NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Canada, 2025-2026
Applications are open for the NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Canada. The Postdoctoral Fellowship program will provide support to a core group of the most promising researchers at a pivotal time in their careers. The fellowships are also intended to secure a supply of highly qualified Canadians with leading-edge scientific and research skills for Canadian industry, government and institutions.
NSERC supports research whose major challenges lie in the natural sciences and engineering (NSE), other than the health sciences. The intended objective(s) of your research must primarily be to advance knowledge in one or more NSE disciplines. It is strongly recommended that you refer to the Selecting the appropriate federal granting agency web page for more information about the agencies’ mandates and to the Addendum to the guidelines for the eligibility of applications related to health web page for examples of eligible and ineligible research subject matter related to NSERC’s mandate. If your proposed research falls outside of NSERC’s mandate, your application may be deemed ineligible for the program.
Program Details
- Host institutions: Research institutions in Canada.
- Areas: Civil and industrial engineering, Chemical, biomedical and materials science engineering, Mechanical engineering, Electrical engineering, Computing sciences, Mathematical sciences, Physics and astronomy, Chemistry, Earth sciences, Evolution and ecology, Cellular and molecular biology, Plant and animal biology, Psychology.
- Number of awards: Not specified.
- Duration: 2 years.
- Target group: Open to Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada.
- be a Canadian citizen, a permanent resident of Canada or a protected person under subsection 95(2) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada);
- hold or expect to hold a doctorate in one of the fields of research that NSERC supports.
- You can submit a maximum of one scholarship (Master’s or doctoral) or fellowship application per academic year to either NSERC, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) or the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Applications to the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships program do not count toward this limit (other exceptions may apply for CIHR internships).
- You must not have already received a postdoctoral award (including a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship) from NSERC, CIHR or SSHRC.
- You must have completed all requirements for your doctoral degree no more than two years before September 1 of the year in which you apply.
- If you have acquired at least six months of full-time relevant employment in industry or government (experience in an academic institution or its affiliated hospitals, research institutions or other laboratories will not be considered) after you received your doctorate, NSERC will extend the eligibility period to three years.
- If you have completed a non-research based clinical residency program after you received your doctorate, NSERC will extend the eligibility period to three years.
- If, within two years following the date of completion of your PhD, your career is significantly interrupted due to parental, medical and/or family-related responsibilities, NSERC will extend the eligibility period to three years.
- If, within two years before or after the date of completion of your PhD, you become the primary caregiver following the birth or adoption of a child, NSERC will extend the eligibility period to six years.
- If you are subject to an extended eligibility period, then you may be asked by NSERC to provide additional information and/or supporting documentation. Any such submission to NSERC will only be used by staff to assess your eligibility for the program. If you wish to inform the review committee of delays and/or circumstances that may have affected your performance and/or productivity, then you may do so in the Special circumstances section of the application.
NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Benefits
Selected candidates for the fellowship program will be awarded a grant valued at $70,000 per year for two years.
NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Eligibility
To be considered eligible for the fellowship, you must:
In addition:
Note : This is not the conferral or convocation date indicated on your transcript, but rather the date on which all the requirements of your degree were met, including the successful defense and submission of the corrected copy of your thesis. If you have more than one doctoral degree, the completion date of your most recent doctoral degree will be used to determine your eligibility.
Exceptions to the doctoral degree completion eligibility period are granted only if you meet one or more of the following criteria:
Similar opportunities
- Ghent University PhD Scholarship for Developing Countries;
- Emile-Boutmy Scholarship at Sciences Po for international students.
- Université de Montréal International Student Scholarship.
Application instructions
Eligible applicants who would like to apply for this North America scholarship program should click on the apply button and follow the instructions to submit their applications.
Applicants must complete and submit form 201 – Application for a Postgraduate Scholarship or Postdoctoral Fellowship and attach supporting documents. It is imperative that you read the Instructions for completing an application – form 201 web page before completing and submitting your application.
The deadline to submit applications is . For more detail on the NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Canada, please visit the official page. To be the first to see latest opportunities, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.