Northern Scientific Training Program Grant

Criteria set by Polar Knowledge Canada's (POLAR's) Science & Technology Program:

• You must be enrolled in a degree program at a Canadian university.
• Funds are available in support of graduate students. However, senior undergraduate students entering their final year and intending to undertake an honours thesis based on northern fieldwork or research which will be continued in subsequent graduate studies are also eligible. Post-doctoral studies are not supported.
• Students supported by NSTP funds must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
• Summer and winter projects are eligible.
• Training funds support projects on northern topics from all disciplines and in multi-disciplinary fields.
• The program supports projects that lie north of the southern limit of the discontinuous permafrost zone, with the addition of all of the southern Yukon in the west; that section of Labrador south to and including Red Bay; and the other seven Arctic countries (Finland, Greenland (Denmark), Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the U.S.A. — Alaska).
• Circumpolar projects in Russia.
• Due to the sanctions imposed in response to the gravity of Russia’s violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and grave human rights violations that have been committed in Russia, POLAR will be unable to fund projects taking place in Russia or involving collaborations with Russian organizations for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. For more information, please visit the Government of Canada’s – Canadian Sanctions Related to Russia.
• NSTP funds are restricted. They are a supplement meant to offset the additional costs of northern research (e.g., transportation, accommodation, shipping, and interpreter fees). The NSTP is not intended to be a source of primary support for students pursuing northern research.

Criteria set by the University of Calgary's Northern Studies Committee:

• You must have confirmed enrolment at the University of Calgary.
• You must have a University of Calgary faculty member as your supervisor.
• The funds are primarily intended for travel to the north. Be certain (to the best of your current knowledge) that you intend to travel north before applying. If your travel plans are cancelled, the funds will be reassigned.

Please also note the following:

• All student research must be tied to their thesis work.
• Field Assistants/Post doctoral researchers are not eligible for NSTP funding.

1. Complete the online application form.
2. Email a pdf copy of the completed online application to the UofC Northern Studies Committee c/o the Arctic Institute of North America (aina.scholarships@ucalgary.ca) along with the following supporting documentation:
   • Student contact information. Please provide a reliable email and phone number that we will be able to contact you at for the next year.
   • A short research proposal, approximately three pages in length, describing the project's background, goals, methods and importance. This need not be an in-depth proposal but should be adequate to allow the committee to determine the significance, quality, and feasibility of the research project. Research methodology must also be clearly detailed in the proposal. The Northern Studies Committee strongly emphasizes that the application and the research proposal must be complete. 
   • A detailed budget showing any other funding and its source being provided to the project by the student's supervisor. Please distinguish between the applicant's portion of funding and the overall funding for a project.
   • Academic transcripts, official or departmental copy.
   • An independent letter of support from someone other than your immediate supervisor.

If the supervisor is supporting more than one application, the supervisor must rank their students applications according to priority.