Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship

Value
  • Valued at up to $45,000 per year for two years
  • International Graduate Differential Fees, if applicable
  • Recipients will receive a certificate acknowledging their scholarship
  • Scholarship start dates must be either May 1, 2024 or September 1, 2024
  • Funding for the second year is subject to meeting eligibility requirements, and submission and approval of the renewal request via the GSMS Awards Portal six weeks before the end of the first year of funding

Honourary status
If a student wins an external scholarship, the student is required to accept the external award. Accordingly, the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship may become honourary: the stipend will be of reduced or zero value depending on the value of the external award. Review the Scholarships and Awards Manual for more information.

Eligibility
  • Offered to outstanding students registered full-time in, or admissible to, a doctoral program
    • applicants must have completed at least 12 months of graduate work (Master’s or Doctoral level) before the start of award tenure (May 1, 2024 or September 1, 2024)
    • applicants must have completed no more than 48 months in their Doctoral program as of December 31, 2023
    • applicants must have at least 18 months of full-time registration left in their Doctoral program after May 2024 to fulfill the two-year scholarship tenure
    • for students who transferred from a Master’s program to a Doctoral program, the number of months completed during the Master’s program will count towards the Doctoral Program.
  • No restrictions on citizenship. All fields are eligible for funding
  • Applicants should have first class academic standing (equivalent to a 3.5 GPA). The GPA for current graduate students is calculated using the current graduate program graded course work. For newly admitted graduate students or current graduate students who have no graded course work to date, the admission GPA (AGPA) will be used
Selection Criteria

This is the most prestigious graduate award administered by the University of Alberta. Every effort is made to honor the criteria set out in the will of Dorothy Killam. It was Mrs. Killam’s desire that those awarded scholarships and fellowships be likely to contribute to the advancement of learning or to win distinction in their profession. Killam scholars should not be one-sided and their intellect should be complemented by a sound character.

Application Procedures

Applicants must complete the following, and ensure any requirements are submitted to their Department by the Departmental deadline to be considered for both the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship and the Dorothy J Killam Memorial Graduate Prize.

Once nominations have been submitted to FGSR, revisions will not be permitted. Incomplete nominations, including those submitted with missing transcripts, will not be considered. It is the student’s/Department’s responsibility to ensure that the application package is complete in every respect before such is nominated to FGSR via GSMS.

A complete Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship Application includes:

1. Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship Application Form: completed application form signed by the student; additional attachments will not be accepted.

2. Two Letters of Reference to Support Application for Graduate Awards Form: this form is required and must be completed and signed by each applicant’s referees. An additional confidential letter of reference (2 pages maximum) may be attached to the Letter of Reference Form.

  • Current UofA doctoral students must ensure that one referee is their graduate program supervisor
  • Reference letters must be submitted by the referees directly to the student’s department
  • It is highly recommended students give their referees a deadline at least one week prior to any application deadline to allow sufficient time and to avoid any possible delays/changes.

3. Up-to-date transcripts: of all undergraduate and graduate studies must be included in the application. With the exception of the UofA, all other institutions must be copies of the official transcripts. This includes (but is not limited to):

  • Unofficial UofA transcripts printed from Bear Tracks; must include current registration (i.e. both Fall 2023 and Winter 2024 terms)
  • All other Canadian and foreign transcripts (must show all completed coursework and grades, and conferral of any degrees)
  • All transfer credit transcripts (even if they were transferred to the UofA)
  • All transcripts of incomplete work/non-degree study/qualifying years, etc.

Applicants are encouraged to order required transcripts as soon as possible, where required. FGSR Awards will not provide copies of transcripts to either Departments or Students.

Nomination Procedures

Departments must submit eligible nominations to FGSR via the GSMS Awards Portal by FGSR’s nomination deadline of February 15, 2024. Departments are to review the 2024 Izaak Walton Killam Scholarship Department Memo.

Adjudication Procedures

The FGSR Graduate Scholarship Committee adjudicates the competition; FGSR will notify winners directly. Final decisions will not be released to students and Departments until after the Killam Trustees meeting in May – early June.

Deadlines

Department Deadline: each Department sets its own internal deadline for receipt of applications; applicants must contact their Department directly for the Departmental deadline. Applicants are encouraged to apply early and order required transcripts as soon as possible.

FGSR Nomination Deadline: the Deadline for Departments to submit nominations via the GSMS Awards Portal is Thursday, February 15, 2024 by end of the day.

Paid Parental Leaves

Effective January 1, 2023, eligible holders of the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Scholarship (graduate-level) may apply for a parental leave. This benefit is intended to support recipients who do not have access to other paid parental leave support through Tri-Agency or external scholarship funding. Recipients must meet the eligibility requirements, apply for an approved leave of absence from their program, and request funding by submitting the Graduate Award Interruption Request form to grad.awards@ualberta.ca. Please review the documents below:

Parental Leave Eligibility

Graduate Award Interruption Request

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