Financial Support

Departmental Funding

The 2023-2024 guaranteed minimum stipend is $27,030 for MSc and $28,152 for PhD per year.  Students are responsible for paying tuition and fees from this amount. This financial support can come from a variety of sources and can differ from student to student.  These sources include:  supervisor research grant support (GRF); external scholarships support (NSERC, OGS); Graduate Teaching Assistantships (TA); Research Assistantships (RA) and internal scholarship support. This support is guaranteed for all full-time graduate students up to two years of a M.Sc. program and up to four years of a Ph.D. program.

International MSc students may receive an additional top-up of $7,000 in the form of a Department Tuition Award to help offset the higher tuition costs if available. 

An annual top-up of $200 in year 2 for MSc and PhD, $400 in year 3 and $600 in year 4 for PhD will be applied to the minimum annual stipend to reflect TA/RA rate increases.

Additional Funding

All eligible students are encouraged to apply for external and internal awards. Additional award & scholarship information can be found on the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs' website. Students who hold scholarships and awards will receive a top-up in addition to the minimum stipend (See Scholarship Holders below for more details).

To receive the minimum stipend, students are required to apply for four TA positions unless their supervisor volunteers to increase the GRF portion.  Students with scholarship and awards should discuss with their supervisor about a possible reduction in TA positions.

Applications for bursaries are also available to qualified students on the Students Awards web site.

Students who hold a scholarship or award will receive the following top-ups in addition to the minimum stipend:

  • Any award holder with an award less than $10,000 will receive a GRF top-up in the amount of half the award and will receive full QGA support ($5000).

    • Exceptions:

      • GETA award holders as this award is applied directly to tuition fees and is not included in the guaranteed stipend.

      • Department Tuition Awards for International MSc students as this award is meant to offset the higher tuition costs.

  • Any award holder with a $10,000 award will receive a top-up of $5,000 above the minimum stipend of which half ($2,500) will come from GRF. These students will receive QGA support in the amount of $4,250

  • Any award holder with a $15,000 award will receive a top-up of $5,500 above the minimum stipend of which half ($2750) will come from GRF. These students will receive QGA support in the amount of $3,750

  • NSERC holders entering their first year of an MSc receive a top-up of $8,000 composed of $5,000 Tri-Agency Recipient Recognition Award (TARRA) and $3,000 GRF.

  • NSERC holders entering their first year of a PhD receive a top-up of $10,000 in the form of the Tri-Agency Recipient Recognition Award (TARRA).

  • NSERC holders in years 2-4 will receive a top-up of $6,000 composed of $3,000 GRF and $3,000 QGA.

  • Arthur B. McDonald Prize for Academic Excellence holders will receive a top-up of $6,000 composed of $3,000 GRF and $3,000 QGA.

2023-2024 Award Stipend Chart (PDF, 78 KB)

Graduate students pay tuition and fees as set out by the Office of the University Registrar.

Pre-Authorized Payment Plan (PPL)

Eligible graduate students may register for the Pre-Authorized Payment Plan (PPL). There is no fee, or extra charge, to join the payment plan.

The PPL will pick up fees that have been assessed in SOLUS and divide the amounts owing over the scheduled withdrawal dates of the plan. Each Academic Year you must self-enroll on SOLUS in a payment plan for that academic year if you wish to participate. Please note that you will not be automatically enrolled in the next academic year.

The Self-Enrollment Period for Fall plan is July 1st - September 30th; Winter plan is December 1st - January 1st; Summer plan is April 1st - May 20th. Students who are enrolled in the Fall plan as of January 20th will be automatically enrolled in the Winter plan. Students who are enrolled in the Winter plan as of April 30th, will be automatically enrolled in the Summer plan for that particular Academic Year.

For more information and how to self-enroll on SOLUS see the Office of the Registrar's website.

Dates & Deadlines

For students not on the PPL, fees are due according to the regular due dates.

Fall Tuition: September 30th

Winter Tuition: January 10th

Summer Tuition: May 1st

MSc Stipend Comparison

CHEM DEPT Stipend Tuition & Fees Take Home
Queen's $27,030 $7,186 $19,844
McMaster $27,750 $8,392 $19,358
Waterloo $27,030 $8,409 $18,621
Western $27,636 $8,859 $18,777
Ottawa $26,000 $9,768 $16,232

PhD Stipend Comparison

CHEM DEPT Stipend Tuition & Fees Take Home
Queen's $28,152 $7,186 $20,966
McMaster $29,750 $8,392 $21,354
Waterloo $27,270 $8,409 $18,861
Western $27,636 $8,859 $18,777
Ottawa $26,000 $8,763 $17,237