Research Admin Offices:

• ROADS
• HRS

Opportunity Type:

• Grant

Value:

1. USRAs are supplements provided to supervisors for hiring undergraduate students for research projects within NSERC, CIHR, and SSHRC domains.
2. These awards have a value of $6,000 (plus a top-up from the contributing supervisor/department, based on minimum wage of $17.60/hr (as of October 2025).
3. The duration of the award is 14 to 16 weeks on a full-time basis.

Disciplines:

• DeGroote School of Business
• Faculty of Engineering
• Faculty of Humanities
• Faculty of Science
• Faculty of Social Sciences
• Health Sciences

Sponsors:

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)
• Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)

Deadlines:

Description:

Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRAs) are meant to nurture interest and fully develop the potential of undergraduate students for a research career in health, natural sciences, engineering, social sciences or humanities. These awards are also meant to encourage undergraduate students to undertake graduate studies by providing research work experience that complements their studies in an academic setting. You are permitted to hold a USRA during a co-op placement.

The Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) program supports more than 3,000 students annually and is administered jointly by Canada’s three research granting agencies:

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

At the present time, Winter 2026 NSERC USRAs are available to student researchers at McMaster who self-identify as Indigenous on the application form, while Winter 2026 CIHR and SSHRC USRAs are exclusively for student researchers who self-identify as Black on the application form.

USRAs have a value of $6,000, and the host institution is required to supplement the award. The duration of the award is 14 to 16 weeks on a full-time basis (35 hrs/wk, e.g. co-op placement).

The agency’s contribution is paid directly to the host institution and is included in the funds that awardees receive.

Eligibility:

To be eligible to apply for a Winter 2026 NSERC or SSHRC USRA, a student:

• must 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), as of the deadline date for applications at the institution (September 1);
• must be registered, as of the deadline date for applications at the institution (September 1), in a bachelor’s degree program at an eligible institution;
• must have obtained, over the previous years of study, a satisfactory cumulative average (normally at least B-);
• cannot be currently registered or have been previously registered, at any time, in a graduate program in the same field of study;
• cannot have completed all degree requirements. However, applicants who already hold a bachelor’s degree and are studying toward a second bachelor’s degree are eligible to apply;
• must not have already been awarded a USRA since April 1, 2025; and
• must not have already been awarded three USRAs throughout their undergraduate career.

Additional eligibility requirements for NSERC USRAs:

• must self-identify as Black and/or Indigenous on the application form; and
• cannot be currently enrolled in an undergraduate professional degree program in the health sciences (e.g., MD, DDS, BScN).

Additional eligibility requirements for SSHRC USRAs:

• must self-identify as Black on the application form; and
• cannot be currently enrolled in an undergraduate professional degree program in the health sciences (e.g., MD, DDS, BScN).

Eligibility to hold an award 

To be eligible to hold a Winter 2026 NSERC or SSHRC USRA, a student:

• must have completed all the course requirements of at least the first year of study (or two academic terms) of their bachelor’s degree;
• must have been registered in a bachelor’s degree program at the time of application and in at least one of the two terms immediately before holding the award;
• must be employed full time (35 hrs/wk, e.g. co-op placement) in eligible research and development activities in their proposed field of research during tenure of the award; and
• cannot be registered in a graduate program.

Notes: 

• A student may hold an award during the Fall or Winter term as permitted by their academic program.
• Tenure may start on a date acceptable to both the awardee and their host institution.

Application/Nomination Process:

Applications for the USRA program must be completed and submitted to the Canadian institution where the applicant wishes to hold the award through NSERC’s online system. More information about the application process can be found at Instructions for completing an Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) application – form 202.

A student can apply to more than one institution. However, please note that it is the institution’s choice whether to accept candidates from other institutions.

Contact:

For researchers with project ideas who are searching for eligible students, please contact your Faculty for assistance.

Please Note: If you are interested in a USRA position, please contact the Administrators listed below directly.

Faculty of Business	Pina Del Monte ; Kaitlyn Wynia
Faculty of Engineering	Samantha Mahoney
Faculty of Science	Sunita Nadella
Faculty of Health Sciences	Julie Croskill
Faculty of Social Sciences	Nour Wassim
Faculty of Humanities	Annamaria Skrtic

If you are applying from the Faculty of Health Sciences, please visit the USRA in the Faculty of Health Sciences page for more information.