Scholarship for internship outside Quebec (2019-2020) (BSHQ), March 2019

1. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

• Encourage the national and international mobility of outstanding students in order to widen their scientific network and enrich their intellectual development through contact with different research traditions;
• Provide added value to the doctoral training of the scholarship holder through mobility and collaboration outside Quebec and internationally.
• Foster scientific exchange and openness to new research perspectives.

2. TARGET GROUP – ACCESS TO THE APPLICATION FORM

This program is intended for FRQSC Master’s or Doctoral scholarship holders wishing to do a short-term internship in an academic setting outside of Québec. If you meet the eligibility requirements and wish to submit an application, please write to bshq.sc@frq.gouv.qc.ca in order to access the application form.

3. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

In addition to holding a FRQSC scholarship, applicants must meet all eligibility requirements at the competition deadline.

• He/she must be enrolled as a full-time student in a Master’s or doctoral program in a Québec university.
• The internship must be conducted outside Québec. The co-tutoring institution is not eligible.
• The internship must be jointly supervised by the Master’s or doctoral research supervisor and a supervisor affiliated with the host institution.
• The applicant must clearly demonstrate the nature of the scientific activities in which he/she will participate and their added value in terms of scientific experience and networking in relation to the program of study.
• At the beginning of the internship, all required coursework for the program of study must be completed and the Master’s project or thesis must have received final approval from the designated bodies.
• The internship must end no later than the end of the ninth full-time session of the Master’s program or the eighteenth session of the doctoral program.
• Internships aimed solely at pursuing course work or lectures are not eligible.
• Only one internship can be funded under this program during the duration of the FRQSC Master’s or doctorate scholarship.
• The internship must last at least two months, and may be as long as six months. The internship may be carried out in several stages, but only one round trip will be reimbursed.

4. ELIGIBLE INTERNSHIP LOCATIONS

Universities, organizations, industries with an R&D department located outside of Quebec.

5. COMPETITION DEADLINES

There are two annual competitions. Application deadlines are March 5 and October 5. When the deadline falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the deadline is extended to the next business day. Depending on the targeted competition, internships must begin no later than:

* These dates are subject to change without prior notice. The official competition deadline is posted in the Summary section at the top of the Program Rules.

6. VALUE OF THE SCHOLARSHIP AND EXPENSES COVERED

The value of the BSHQ scholarship is determined based on the eligible expenses described below. A BSHQ scholarship may be combined with a FRQSC Master’s or Doctoral Scholarship. It may also be combined with other internship funding sources, but may not be used to cover expenses charged to another source of funding.

Tuition fees

Tuition fees paid to the host institution will be reimbursed to a maximum of $4,000. When calculating the amount owed, the Fonds considers tuition fees only and does not include enrolment fees or membership fees for student associations, etc. In all cases, official receipts must be provided.

Travel allowance

The cost of return economy-class travel by plane, train or bus to the location of the internship will be reimbursed upon presentation of a copy of the ticket (paper or e-ticket), along with a detailed invoice. Note that only return tickets indicating a city of departure on the outward leg identical to the city of arrival on the return will be considered for full reimbursement. In the case of one-way tickets, only one ticket, the more expensive one, is covered. Expenditures for travel to or from train or bus stations and airports are reimbursed on presentation of supporting documents.

For travel by car, the amount payable is $0.43 per kilometre to a maximum equal to the price of return economy airline fare. Car expenses are payable upon presentation of two service station receipts, one issued at the start of the trip and the other at the destination.

Only one round trip is payable even if the internship is carried out in separate stages. Only cost of a round trip to the site of the internship can be reimbursed. No additional amount to cover any other travel expenses is paid during the internship.

No additional amount is paid to cover other expenditures such as travel expenses for a spouse or dependants, moving personal effects or transporting research material.

Living expenses

A lump-sum allowance of $1,500 per month is granted for living expenses, indexed to the cost of living at the location of the internship. Payment is made upon receipt of an attestation from the internship supervisor specifying the start date and the completion date of the internship. In addition to the allowance for tuition fees, the maximum amount reimbursed for indexed living expenses and travel expenses is $10,000.

7. APPLICATION FORM AND REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

The application must include the following using the form available in FRQnet and the E-portfolio. Documents must be attached in PDF format in the sections intended for that purpose:

• A duly completed application form;
• A letter of support from the Master’s or doctoral research supervisor;
• A letter of support from the internship supervisor at the host institution.
• The application must be completed in French or English.

Applications are evaluated on their intrinsic worth. They must contain all information required for their evaluation. Incomplete applications will be deemed ineligible.

Any incomplete application that does not contain the information necessary to establish eligibility or which cannot be evaluated will be deemed invalid by the Fonds. Documents that are not required and that are included with the application will be removed from the application before evaluation. Applicants will not be notified of any required information or documents missing from the application. Any documents received after the deadline for application will not be considered and applications cannot be updated.

REMEMBER TO TRANSMIT YOUR COMPLETED APPLICATION.

At any time, applicants may verify in their E-portfolio that the most recent version of their application has been successfully submitted. The application file in “Mes formulaires” must be flagged as “Transmis au Fonds” before the closing date and time of the competition. This indicates that the application has been received by the Fonds.

Once the application has been submitted, it may not be modified or resubmitted regardless of the transmission date, even if it is before the competition deadline.

All applications received will be assessed for eligibility by the FRQSC before being submitted to the evaluation committee. An acknowledgement of receipt will be sent by e-mail no later than December confirming reception of the application and its eligibility status. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the evaluation committee has the right to declare an application ineligible if it considers that the application does not meet the program conditions and objectives.

Applicants whose application package is deemed incomplete or invalid will be notified by e-mail that their application has not been transmitted to the evaluation committee.

Throughout the process, applicants are invited to check that no correspondence from the Fonds is placed in the “Undesirable” folder of their e-mail box.

8. APPLICATION EVALUATION

Evaluation criteria, indicators and weighting

Internship (50 points)

• Objectives and relevance of the internship
• Appropriateness of the internship with respect to the master or thesis project
• Added value of the internship (for the host institution and for the applicant)

Time frame (20 points)

• Relevance of the proposed activities
• Feasibility of the time frame

Host environment and supervision (30 points)

• Quality of the host institution and the supervision it offers

Applicants are advised to consult the Scores and Ratings Grid  used by the evaluation committees.

To be recommended, an application must obtain an overall score of 70% or more.

Evaluation process

Applications are evaluated by multidisciplinary expert committees recruited within and outside of Québec. It is therefore important to ensure that the project description is written in a clear and precise manner to be sure of receiving an appropriate evaluation. The evaluation committee analyzes all applications received on a comparative basis using the evaluation criteria in force. It also recommends the funding period based on the proposed time frame and the objectives of the internship. Consequently, the recommended length of the internship may differ from that indicated in the application.

The evaluation committee makes recommendations for each application received. The number of recommended applications that receive funding will depend on the availability of FRQSC funding for the program.

9. TERMS OF THE SCHOLARSHIP

BSHQ Scholarship holders must continue to be enrolled as full-time students in their program of study for the duration of the internship.

The internship start and end dates may be modified, subject to Fonds approval of a documented modification request sent by e-mail to the program manager. The proposed changes must meet all eligibility requirements and cannot change the nature of the internship as originally evaluated by the Fonds.

10. ANNOUNCEMENT OF COMPETITION RESULTS

The results will be announced in the two months following the closing date of the competition via the applicant’s E-Portfolio. BSHQ recipients are responsible for contacting the consulate or embassy of the host country to obtain a visa if necessary.

11. RULES GOVERNING STACKING OF SCHOLARSHIPS

BSHQ recipients are not eligible for the Soutien aux cotutelles Québec-France program or other Government of Québec or Government of Canada mobility programs during the same period. Students funded under the mobility support program (Ministère de l’Éducation et de l’Enseignement Supérieur in collaboration with universities) can claim only the difference between the value of the mobility scholarship and funding received under the BSHQ program.

12. INTERNSHIP REPORT

BSHQ recipients agree to submit to the Fonds, no later than one month after the end of the internship, a report summarizing the work done and the extent to which the objectives were achieved. This report must be signed by both the person supervising the Master’s or doctoral research, the internship supervisor in the internship setting and the scholarship holder. The report is to be submitted in the latter’s Portfolio. The final scholarship instalment is conditional on the submission of this report and its approval by the Fonds.

The internship supervisor at the host institution must complete the section provided for this purpose, detailing the successes and/or failures of the internship as perceived by the host institution.