The University of British Columbia is launching a multi-million-dollar initiative to significantly strengthen funding support for PhD students and postdoctoral fellows.
Alongside concurrent increases in funding investments for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows across the broader research ecosystem (e.g., Canada Graduate Research Scholarships; Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards; BC Graduate Scholarships), this initiative represents a substantial expansion of funding resources. It forms one component of an ongoing, system-wide review of graduate and postdoctoral funding at UBC.
PhD students
This investment will support an increase to the guaranteed base funding for PhD students in Years 1-4 to $40,000 per year. The intent is to strengthen overall funding levels for current and future PhD students and should be understood as supporting enhanced funding levels rather than enrolment growth. It also reaffirms a model of shared, whole-of-university commitment to graduate student support, including essential ongoing contributions from Faculties, departments, and supervisors.
Funding associated with this commitment will be allocated to Faculties this spring through existing mechanisms, enabling graduate programs to begin ensuring that all PhD students within years 1-4 will receive a minimum funding package of $40,000/year, effective Fall 2026.
This implementation approach balances the near-term goal of bringing all PhD students in years 1-4 to the new minimum funding level, with the need to provide academic units and supervisors sufficient time and flexibility to plan, align local practices, and ensure a smooth transition to sustained implementation.
Over the coming months, the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (Vancouver) and the College of Graduate Studies (Okanagan) will partner closely with Faculties and graduate programs, through existing academic governance processes, to share information and seek feedback on potential new funding models and mechanisms to support longer-term effective and equitable implementation. Additional information will be shared as these details are finalized.
Postdoctoral fellows
This investment will also support the establishment of a minimum annual stipend of $55,000 per year for all postdoctoral fellows holding either employee or award-recipient appointments, effective Fall 2026. Faculties and supervisors may, and often already do, provide stipends above this level in accordance with disciplinary norms and other considerations.
One-time incremental (top-up) funds will be available to support postdoctoral fellows whose current supports fall below the minimum after the implementation date through a review process, with more details to follow.
This initiative reflects UBC’s commitment to excellence across our scholarly communities and to supporting the academic pursuits and wellbeing of PhD students and postdoctoral fellows.
More information will be shared as implementation progresses.