USRA eligibility requirements

First, please read the Information for Students Handout (pdf) and NSERC USRA FAQ (pdf) to see if you’re eligible to apply.

Application requirements

You must meet all the following requirements to be eligible:

• You are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident of Canada as of the deadline date for applications at the university.
• You are registered in a bachelor’s degree program as of the deadline date for applications at an eligible university.
• You have obtained a minimum cumulative B- (68%) average over your previous years of study.
• You are not currently enrolled in an undergraduate professional degree program in the health sciences (e.g., MD, DDS, BScN, PharmD). This does not apply for CIHR USRAs.
• You have not started a program of graduate studies in the natural sciences or engineering at any time.
• Living in British Columbia, Canada during your entire work term.

UBC is an eligible university under the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). You can check out other eligible institutions on the NSERC website. Students studying at a foreign institution who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada are eligible for a USRA, provided they meet all other eligibility criteria.

Requirements for holding an award

• You must meet the eligibility requirements above to apply.
• You must have completed all the course requirements of at least the first year of university study (or 2 academic terms) of your bachelor's degree.
• You must have been registered in at least one of the 2 terms immediately previous to holding the award in a bachelor's degree program at an eligible university. The terms of an academic year are Summer from May 1 to August 31, Fall from September 1 to December 31, and Winter from January 1 to April 30. Registration in either one of the 2 summer sessions will count as registration in that term.
• You must not have started a graduate studies program in the natural sciences or engineering at any time.
• You must not have held a previous USRA in the current fiscal year (April 1 to March 31), or have held more than 2 previous USRA awards in total.
• You must be engaged on a full-time basis in research and development activities in the natural sciences or engineering during the tenure of the award.

Additional considerations

• If you already hold a bachelor's degree and are studying toward a second bachelor's degree, you may still apply to this program.
• You may hold only one university USRA per fiscal year (April 1 to March 31).
• You may hold a maximum of 3 university USRAs throughout your undergraduate university career.
• You cannot receive academic credits for the work done during the term of a USRA.
  • Students may take a maximum of 2 courses if special arrangements to make up the time under supervision have been made with the supervisor. 
  • Award holders are permitted to take only one course in each summer term.
  • Students wishing to take more than two courses must first discuss the matter with their supervisor and obtain approval. The supervisor then makes a formal request to nserc.usra@ubc.ca, outlining the reasons they require an exception, and include links to the courses if possible. UBC Career Centre will then forward the request to NSERC for approval.
• Award holders are not permitted to do their own thesis research during the term of their award.

The eligibility criteria to apply for and to hold a USRA are known to cause confusion. To be eligible to apply, a student must be registered in a bachelor’s program as of the application deadline for the institution. Students who have completed their degree requirements by the application deadline are not eligible to apply.

To then be eligible to hold the award, the student must have been registered in at least one of the two preceding terms. This allows students who have graduated to hold a USRA in one of the two terms immediately following their graduation. 

Review the Canadian government's website for more information about Undergraduate Student Research Awards.