MITACS Program: research scholarships at the University of Montreal for UNIL PhD students

The MITACS program enables UNIL PhD students to complete a research stay of 3 to 6 months at the University of Montreal (UofM). All fields of research are eligible. A stay in an institution affiliated to the University of Montreal (e.g. HEC Montreal, Polytechnic School of Montreal) is not possible.

For such a research stay, a scholarship of 6,000 Canadian dollars is available, regardless of the length of the stay. Half of this sum is paid by MITACS, a Canadian not-for-profit organization, which has signed an agreement with the University of Montreal, and the other half by UNIL.

• No admission fee is payable to the University of Montreal 
• Stay in one of the leading research universities in the world
• Enlargement of the professional network in a new scientific and cultural environment 
• Exchange program student status and access to student services at UofM
• Most of the stay is financed by the scholarship, but additional funds are needed to cover the full cost.

• Be enrolled as a PhD student at UNIL and remain enrolled throughout the research stay at UofM
• Have a research project while wishing to benefit from the expertise of a researcher at UofM
• The curriculum attended at UNIL must allow you to stay at the University of Montreal for 3 to 6 months
• Find a research professor at the University of Montreal who agrees to invite you and supervise your research:
  • contact your PhD supervisor at UNIL to see if he·she can put you in touch with a research professor at the University of Montreal
  • refer to the procedure to be followed to enable you to find a supervisor at the University of Montreal
• Payment of transport costs and living expenses (accommodation and food) in Montreal; these costs will be largely covered by the scholarship, but additional funds are needed
• In some cases, you will be required to conclude a specific, separate agreement with the UofM concerning the intellectual property rights resulting from the research activities and the publication and development of such activities
• Obligation to take out a group health insurance plan for the duration of the stay and to pay the premiums (specific UofM health insurance plan). You must also have a travel insurance and it is highly recommended to have a civil liability insurance during your stay abroad
• Completion of the application form (see section Application).

• Call for applications launched in April 2024
• Deadline for submitting the application form: 12 February 2025.  

An application can be sent to us at any time before the indicated deadline. However, there are two important points to keep in mind : 

• At least 16 weeks before the beginning of your planned project/stay at UofM, MITACS must receive the complete application from the international relations office of UNIL. Add at least 2 weeks more, the time needed to review the application submitted to our office
• After the official acceptance of an application by MITACS, you have one year to start your research stay at the UofM. 

Please take note of the important information below before downloading the application form :   

• Please read carefully the preliminary information in the guidelines. This "program guide" is part of the "application kit" to be downloaded  
• In the form to be filled out, you must describe your project during your research stay at the University of Montreal. Do not describe your thesis in general. It must be consistent with the calendar
• The stay must be entirely devoted to research – this must be reflected in the form
• This is a full-time research stay. Therefore, do not mention courses and seminars that will be taken during the stay at UofM
• The form can be completed either in English or in French (see the respective version of this website)
• A PhD student being already in Canada cannot apply for a MITACS scholarship unless he or she returns to his or her country and then departs again for the research stay at the University of Montreal. 

To download the application form, please go on the website of the University of Montreal. Click on "1. Apply", scroll to "Submitting applications" and click on "Application kit". The form 1 (research proposal) must be completed (without deleting the comments and advice) and sent electronically to Mr Matthias Buess. You should not send your research proposal directly to MITACS nor to UofM. The form 2 (co-funding) is not needed for your application. 

Our office will send your reserach proposal to MITACS, which will carry out a pre-assessment. If the proposal complies, MITACS will send you a link to the application portal, and you will be guided through the rest of the procedure. Both supervisors will also need to open an account to approve the project.