Funding Opportunities

In addition to automatically assessed academic scholarships upon program entry, the Frost Centre is pleased to be able to connect students with opportunities to apply for additional funds to support their research and program of study.

Frost Centre Funding to attend Conferences, Workshops or Symposia

Canadian Studies PhD students can apply in writing in advance for support from the Frost Centre for conferences, workshops or symposia in which: they will be active participants; the subject of the conference is directly relevant to their research interests; and, they can demonstrate that they have applied for support from the conference/workshop organizers (where appropriate), CUPE II, and the Graduate Student Association. Travel, accommodation (ideally based on shared accommodation or mid‐range rates), and registration fees of up to a maximum of $700 will be reimbursed upon submission of expense claims and receipts. In exceptional cases a larger amount will be covered if a sufficient case for such support is made in writing to the Frost Centre Director. All students given such support must submit a 500 word report for the Frost Report before they will be reimbursed. Normally only one application will be considered from a student in any one academic year.

Travel Funding

There are multiple sources for applying for funding to attend conferences and travel for research. 

• Frost Centre Funding to attend Conferences, Workshops or Symposia (above)
• Graduate Student Association
  The Graduate Studentsʹ Association (GSA) has nine elected officers (president, vice‐president, treasurer, secretary, two social directors, senator, and CUPE representative) and a student representative from each graduate department who organize social and informal academic events. Elections take place yearly. Graduate students are also represented on the University Senate, and the Research, Graduate Studies, Educational Development (COED), Animal Care, Academic Computer Services, Graduate Studies, Library Services, Nature Areas, Research (NSERC), Research (SSHRC), Special Appeals, Teaching Awards and Teaching Effectiveness committees. The GSA provides grants & bursaries for Conference Travel
• CUPE 3908 Unit 2
  3908 Unit 2 represents over 300 student academic workers. Most Unit 2 members are Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs), but many work as both graduate and undergraduate Student Markers, Academic Assistants, and Computer Lab Advisors. Unit 2 members have a particular relationship with Trent University, as the institution simultaneously acts as both their school and their employer. As employees of Trent University, you have a number of particular rights outlined in the Ontario Employment Standards Act and the CUPE 3908 Unit 2 Collective Agreement. If you want to know anything about your work as a Unit 2 member, the Collective Agreement is the place to look. This is a legal document that outlines all the intricacies of your work such as: Wages, Hours, Work Assignments, Grievance Procedures, Job Postings, Health & Safety, Discrimination & Harassment. CUPE 3908 Unit 2 has a Professional Development and Employee Assistance Fund. 
• International Student Travel Prize
  School for the Study of Canada International Student Prize will be awarded annually to an international undergraduate or graduate student with strong academic achievement and a demonstrated interest in the field of Canadian Studies, for travel to a significant heritage site or region of Canada of personal interest. The funds are held as an endowed gift with the intention to support Trent international students to see other parts of Canada or Ontario. 
• Northway Travel Award for Graduate Student Research
  The School for the Study of Canada and the Frost Centre are happy to announce a new travel fund beginning academic 2017-18, to be operated on a trial basis for three years, for full-time, registered MA and PhD students within the School who need funds to travel to do their research.  MA students will be allowed up to $400 during the course of their degree for travel. PhD students will be allowed $500 during their degree for travel. This fund is not meant to be used for conferences, but rather direct research costs relating to thesis and dissertation preparation, ie costs for accessing materials that one cannot secure at Trent or on ILL. This might include, for instance, visiting archives or travelling to do interviews. Transportation, subsistence, accommodation are all allowable travel costs, and we will be following Trent Research policies on these matters. Students will be responsible for filling out travel expense forms when they have completed the research.
  The student must apply in an email explaining the reasons for travel and listing the estimated travel costs. The supervisor must send an email of support for the application. Up to four MA students can be funded in one year, and up to six PhD students can be funded each year, with the first applications due March 1, 2018. The applications can be submitted to Cathy Schoel, the Frost Centre, with the subject line: Application for Northway Travel Fund. They will be judged by a sub-group of the SSC Governance Committee, which includes or is supplemented by a faculty member of the Graduate Executive. The funds will be administered by the SSC.

Shelagh Grant Endowment for support of Frost Centre Graduate Student Research

The Shelagh Grant Endowment provides funds for Frost Centre graduate students for travel costs for dissertation/thesis/MRP‐based research. Applications can also be made for some translation and transcription costs. The Frost Centre Research Committee will allocate these funds. Monies can be requested for travel, accommodation, per diem costs for both exploratory trips to develop a research project or to actually carry out research outside of southern Ontario. Translation and transcription costs are only to be used to render materials into English. Please contact the Frost Centre at frostcentre@trentu.ca to request information about accessing this funding.

T.H.B. Symons Trust for Canadian Studies

The T.H.B. Symons Trust for Canadian Studies was established in 1995 by friends and colleagues of Thomas H. B. Symons, the founding President of Trent University, to honour and to continue his work in the field of Canadian Studies. The purpose of The Symons Trust is to support and enhance the study of Canada, especially, though not exclusively, at Trent University. Under the direction of its Committee of the Trustees, the Trust provides funding to support imaginative new activities, to act as seed money for worthy new endeavours, or to foster important long range projects. Applications, which are welcome from any and all disciplines, programmes, or individuals, are evaluated by the Trustees in terms of their originality, quality, and potential contribution to the study of Canada. Funding from the T.H.B. Symons Trust for Canadian Studies is disbursed annually by the President of the University on the recommendation of the Committee of Trustees.