Siosaur Posted April 2, 2015 Posted April 2, 2015 I got offered an NSERC to U Lethbridge and an alternate for UVic, UBC and U of A. Praying for an offer from UVic as my #1 choice, they made me an offer for a scholarship but not enough to cover everything. Fingers are crossed for myself and other alternates out there! I asked UVic where I was on the waiting list and they didn't say, just that they would update me as the top 18 make their decisions and spots open up. The program at UVic and the atmosphere are more my style, but there is less fieldwork and way less money available than Lethbridge.. any advice? I haven't been to either of these places :/ life decisions are hard eh? Good luck everyone!!
strange_quark Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 Just for the environment alone I'd strongly consider UVic over Lethbridge Go have a look at Google Maps and you'll know what I mean.
cheesecake Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 I received a cgs. Am i allowed to change my topic if my interests change? thanks
Siosaur Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 (edited) Yeah, most schools allow you to change departments if you receive an NSERC. They don't expect you to keep the project you applied with, you're definitely allowed to change topics and supervisors within the same school. Congrats by the way! Edited April 3, 2015 by Siosaur
Silverlight Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 Alternate for UofT, unfortunately. Its disappointing considering that I received an email notifying me that my application was ranked very highly. I was an alternate last year as well, however I didn't receive any sort of email...wondering if this is normal. Congratulations to everyone else who was awarded, and best of luck to my fellow alternates! WhatIsThisLife? and strange_quark 2
strange_quark Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 Alternate for UofT, unfortunately. Its disappointing considering that I received an email notifying me that my application was ranked very highly. I was an alternate last year as well, however I didn't receive any sort of email...wondering if this is normal. Congratulations to everyone else who was awarded, and best of luck to my fellow alternates! Whom did you receive an email from? Is it the department? Or SGS? Also, which one of the tri-agencies do you belong to?
Silverlight Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 The department, and my application is under NSERC.
happy little pill Posted April 3, 2015 Posted April 3, 2015 I received a cgs. Am i allowed to change my topic if my interests change? thanks Yeah it's really common for projects to change. My professor applied to her MA SSHRC with a project on the Group of Seven and then she ended up writing about lesbian artists in Canada - literally no one cares.
MathCat Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 I decided to attend a US school, so I'll be declining my NSERC offers.
Frettchen Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 Chose Concordia over McGill because of the larger SSHRC top-up. I really wanted to go to McGill for a change in environment (just finishing a 4-year undergrad at Concordia) but it's around a $5k difference in funding. I hope I've made a McGill alternate's day!
capybarafriend Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 I decided to attend a US school, so I'll be declining my NSERC offers. That means you're declining a u of T CGSM right? Come to papa!
capybarafriend Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 Alternate for UofT, unfortunately. Its disappointing considering that I received an email notifying me that my application was ranked very highly. I was an alternate last year as well, however I didn't receive any sort of email...wondering if this is normal. Congratulations to everyone else who was awarded, and best of luck to my fellow alternates! I had the same thing happen to me. I thought it was very strange
MathCat Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 That means you're declining a u of T CGSM right? Come to papa! Sorry, no. I didn't get one there - I declined my offer at U of T long before NSERC decisions.
matt79156 Posted April 4, 2015 Posted April 4, 2015 Yeah it's really common for projects to change. My professor applied to her MA SSHRC with a project on the Group of Seven and then she ended up writing about lesbian artists in Canada - literally no one cares. It may bre true that "literally no one cares," but to protect yourself I would recommend taking to your department, given the wording in the CGSM agreement: Change of Program of Study, Supervisor, Research Project or Degree A notification of change to a program of study, supervisor, research project or degree must be sent to the Faculty of Graduate Studies (or its equivalent). If the research area of the project or program of study is modified, the award holder must submit to the Faculty of Graduate Studies (or its equivalent) a one-page outline of the new proposed research, along with any other documentation required by the host institution. The subject matter of the research must be aligned with the mandate of the original funding agency. Additional information on subject matter eligibility is available on Science.gc.ca. If the research project or program of study is modified to an extent that it would no longer be supported by the original funding agency, the award will be cancelled at the discretion of the host institution. Agencies reserve the right to review the one-page outline to ensure that eligibility guidelines are met. From: http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/Students-Etudiants/Guides-Guides/CGSMAward-BESCMaward_eng.asp
overunders Posted April 5, 2015 Posted April 5, 2015 can you lose the award if your gpa drops between the time you accept and the start date? my last two years gpa was 4.01 at the time i applied but I'm having a rough semester now. by my calculations, if they count this term, my last annual gpa will be 3.6 which isn't a first class average anymore as needed to be eligible. so i'm worried -- do the newer grades affect your eligibility once you've accepted?
blueivy Posted April 5, 2015 Posted April 5, 2015 has anyone at toronto who was on the alternates list been offered the award yet? I received one at ubc and one at queens but toronto seems to be the better choice for me...but it's a huge difference in funding
strange_quark Posted April 5, 2015 Posted April 5, 2015 has anyone at toronto who was on the alternates list been offered the award yet? I received one at ubc and one at queens but toronto seems to be the better choice for me...but it's a huge difference in funding I'd love to know that as well. Are you SSHRC or NSERC?
nakuu Posted April 5, 2015 Posted April 5, 2015 (edited) has anyone at toronto who was on the alternates list been offered the award yet? I received one at ubc and one at queens but toronto seems to be the better choice for me...but it's a huge difference in funding I have. I woke up at 8am on April 1 and saw that i was an alternate for SSHRC. Decided to get cracking on my essay and 2 hours later, i receive another email saying the status of my application changed. I'm guessing i benefited from people who had already made up their minds about not going to u of t. I did receive an email a week before from my department telling me that my application was 'highly ranked' but it seems like everyone gets the same email. Edited April 5, 2015 by nakuu
blueivy Posted April 6, 2015 Posted April 6, 2015 (edited) I did receive an email a week before from my department telling me that my application was 'highly ranked' but it seems like everyone gets the same email. I actually didn't get the "highly ranked" email Was it from your department or from the faculty? My department said i am first on the alternate list but I didn't receive an email from them letting me know i was highly ranked, so perhaps I should lose hope that i might get a sshrc that trickles down Edited April 6, 2015 by redrose27
strange_quark Posted April 6, 2015 Posted April 6, 2015 From what I gather, your department might not know. I think they submit a list of people they nominate, and then it gets adjudicated at the SGS level. At least that seems to be true with my department...
nakuu Posted April 6, 2015 Posted April 6, 2015 I actually didn't get the "highly ranked" email Was it from your department or from the faculty? My department said i am first on the alternate list but I didn't receive an email from them letting me know i was highly ranked, so perhaps I should lose hope that i might get a sshrc that trickles down I'm not sure what you mean by department vs faculty. I received the email from my department, not SGS. It said that they had forwarded the application to SGS.
overunders Posted April 7, 2015 Posted April 7, 2015 can you lose the award if your gpa drops between the time you accept and the start date? my last two years gpa was 4.01 at the time i applied but I'm having a rough semester now. by my calculations, if they count this term, my last annual gpa will be 3.6 which isn't a first class average anymore as needed to be eligible. so i'm worried -- do the newer grades affect your eligibility once you've accepted? bumping this up because I'm desperate for answers i doubt the SGS are really going to re-check the gpa of everyone that accepts, right?
cassette Posted April 7, 2015 Posted April 7, 2015 1. They are interested in the last 2 years of study, not your "last annual gpa." Does this help? 2. Is there anything you can do about this? Your grades are in, so it seems unlikely. An important part of being a healthy person, in my opinion, is to only worry about things you have power over.
overunders Posted April 7, 2015 Posted April 7, 2015 (edited) The CGS-M website says each of the last two years of study. At the time I applied, these were both above 4.0 so I was fine. This semester I'm expecting less than that, and combined with last semester, it comes up to just a tad below what I needed to be eligible last fall. The year before that is fine (I have 4.0). So basically I'd like to know 1) if there's a final eligibility check where they factor in the new grades and 2) if a .1 difference would really matter considering I had straight A's up to this point. I've already accepted the award so I guess all I can really do is wait and hope for the best... Edited April 7, 2015 by overunders
TakeruK Posted April 7, 2015 Posted April 7, 2015 No, there is no final check, other than that you finish your undergraduate degree and actually get admitted to the school! All merit-based decisions are made based on your application at the application deadline. If your GPA changes (or you gain more publications etc.) then this will be considered as part of the following year's cycle (if you apply again/to a different award etc.)
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