UBC 2025 Killam Doctoral Scholarships for International Students in Canada.

The University of British Columbia (UBC) in association with Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Fund for Advanced Studies is offering the Killam Doctoral Scholarship to top doctoral candidates.

Killam Doctoral Scholarships are the most prestigious awards available to graduate students at UBC. The Killam Scholarship and Prize Programmes were established in memory of Izaak Walton Killam through the Will of his wife, Dorothy Johnston Killam, and through gifts made during her lifetime. Their primary purpose is to support advanced education and research at five Canadian universities and the Canada Council for the Arts.

The UBC Killam Doctoral Scholarships are provided annually from the Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Fund for Advanced Studies. It was Mrs. Killam’s desire that those selected to receive scholarships: “Be likely to contribute to the advancement of learning or to win distinction in a profession. A Killam scholar should not be a one-sided person…Special distinction of intellect should be founded upon sound character.”

Benefits

At present, the Killam Doctoral Scholarship provides an annual stipend valued at $40,000 for two years.

Requirements

To be eligible to apply for Killam Doctoral Scholarship funding, applicants must have completed no more than 24 months of doctoral study as of the start date of the scholarship. Therefore, applicants to the 2024-2025 competition must have completed no more than 24 months of doctoral study as of 1 September 2025.

Selection Process

Selection Criteria:

Research ability and potential – 50%
- Quality of research proposal
  - specific, focused and feasible research question(s) and objective(s)clear description of the proposed methodology
- - significance and expected contributions to research
  Relevant training, such as academic training, lived experience and traditional teachingsResearch experience and achievements relative to the applicant’s stage of study, lived experience and knowledge systemsQuality of contributions and extent to which they advance the field of research. Contributions may include: publications, patents, reports, posters, abstracts, monographs, presentations, creative outputs, knowledge translation outputs, community products, etc.Demonstration of sound judgment and ability to think criticallyDemonstration of responsible and ethical research conduct, including honest and thoughtful inquiry, rigorous analysis, commitment to safety and to the dissemination of research results and adherence to the use of professional standardsEnthusiasm for research, originality, initiative, autonomy, relevant community involvement and outreachThe ability or potential to communicate theoretical, technical and/or scientific concepts clearly and logically in written and oral formats
Relevant experience and achievements obtained within and beyond academia – 50%
- Scholarships, awards and distinctions (amount, duration and prestige)
- Academic record:
  - Transcripts
  - Duration of previous studies
  - Program requirements and courses pursued
  - Course load
  - Relative standing in program (if available)
- Professional, academic and extracurricular activities as well as collaborations with supervisors, colleagues, peers, students and members of the community, such as:
  - teaching, mentoring, supervising and/or coaching
  - managing projects
  - participating in science and/or research promotion
  - community outreach, volunteer work and/or civic engagement
  - chairing committees and/or organizing conferences and meetings
  - participating in departmental or institutional organizations, associations, societies and/or clubs