NSERC 2010-2011

[kyudai]

Saharel, thanks for the encouragement... Just struggled finishing a paper with this in mind. Hoping for the best... or should I say I'm trying.

Yellowtulip, thanks for the reply. You're right, I guess it maybe a def mech on my part to expect the worst... But congrats to you and to Saharel for getting your NSERC's.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

[saharel]

Hi All,

Just got my rejection!

Unfortunately, i have been trying to find "a closure" as to why i didn't get it, and i am not really able to find the answer!! i hope that some of you could help me.

So can anyone please help me find out why am i really working hard again?!! coz i am really not being able to see how i am getting compensated for all that!!

All i really want is someone to tell me, that i am not competitive enough to get it, and that all others who got it have better records. Coz otherwise, i see no fairness in all this.

Thanks!

I feel your pain. It is true you seem to have done some hardwork to get there. If I compare myself with you, I would say you are stronger in some area, and I am stronger in other, overall, I would consider that it evens out, normally you should get an offer. Be sure that your profile is really good, at your level it is not everybody who has achieved all this, so definitely you were a really strong candidate. I have to agree with yellow tulip, maybe you had a great list of accomplishements, but you were not able to sell yourself and to show to the reviewers how come this list of accomplishments, makes you a great applicant. The other factor could be your ranking at your university. At my university, the success rate is 50%, my university sends out 40-42 application to NSERC, but about 20 are funded, so to get the scholarship I definitely had to be ranked in the top 20. You could check your university ranking and success rate. I don’t know in which department you are, but Waterloo is one of the best university in some areas and some of the best students study there in these area, maybe applicants from waterloo were really great. Althought I am going to waterloo my NSERC was forwarded from my current university, even if our applications are similar,we can’t compare. Your research....maybe NSERC didn’t like it. I knew someone who was in an interdisciplinary field who couldn’t get funding, because all organisms told her…well it doesn’t fall into any of our categories. Or if your project was not well written/explain. You know your ability to write your project in a clear and cohesive manner shows in a way your ability to complete successfully this research I would have to say also, the reviewers. Like yellowtulip say, sometime you don’t understand their evaluation. My GPA in undergrad and grad is 4.2 and 4.3 out of 4.3, did my bsc in 3years, got scholarship for undergrads. I had a colleague in my MSc lab, 3.7out of 4.3, 6years to do BSc, no undergrad scholarship who applied to same scholarship for master. We were not evaluated by the same comitte of reviewer. For is academics evaluation which consider gpa, time and honors he got 4.5/5 and my reviewers gave me 3.5/5. We had the same supervisor, part of the evaluation was on the supervisor, I received 1.5 out of 2.5 and he got 2.5/2.5. Maybe my reviewers were more severe, and his were laid back, or pherhaps my comitee was more competitive and his less. I remember the frustration. Please don’t give up, continue your hardwork, it should pay off at some point, maybe you will get one after people refuses their offers!! If you are still elligible try again next year, try to have someone to review your application package. I always have different poeple from different to read and comment mine, not only my supervisor. Also, it is Lee in this thread who wrote…spend time on it. I don’t know how much time you spent, for my master I started to write the application in may, and for phd as well. Even when my university gave back my file in november to correct some minor mistakes, I still worked on it and made improvement.

Keep up the good work, you don’t see it know, but it always pays. don't give up... .and follow that advice to get your application package from nserc

[O4E]

Ive had 5 applications to NSERC. first 2 were rejections while applying in undergrad at Ottawa U (2005/6,2006/7), third was succesful at a new school (2007/8) at start of my masters, fourth was unsuccesful (2008/9). And this weekend i learnt that my 5th (2010/11) was succesful in my first year of phd! I was quite discouraged after my fourth app that was rejected (incidently my OGS was rejected too that year and wasnt even sent to nserc) and thought of not trying again. I was denied by my school to see the selection process so I was quite ticked off at them, as i was suppose to be allowed to see it. I think most schools have very different criteria in what apps that they send and what they dont send. I did try again this fall And im very glad i tried again.

Anyway I hope some of this info helps others who have been discouraged by rejection letters this week. I think the most important thing is to keep trying.

[uwGradStudent]

I feel your pain. It is true you seem to have done some hardwork to get there. If I compare myself with you, I would say you are stronger in some area, and I am stronger in other, overall, I would consider that it evens out, normally you should get an offer. Be sure that your profile is really good, at your level it is not everybody who has achieved all this, so definitely you were a really strong candidate. I have to agree with yellow tulip, maybe you had a great list of accomplishements, but you were not able to sell yourself and to show to the reviewers how come this list of accomplishments, makes you a great applicant. The other factor could be your ranking at your university. At my university, the success rate is 50%, my university sends out 40-42 application to NSERC, but about 20 are funded, so to get the scholarship I definitely had to be ranked in the top 20. You could check your university ranking and success rate. I don’t know in which department you are, but Waterloo is one of the best university in some areas and some of the best students study there in these area, maybe applicants from waterloo were really great. Althought I am going to waterloo my NSERC was forwarded from my current university, even if our applications are similar,we can’t compare. Your research....maybe NSERC didn’t like it. I knew someone who was in an interdisciplinary field who couldn’t get funding, because all organisms told her…well it doesn’t fall into any of our categories. Or if your project was not well written/explain. You know your ability to write your project in a clear and cohesive manner shows in a way your ability to complete successfully this research I would have to say also, the reviewers. Like yellowtulip say, sometime you don’t understand their evaluation. My GPA in undergrad and grad is 4.2 and 4.3 out of 4.3, did my bsc in 3years, got scholarship for undergrads. I had a colleague in my MSc lab, 3.7out of 4.3, 6years to do BSc, no undergrad scholarship who applied to same scholarship for master. We were not evaluated by the same comitte of reviewer. For is academics evaluation which consider gpa, time and honors he got 4.5/5 and my reviewers gave me 3.5/5. We had the same supervisor, part of the evaluation was on the supervisor, I received 1.5 out of 2.5 and he got 2.5/2.5. Maybe my reviewers were more severe, and his were laid back, or pherhaps my comitee was more competitive and his less. I remember the frustration. Please don’t give up, continue your hardwork, it should pay off at some point, maybe you will get one after people refuses their offers!! If you are still elligible try again next year, try to have someone to review your application package. I always have different poeple from different to read and comment mine, not only my supervisor. Also, it is Lee in this thread who wrote…spend time on it. I don’t know how much time you spent, for my master I started to write the application in may, and for phd as well. Even when my university gave back my file in november to correct some minor mistakes, I still worked on it and made improvement.

Keep up the good work, you don’t see it know, but it always pays. don't give up... .and follow that advice to get your application package from nserc

Thanks Sarahel for your comments. I am pretty sure I spent enough efforts and time on my application. As i stated before, I even had two successful applications from last 2 years with me, and I tried to see where and how they highlighted their strengths; as well as followed the same format for the essays sections.

I have to note however, that I noticed you guys are mentioning about the importance of "how to write...etc..". My answer is simple: How rusty could you expect a couple of pages to be written, by a person who has the ability to write a book and various journal publications? In other words, I am pretty sure, the problem does not rely there.

On another note, I did show my application to couple of friends who got it, and their feedback was great!

Maybe you are right on the ranking part, I am in ECE at Waterloo (I guess we are among the top in Canada)! Our success rate last year was 60 %, am not sure about this year.

In any case, thank you for your thoughts on my issue. I won't be eligible next year, this was my last year to apply for NSERC. All I am trying to find now is some motivation to keep working as hard.

To be honest with you, all i can think of now is how to graduate. Because with more or less publications, seemingly the outcome is sadly the same!!

[wlugrad]

Scholarships do not define who you are!!! They are just polish!!

Hope you find some motivation to work harder!!!

[ste urbain]

Thanks Sarahel for your comments. I am pretty sure I spent enough efforts and time on my application. As i stated before, I even had two successful applications from last 2 years with me, and I tried to see where and how they highlighted their strengths; as well as followed the same format for the essays sections.

I have to note however, that I noticed you guys are mentioning about the importance of "how to write...etc..". My answer is simple: How rusty could you expect a couple of pages to be written, by a person who has the ability to write a book and various journal publications? In other words, I am pretty sure, the problem does not rely there.

On another note, I did show my application to couple of friends who got it, and their feedback was great!

Maybe you are right on the ranking part, I am in ECE at Waterloo (I guess we are among the top in Canada)! Our success rate last year was 60 %, am not sure about this year.

In any case, thank you for your thoughts on my issue. I won't be eligible next year, this was my last year to apply for NSERC. All I am trying to find now is some motivation to keep working as hard.

To be honest with you, all i can think of now is how to graduate. Because with more or less publications, seemingly the outcome is sadly the same!!

Well, we don't actually know you, and haven't read your publications. All we can judge your work on is the posts you have left here... which actually contain grammatical errors ("I spent enough efforts and time", "the problem does not rely there"...), so... it should not be surprising that we are suggesting writing as a possible cause. Likewise, your NSERC reviewers have not read your publications; they only have your application to go on.

We are just trying to help, because you asked. Please don't take out your frustrations on us.

[itsAnewStart]

lol

Well, we don't actually know you, and haven't read your publications. All we can judge your work on is the posts you have left here... which actually contain grammatical errors ("I spent enough efforts and time", "the problem does not rely there"...), so... it should not be surprising that we are suggesting writing as a possible cause. Likewise, your NSERC reviewers have not read your publications; they only have your application to go on.

We are just trying to help, because you asked. Please don't take out your frustrations on us.

[O4E]

Thanks Sarahel for your comments. I am pretty sure I spent enough efforts and time on my application. As i stated before, I even had two successful applications from last 2 years with me, and I tried to see where and how they highlighted their strengths; as well as followed the same format for the essays sections.

I have to note however, that I noticed you guys are mentioning about the importance of "how to write...etc..". My answer is simple: How rusty could you expect a couple of pages to be written, by a person who has the ability to write a book and various journal publications? In other words, I am pretty sure, the problem does not rely there.

On another note, I did show my application to couple of friends who got it, and their feedback was great!

Maybe you are right on the ranking part, I am in ECE at Waterloo (I guess we are among the top in Canada)! Our success rate last year was 60 %, am not sure about this year.

In any case, thank you for your thoughts on my issue. I won't be eligible next year, this was my last year to apply for NSERC. All I am trying to find now is some motivation to keep working as hard.

To be honest with you, all i can think of now is how to graduate. Because with more or less publications, seemingly the outcome is sadly the same!!

I remember last year with my NSERC rejection being quite bitter that a colleague got a PGS-D and didnt even publish a single paper prior to submitting her ap. I had at least 2 at the time. But what Ive come to realize and especially from others experinces is that there are many issues that can come into play in the selection process.

Heck even the criteria for getting your app outside of the university is vague university to university. Some universities have a criteria of grades only and do not look at all at any of your other accomplishments. So if the cut off was 92% regardless of your publications an 85 or 86 would get you a rejection in November at some Universities without the pleasure of a rejection letter from nserc. I know alot of guys doing research right now who have 70~80% averages that are far more canny at research and publishing than people with 95s but they cant break the university screen. I dont know why your app didnt go through at NSERC. But some years i would have relished the oppertunity just for my ap to have gone through the university screen. Could be a number of things why it didnt pan out. There is no exact sceince to scholarship acceptances/rejections its subjective based on some 30/50/20 scale for the reviewer who has multiple apps to go through and little time to do so based on many reasons listed here. I know of people with multiple publications and 99% averages still being rejected for scholarships (and being quite upset over it too).

The key is, rejection happens, and you need to make them make you stronger. Take it from somone whose been rejected 3x by Nserc, 2x by OGS, 1x by commonwealth, multiplex by some pretstigious University scholarship that i cant remeber and use this motivation; Prove to them why they made a mistake by publishing even more and excelling in your research. Theres other scholarships out there that are more prestigious go for them. But always keep in mind that no matter how great you are or think you are. Scholarships and grants are hit and misses. You win some, you lose some, and you keep at it;) Thats academia. BTW my grammar and typing is atrocious here, but this is not an app for nserc thankfully

[mountaingrl]

Hi all,

I've been following the conversation for the last week or so to keep track of when the NSERC letters would arrive. It's funny, I didn't get anxious about it until I started reading this forum and everyone sounded so worried and nervous! So maybe it wasn't a good idea, but it was a bit addictive

Anyways, I keep reading a lot about the importance of papers, publications, etc, and thought I would throw in my two cents. I realize academia has this 'publish or perish' mindset (which I don't agree with, incidentally), but is the same true of NSERC scholarships necessarily? Has anyone been told that, or has it always been assume that your number of publications matter?

I attended the NSERC info session that they hold at each university last fall, before submitting my application. Most of it was useless (standard instructions that you can read for yourself on the website), but they did talk about selection criteria and what NSERC is looking for. There are the basic 30/50/20 PGS weightings that are posted on the website. What they said was that most applicants who pass through their university ranking system are very similar in the 30/50 categories (academic excellence and research ability potential), as far as can be gleaned from an application. Everybody pretty much excels in these categories. What distinguishes one applicant from another is that 20% - communication, interpersonal and leadership skills. So they hinted pretty strongly that this was the most important part to emphasize in your application.

So that's what I did and it seemed to do the trick, because compared to the publications, conferences, etc that have been listed in some posts (eg. by uwGradStudent), I've got squat!

Of course, I'm sure there are a lot of other important criteria at work here as to who gets accepted and who doesn't, but I do think people put too much stress on their publication numbers. (Or maybe I just fantasize about an academic world that doesn't measure integrity by quantity of papers...). Perhaps for the PDF this does matter, but I don't know much about that competition.

Anyways, sorry for those who didn't get accepted. I've been rejected many-a-time by NSERC, so I know how it feels. But if you do believe that you're doing good work and you enjoy it, then keep working hard at it, because it's still important regardless of whether some faceless committee somewhere decides to give you their endorsement! Best of luck in future work, everyone

[Sydryx]

Here's a quick question for everyone...

I was awarded a CGS-M, but I'm not sure when I should start it (either May or September). I'd prefer to start in September 2010 and have it go to September 2011, but I'll be graduating (knock on wood) in May 2011. I'll be moving somewhere in August '11 for my Ph.D, so having the NSERC funding over the summer would be great. Will the NSERC funding stop as soon as I graduate, or will it keep going regardless for the entire year? If it's going to stop as soon as I graduate, I might as well start it in May of this year.

Thanks for your input!

Edited March 28, 2010 by Sydryx

[itsAnewStart]

I guess you'll have to be registered as a student to receive the scholarship.

If in your school graduating in May requires you to register for the summer term, I guess you'll be covered.

Here's a quick question for everyone...

I was awarded a CGS-M, but I'm not sure when I should start it (either May or September). I'd prefer to start in September 2010 and have it go to September 2011, but I'll be graduating (knock on wood) in May 2011. I'll be moving somewhere in August '11 for my Ph.D, so having the NSERC funding over the summer would be great. Will the NSERC funding stop as soon as I graduate, or will it keep going regardless for the entire year? If it's going to stop as soon as I graduate, I might as well start it in May of this year.

Thanks for your input!

[QTPIE]

Here's a quick question for everyone...

I was awarded a CGS-M, but I'm not sure when I should start it (either May or September). I'd prefer to start in September 2010 and have it go to September 2011, but I'll be graduating (knock on wood) in May 2011. I'll be moving somewhere in August '11 for my Ph.D, so having the NSERC funding over the summer would be great. Will the NSERC funding stop as soon as I graduate, or will it keep going regardless for the entire year? If it's going to stop as soon as I graduate, I might as well start it in May of this year.

Thanks for your input!

I was in the same situation last year. I was going to leave the paperwork until September but then my supervisor quickly reminded me that he wanted me to start the award earlier (so he would start paying less into my stipend). If you get another NSERC award for a PhD you can start it on May 2011 or save that for the coming September. Best bet though is to ask your graduate supervisor. Good luck!

-Q

Edited March 28, 2010 by QTPIE

[QTPIE]

I remember last year with my NSERC rejection being quite bitter that a colleague got a PGS-D and didnt even publish a single paper prior to submitting her ap. I had at least 2 at the time. But what Ive come to realize and especially from others experinces is that there are many issues that can come into play in the selection process.

Heck even the criteria for getting your app outside of the university is vague university to university. Some universities have a criteria of grades only and do not look at all at any of your other accomplishments. So if the cut off was 92% regardless of your publications an 85 or 86 would get you a rejection in November at some Universities without the pleasure of a rejection letter from nserc. I know alot of guys doing research right now who have 70~80% averages that are far more canny at research and publishing than people with 95s but they cant break the university screen. I dont know why your app didnt go through at NSERC. But some years i would have relished the oppertunity just for my ap to have gone through the university screen. Could be a number of things why it didnt pan out. There is no exact sceince to scholarship acceptances/rejections its subjective based on some 30/50/20 scale for the reviewer who has multiple apps to go through and little time to do so based on many reasons listed here. I know of people with multiple publications and 99% averages still being rejected for scholarships (and being quite upset over it too).

The key is, rejection happens, and you need to make them make you stronger. Take it from somone whose been rejected 3x by Nserc, 2x by OGS, 1x by commonwealth, multiplex by some pretstigious University scholarship that i cant remeber and use this motivation; Prove to them why they made a mistake by publishing even more and excelling in your research. Theres other scholarships out there that are more prestigious go for them. But always keep in mind that no matter how great you are or think you are. Scholarships and grants are hit and misses. You win some, you lose some, and you keep at it;) Thats academia. BTW my grammar and typing is atrocious here, but this is not an app for nserc thankfully

Yes, I agree. I think you get the worst feeling when your colleagues receive an award and they don't have any real research accomplishments (i.e. publications and conference abstracts). You'd think this would be the strongest indicator for scholarly work and therefore should be funded since you've proven yourself in the academic community. However, as we've all seen, especially this year, it all depends on what the reviewer(s) perceives in your application and how much competition you have that year.

I've heard many stories how political NSERC applications can become at the university level and maybe even more so at the national level. I don't think any of us really know/understand how the process really works unless we sit on one of these scholarship committees and rank applications ourselves. All the information that NSERC gives us makes it seem like there's a logical and precise method of how they go about assessing applications when really there is something more going on. I remember one story where a student had a 98% average (undergrad) and several publications but the one letter of recommendation had a few "Above averages" and not "excellent" or "top 1%" and it was rejected.

I like your attitude on how you deal with rejection. The rates of rejection are only going to increase as one goes on to higher and higher levels of academia. You'll be competing with a much smaller and a much more competitive group. However, I think it is our scholarly duty to keep applying for these scholarships regardless of the results and hope for the best. I think it's the ones who never give up who end up being the most successful later on (At least that's what I'm telling myself.)

Good luck to all and hope your other scholarships pan out.

-Q

[O4E]

Here's a quick question for everyone...

I was awarded a CGS-M, but I'm not sure when I should start it (either May or September). I'd prefer to start in September 2010 and have it go to September 2011, but I'll be graduating (knock on wood) in May 2011. I'll be moving somewhere in August '11 for my Ph.D, so having the NSERC funding over the summer would be great. Will the NSERC funding stop as soon as I graduate, or will it keep going regardless for the entire year? If it's going to stop as soon as I graduate, I might as well start it in May of this year.

Thanks for your input!

My GF had an issue simmilar to this she was graduating in October last fall. The graduate school told her she had to retuirn all of the funding she recieved after September (even though she was registered). However she thought the school was being a bit weird in their behaviour and asked NSERC directly what the policies were. Essentially they told her the finances are based until you graduate. So you are entitled to funding right up until the point where your officially graduated for the calender yaera where you were rewarded the scholarship. Make sure though you get clarification from your grad school on their policies. Otherwise theres red tape to deal with down the road. They often have different satnces than nserc.

[QTPIE]

My GF had an issue simmilar to this she was graduating in October last fall. The graduate school told her she had to retuirn all of the funding she recieved after September (even though she was registered). However she thought the school was being a bit weird in their behaviour and asked NSERC directly what the policies were. Essentially they told her the finances are based until you graduate. So you are entitled to funding right up until the point where your officially graduated for the calender yaera where you were rewarded the scholarship. Make sure though you get clarification from your grad school on their policies. Otherwise theres red tape to deal with down the road. They often have different satnces than nserc.

That's weird that the school would do that. One would think they would let you keep your scholarship until the bitter end, since that means less $$$ out of their pockets? I don't know, maybe something else is at play here...

[Ecophys]

I got notification of a PGS-D2 from my graduate coordinator and am impatiently waiting for the Vanier application next week. This was my first year applying after pumping out my M.Sc. publications last fall. I would not have even got out of the department last year as my grades are not strong enough to compete on their own.

I think that with the two separate applications for PGS and Vanier, there is going to be a lot of shifting (a lot more than normal due to the CGS recipients moving down to PGS to take it out of the country). I would expect that a good portion of Vanier recipients will also be offered NSERCs. So, there should be a lot of people not getting PGS that will be notified of receiving the scholarship later in June. I would also expect a number of PGS recipients to move up to CGS. This new system makes it a little more complicated, stressful and time consuming. But there is no other way to do it since the criteria are so much different now and international applicants are allowed for Vanier. It appears that there was significant weight put on leadership qualities and this separates it from NSERC where this holds much less weight. I know that my undergraduate grades (and judging from others grades on here, my graduate classes too) probably played against me for getting a CGS (my undergrad average was 76% and grad was 83%) but I was hoping strong sections for other criteria would boost me. So, I am happy getting a PGS for now. As long as the Vanier criteria doesn't weight undergrad grades as much, I should at least have a chance. Looking at the recipients from last year, it is indeed very competitive and to even make it to the national competition is nice.

For the PGS competition, I still think there needs to be less weight put on grades and maybe put more weight on referees academic evaluations. I suppose that becomes a little more messy than just assigning a value based on a GPA. I just have always had the belief that grades aren't everything and balance and perspective is much more important to creating a strong researcher. Out of the 100 or so students I teach labs for, the smartest ones are not always the ones that get 95% on everything. The best ones are the ones that stay late talking and asking questions and showing genuine interest and passion in what they learn. But that is a whole other discussion altogether.

Congratulations to everyone that got a PGS or CGS and to those that didn't. Hold your head up. There are still university fellowships or you could get bumped up in a month or two.

[QTPIE]

Congratulations to everyone that got a PGS or CGS and to those that didn't. Hold your head up. There are still university fellowships or you could get bumped up in a month or two.

So do they automatically bump you up if you're next in line for a PGS/CGS?

[Ecophys]

So do they automatically bump you up if you're next in line for a PGS/CGS?

I would assume there is some sort or unpublished waiting list that get bumped up when a scholarship is declined for any reason. It would likely have to come from the same university as well because of allocations. So, in reality, the more scholarships a university is allocated, the more turnover as well and a better chance of applicants that didn't quite make it getting 'bumped up'. I am not totally sure though. I am just speculating on how I interpret the system to work. NSERC would be unwise to not utilize all scholarship money they are given because unused portion indicates lack of need and cuts in the future to programs would be more likely than if all the money is given out every year.

With about 55 Vanier scholars, there should be at least one third of those (maybe more?) who are going to decline PGS/CGS awards which would bump up students from those universities from which the Vanier scholar came from that were not offered a PGS to start with.

[grady]

"the more scholarships a university is allocated, the more turnover as well and a better chance of applicants that didn't quite make it getting 'bumped up'"

You are right in the case a university has several accepted candidates, and some of them refuses the award for any reason.

In a related question, I am not sure there is a "minimum" quota allocated for each university that NSERC would try to fulfill. My understanding is that universities can present a "maximum" number of candidates (fixed by NSERC), but let's say only 30% of the candidates allocated are selected for a scholarship, then NSERC won't try to boost that to 60% for a specific university just because it has more money. I think it just selects the best candidates possible, without regard to the university allocations. Of course, we are all just speculating I guess, since it is not really clear on the web site.

Edited March 28, 2010 by grady

[ghareeb2010]

Hi all,

Could I ask whom didn't get the PDF letter by now? I'm currently living outside Canada. I'm not sure where NSERC will send the letter. To my Canadian address, or to my current address. Any info. about that?

[Ecophys]

"the more scholarships a university is allocated, the more turnover as well and a better chance of applicants that didn't quite make it getting 'bumped up'"

Maybe you talk from experience, but I am not sure there is a "minimum" quota allocated for each university that NSERC would try to fulfill. My understanding is that universities can present a "maximum" number of candidates, but let's say only 30% of the candidates allocated are selected for a scholarship, then NSERC won't try to boost that to 60% for a specific university just because it has more money. I think it just selects the best candidates possible, without regard to the university allocations. Of course, we are all just speculating I guess, since it is not really clear on the web site.

I don't talk from experience. On second thought, I think you are right that it isn't a set number for each university. A university has a set number of nominations they can make to the national competition each year. However, I think that, generally speaking, universities that have higher numbers of nominations get a large portion of scholarships. There is going to be some variability with that but it is a pretty close association from what I understand. As to who gets bumped up, I would hope it would be based on national ranking and not within universities (because a scholarship is only going to be declined if one is upgrading to take more money which would be bringing in more money to their university). This ensures the best ranked people are getting scholarships regardless of which school they go to or which universities get the most nominations to the national competition.

[itsAnewStart]

You may want to contact NSERC directly to make sure they were sending the letter to your current address.

Hi all,

Could I ask whom didn't get the PDF letter by now? I'm currently living outside Canada. I'm not sure where NSERC will send the letter. To my Canadian address, or to my current address. Any info. about that?

Edited March 28, 2010 by itsAnewStart

[2,3,7,8-TCDD]

I'm from Vancouver and got the mail today (March 29th) the letter was dated March 19th like others have mentioned... I'm very happy to get the PGS-D but for those who didn't don't be discouraged! I tried last year and got rejected even though the University told me I was near the top on their side of the rankings.

With these awards it seems nothing is ever guaranteed, gotta just play the numbers and try try again!

Edited March 29, 2010 by 2,3,7,8-TCDD

[vanboy]

Hi everybody, just wanted to say that I finally received my PDF results letter today in Vancouver. Did not get it but got a pre-approved IRDF. Just wanted to post in case anyone was still waiting for PDF in the west coast. It's been fun reading these forums for the past few weeks. Thanks for the company!

[jsmandur]

Is there anyone who heard about NSERC revision list ever ? I mean, is it true that NSERC generally upgrades the PGS holders to CGS in case the CGS guys drops to PGS ? any past experience with you or your friends ?