada-U.S. Fulbright program; and the German Academic Exchange Program (DAAD). International students can also be nominated by McGill University for the prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship program (please refer to
section 3, “External Fellowships” for further information). Applications for some of these programs must be made through the government of your home country, usually via the Ministry of Education.
Opportunities for employment for international students are now more plentiful than in past years, as immigration officials are authorized to issue work permits for off-campus employment under certain circumstances. For details concerning eligibility and procedure, please consult the International Student Services website at
www.mcgill.ca/internationalstudents/workopportunities. You can find additional information on opportunities for financial assistance available to international graduate students and fellows in the UNESCO publication
Study Abroad, available on the web at
www.unesco.org/education/studyingabroad/networking/study.pdf. The Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) also provides information on support programs for international study. Visit their website:
www.cbie.ca. As an international student you will also be pleased to learn that the new Post-Graduation Work Permit Program makes it easier than ever to gain employment in Canada following the completion of your degree. Through this program you can obtain a work permit tenable for three years, with no restriction on the type of employment and no requirement for a job offer or company sponsorship.
