Top Scholarships at the University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is tops in many ways, from being in the top 100 universities worldwide (WU ranks UAlberta 92) to some of the top undergraduate international student scholarships in Canada. And those are only two of the reasons you want to consider the University of Alberta as your study destination.
What Scholarships Do They Offer?
The University of Alberta offers over $34 Million in scholarship money every year. Included in this amount are some excellent international student entrance scholarships. There are two kinds of undergraduate scholarships offered at the University of Alberta, merit-based and application-based scholarships.
Merit-based scholarships – For these scholarships there is no special application. Students are automatically considered for these based on their admission average. Applicants that have an admission average of 80% or more will be considered for these scholarships. Their international student merit-based entrance scholarships are:
International Admission Scholarship valued at $5000 to top students.
Regional Excellence Scholarship valued at $5000 to top students and Pakistan is one of the designated regions. So if you are a student from Pakistan, this scholarship applies to you.
Gold Standard Scholarship offered to the top 5% students in each faculty. This scholarship is valued up to $6000.
Application-based scholarships – after a student applies for admission, they can then apply for these prestigious scholarships.
President’s International Distinction Award – this is one of the finest in Canada valued at $120,000 awarded equally over 4 years ($30,000 annually). Students with superior academic results and demonstrated leadership skills and activities will be considered for this scholarship. This amount will cover anywhere from 75% to 100% of your tuition costs. In 2022, three Pakistani students received this award.
International Leadership Award valued at $10,000 will be awarded to selected student with excellent leadership qualities.
May Quon Undergraduate Scholarship and the Global Citizen Scholarship for IB Diploma International Students, but these are scholarships are limited to specific nation or school system and is not open to all international students. Pakistani students are not eligible for these but are eligible for all other scholarships mentioned in this article.
Transfer Scholarships are also available and while not as substantial as the prestigious application-based one at $120,000, you will still want to consider applying for their transfer scholarships when coming in as a credit transfer student to UAlberta.
How to Apply for These Scholarships?
To be considered for a scholarship, you must first apply for admission. This is the same procedure as at any Canadian university. Admission application is done first and then the rest follows. All international students applying to the University of Alberta, Canada will be considered for merit scholarships based on their admission average. The university will inform you via email if you are a scholarship recipient. You will receive an admission offer and then sometime later, if you are selected for a scholarship, you will then be sent an offer. These scholarships can be offered up to the admission deadline (March 1) but the adage “the early bird catches the worm” applies here. The University of Alberta, like many other Canadian universities, gives admission offers on a rolling bases. One the money runs out for the year; you will not be considered. Therefore, an early application is always advisable.
For the application-based scholarship, you need to apply early so you can apply for the scholarship before the mid-January scholarship application deadline. That means, you should apply for admission between October 1st and December 15 so you can get the required student ID and CCID sign-in ID to access the scholarship application portal. Please note that the deadline for these scholarships is always mid-January.
Application Tips
The University of Alberta does everything possible to help you apply for the scholarships. They hold scholarship webinars and also have a Tips page so you can see what is required for these scholarships. Some of the highlighted tips are:
Focus on you’re your greatest achievements not all your activities. Three or four great ones are better than a list of 20 activities.
The written essays and paragraphs should highlight who you are and what you are passion about.
Think about what sets you apart and then write about it. What is it about you that is different from every other applicant?
Awards committees want to see your passion, creativity, and your uniqueness. A well-crafted application will give you an edge over other applicants.
Choose your referee well. This person should have first-hand knowledge of your activities and should be someone who will showcase your best attributes.
Graduate Scholarships
Graduate students, both national and international students can avail different scholarships in the Faculty of Graduate Studies or funding packages from the respective departments. All the scholarships opportunities for graduate students will not be discussed here as each department administers their own funding opportunities through research and teaching assistantships. The University of Alberta Graduate Entrance Scholarship is valued at $17,500 and upwards for international students. For more information, it is best to contact graduate studies directly.
Why study at UAlberta?
Like I said, there are many reasons for studying at the University of Alberta. Studying at UAlberta means you will be studying in one of Canada’s richest provinces in one of the nation’s fastest growing tech cities. It means you can choose from over 200 undergraduate programs in some of the highest-ranking faculties in the world such as Engineering and Computer Science. It means you will be able to participate in an internship or a paid Co-op work experience program. It means when you graduate, you the opportunities for employment in Canada abound. And don’t forget the scholarships, they are among the best in Canada.
For more information on applying to the University of Alberta, make sure to contact their in-country representative for your country. For Pakistan, it is Helen Khan.
All amounts are quoted in Canadian dollars.