Heads up: this scholarship was renamed from …. Update your bookmark or shared link to use this URL.

FRQSC Master's Research Scholarship (Bourse de maîtrise en recherche B1)

$20,000 a year for up to two years for a research master's in Quebec in humanities, social sciences or arts. You cannot hold this and a CGS-M.

Reviewed by G Paul · verified August 31, 2026

$40,000

Total value

Oct 1, 2026

Deadline

What you will need

Online application via frqnet.frq.gouv.qc.ca
Research proposal (typically 2-3 pages, sectoral fit clear)
Academic transcripts (undergraduate + master's-in-progress if applicable)
Supervisor endorsement letter
Two academic references
CV including publications, conference presentations, and prior funding

About this award

The FRQSC Master's Research Scholarship (B1) is the flagship provincial master's funding for Quebec students in humanities, social sciences, arts, and letters. Administered by the Fonds de recherche du Québec — Société et culture, one of the three sectoral funds within the Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQ). The award provides $20,000 per year for up to 2 years (maximum $40,000 total, 6 semesters of funding). Unlike federal Tri-Agency awards, FRQ scholarships are Quebec-restricted: only Quebec-domiciled trainees pursuing a research master's at a recognized Quebec university are eligible. The Quebec opt-out of the federal Canada Student Financial Assistance program does NOT apply to research scholarships — Quebec students remain fully eligible for the parallel federal SSHRC CGS-M and typically apply to both competitions in the same cycle. Holding rules apply: a student cannot hold a CGS-M and an FRQSC B1 in the same year. If you win both, you choose. Most students take the higher-value or longer-duration award and decline the other.

Who qualifies

You qualify for FRQSC B1 if you are (1) a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or protected person; (2) a Quebec resident under FRQ's residency rules; (3) admitted to or registered in a research-based master's program (typically thesis-based, sometimes named-paper based depending on faculty conventions) at a recognized Quebec university; AND (4) your research falls within FRQSC's sectoral scope — humanities, social sciences, arts, and letters. (Health-sciences research goes to FRQS instead; nature-and-technologies research goes to FRQNT.) The competition is selective, evaluated on academic record, research project quality, supervisor endorsement, and fit with the FRQSC mandate.

This is what the award's own page said when we last checked. Rules change, so confirm with the provider before you apply.

Canadian citizen or permanent resident
Open to graduate students
Resident of Quebec
Studying humanities, social sciences, arts or letters

How to apply

Read the award's own page
Check you meet every requirement, and note each document they ask for.
Order your transcript1–2 weeks
Your school's registrar can take a week or two.
Ask for reference letters2 weeks
Give your referees at least two weeks' notice, and send them your résumé.
Submit your application
Save a copy, and submit at least a day before the deadline shown above.

More details

Apply to both FRQSC B1 and federal SSHRC CGS-M in the same cycle — the application materials overlap heavily, and you want to maximize your chances.

Holding rules forbid both at once, but the application stage is open.

Coordinate with your supervisor very early — FRQ requires supervisor endorsement and the supervisor's endorsement letter is part of how the committee evaluates the research project.

Quebec graduate students often discuss with the Faculty of Graduate Studies (Bureau des études supérieures) which to accept if both come through; the conversation is about award value, duration, prestige, and whether stacking with internal university funding favours one or the other.

If your research is interdisciplinary and you're unsure whether it belongs in FRQSC or FRQS or FRQNT, FRQ has a sector-fit advisory process — submit a query to the relevant program officer before drafting the full application.

Share this scholarship

Screenshot this card to share it, or copy the citation. It shows when we checked it and links back here.