PhD Funding

Effective July 1, 2022, the minimum funding opportunities for Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) Domestic students, will not be less than $22,000 annually for each of the first four years of their program, and the minimum funding opportunities for PhD International students, will not be less than $24,000 annually for each of the first four years of their program. 

Funding opportunities may come from multiple sources, such as, Graduate Assistantship Teaching (GAT), Graduate Assistantship Non-Teaching (GANT), Graduate Assistantship Research (GAR), priority sessional instructor contracts or other opportunities. Graduate Programs in Education will attempt to offer a range of funding opportunities to students but not all opportunities may be available. If a student turns down provided funding opportunities, funding will be reduced accordingly.

Any or all the following sources of funding may count toward a student’s minimum funding (i.e., the amount guaranteed in the student’s offer of admission):

  • External scholarships and awards (such as,SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR, AIHS, AITF, AGES, donor scholarships, etc.);
  • Internal scholarships and awards (such as, Werklund School awards,Graduate Awards Competition (GAC) and other program or university competitive graduate awards etc.);
  • Research Assistantship (such as Graduate Assistantship Research(GAR), Research Stipends,and/or Scholarship payments from research grant(s) etc.);
  • Graduate Assistantship Teaching(GAT) (50% salary and 50% scholarship) administered by Werklund School of Education;
  • Graduate Assistantship Non-Teaching (GANT) (50% salary and 50% scholarship) administered by Werklund School of Education;
  • Graduate Assistantships;
  • Paid Residencies (practical experience – only available to PhD EDPS students).
     

PhD students will receive funding based on the following conditions:

  • Must be registered as a full-time student
  • Must be available on campus during office hours in the Fall and/or Winter terms (during years 1 and 2 of the program)
  • Must apply for SSHRC funding (October) and the University scholarships competition (December). Failure to apply will result in a decrease or cancellation of departmental funding.
  • Must maintain satisfactory academic standing in the program


Depending on the source(s) of funding, monthly payments will not necessarily be consistent. For example, the timing of the receipt of a scholarship, or the dates of a Graduate Assistantship appointment, may impact the amount paid in a given month.

Finances: It is your responsibility to plan for the costs of your studies when living in Calgary. To help build your budget and plan your finances, please refer to the following resources:

Students who are offered admission to a PhD program will receive general information regarding funding in the offer package.

Details regarding specific activities to which students will be assigned will be provided after the offer of admission has been accepted.

Students may choose to waive an offer of work as a teaching assistant or sessional instructor without jeopardizing an offer of admission to a graduate program.

For more information about PhD funding, please contact the Graduate Programs in Education office.