Awards

All awards are listed in this Award Quick Reference Chart, which can be filtered, sorted, and searched for awards currently open for application.

Further details of each award can be found in Awards – Detailed Descriptions.

Definitions

Although all of the Rotman School’s programs are considered to be full-time studies, for the purpose of these awards, the following terms are used to indicate specific programs:

• Full-Time (FT MBA)
• Morning & Evening (ME MBA)
• Master of Finance (MFin)
• Master of Financial Risk Management (MFRM)
• Master of Management Analytics (MMA)
• Executive MBA (EMBA)

Academic Merit

Academic merit is considered for all awards. There is no minimum GPA required, unless otherwise stated in an award’s description. Students with FZ in any course are ineligible.

Legal Status

• Domestic: Canadian citizen or permanent resident
• International: Studying on a study permit

Financial Need

Some awards require applicants to also demonstrate financial need in addition to academic merit and other criteria. According to approved award guidelines, financial need can be demonstrated by one of the following:

• Use of Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) or other Canadian/US government student financial assistance during the current academic year. In addition, an OSAP assessment greater than $0 for the current academic year must be in place in order to accept an award.
• Use of a Professional Student Loan Program (PSLP) loan during the current academic year. In addition, a Declaration of Need form for the current academic year must be submitted in order to accept an award.
• Use of a Prodigy Finance or MPower Finance loan during the current academic year.
• A student’s net expenses are greater than their resources, as detailed in the Financial Needs Assessment Form (part of the online application).

Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund (OSOTF II) and Ontario Trust for Student Support (OTSS) Awards

Some awards have been established as part of the Government of Ontario’s Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund (OSOTF II) and Ontario Trust for Student Support (OTSS) programs and must be awarded in compliance with those conditions. Under OSOTF II and OTSS, financial need and Ontario residency are the primary award conditions, and can both be satisfied by having unmet need as determined by OSAP.

Entrance Awards

Students who have been admitted to Rotman programs are automatically considered for entrance awards by Recruitment and Admissions. Students chosen for these awards will be notified by Recruitment and Admissions along with their offer of admissions. Separate applications are not required for these awards. However, it is important to note that we accept a number of high caliber students into our programs which make the competition for the scholarships particularly fierce.

First-Year and Upper-Year Awards

Recipients will be selected by the Selection Committee according to approved award guidelines. Some interviews may be required. Applicants will be notified of award decisions at the conclusion of each award cycle. Funding will be made available to recipients in the Fall or Winter terms.

First-Year Award Information

There are a select number of first-year application-based awards established by donations to the Rotman School of Management to students who are enrolled in the first year of their program. These awards are managed and administered through the Office of the Registrar. Applications for these awards open in in two periods: Fall and Winter.

Upper-Year Award Information

For students continuing to their second or third year of studies, Rotman offers a number of upper-year awards, most of which are application-based. These awards are managed and administered through the Office of the Registrar. These applications open in three periods: Summer, Fall, and Winter of each year.

Application Instructions

1. Review the award information, noting requirements for all awards.
2. Prepare both of the following and save in a single PDF document, in the following order:
   • A cover letter (maximum one page, addressed to the Awards Committee, and tailored to the specific eligibility criteria for the award in which you are applying); and
   • A résumé in standard Rotman format (template available from the Rotman Career Centre)
3. Access the online application form.
4. Choose the award(s) for application
   • Upload cover letter and résumé as a single pdf document for each separate award.
5. Complete the Financial Needs Assessment Form (second page of the online application).
   • This form must be completed if students have chosen awards that require financial need.
   • If students choose not to complete this form, they will not be considered for any award(s) that have a financial need requirement, even if they have chosen them on the application.
   • If students have to explain entries made in the budget section of the online Financial Needs Assessment Form, please include this information in the cover letter.
6. Students will receive a confirmation email once the application is submitted.
   • A copy of the submission will be attached to the confirmation email. Students should review it to ensure accuracy.
   • If students do not receive the confirmation email, the application was not successfully completed. Students should return to the site to resubmit.
7. Until the application deadline, students can login at any time to review or edit their application.
   • Only the most recent submission is saved and presented for review with each login; new submissions or document uploads will replace previous.
   • Students will receive a confirmation email with each submission.

Tips

• Include your student number and name on each page of your cover letter and resume.
• Transcripts are not required. The Office of the Registrar will confirm academic standing on courses completed and course enrolment.
• Do not include additional pages/documents not listed in the award criteria (such as covering sheet, reference letters, or transcripts)
• If the award(s) that the student is applying for does not require financial need, do not include mention of it in the cover letter.
• It is important to tailor each cover letter to the awards.
• Note: Traffic on the online application peaks near the deadline time/date, and may result in browser or application software issues. Students are advised to submit your application ahead of the application deadline time/date to minimize these issues.
• Note: The online application session may end if students are on it for an extended period. An error message if the session is timed out. Students should close all windows of the browser they are currently using then open a new browser window and log into the application again.

Ontario Graduate Scholarships (OGS)

Deadline: Thursday, May 1, 2025 – 11:59 p.m. E.S.T.

The Ontario Graduate Scholarships program is intended to encourage and support academic excellence at the master’s and doctoral levels. This initiative is supported jointly by the province of Ontario, the University of Toronto and the Rotman School of Management. An Ontario Graduate Scholarship at the Rotman School is held for one year ( two or three academic terms) and valued at up to $15,000 per year, thanks to the generous support of donors.

These awards are available to domestic students (Canadian citizens or permanent residents) registering a full-time graduate program who have attained at least A- (or equivalent) in each of the last two completed years of study (full-time equivalent); or if the student has completed two years of graduate studies at the time of application, the student must demonstrate an overall average of at least A- (or equivalent) on all graduate courses completed.

Information on this site pertains to Rotman’s master’s level OGS competition only. PhD candidates should contact the PhD program office for their specific details.

Rotman Specific Application Information

• Only Official transcripts will be accepted. Non-UofT transcripts MUST show the grade scale.
• Please select the SECOND “Management” option under Graduate unit field.
• Research Discipline should be “Management and Administrative Studies – 2G”.
• Year of Study pertains only to your Rotman program (i.e. students entering their Rotman studies in the Fall of 2025 would select “1”).
• Award Start Session for continuing students is May 2025 and September 2025 for entering students.
• Be sure to add any Scholarships and Awards received.
• If students do not have any Research Contributions, Relevant Experience and Activities, please upload a PDF with only the word “None” written.
• Students’ Plan of Study should detail why they are enrolling in their program at Rotman; feature any specific courses they aim to take and why; and what they hope to achieve by completing their degree.
• As OGS is an academic based award, students’ Referees should be able to speak to their academic and/or research abilities. It is recommended that continuing students use Rotman instructors as their referees. If students do not have an academic referee, work-related referees will be accepted, but should be limited to supervisors.

Purpose and Value of the Award

• Recognize academic excellence in graduate studies at the master’s and doctoral levels.
• Jointly supported by the Rotman School, Ministry of Ontario, and the University of Toronto.
• Held for and paid over two (2) or three (3) consecutive terms:
  • For returning students: Summer/Fall/Winter
  • For incoming students: Fall/Winter/Summer
• Value: $5,000 per term
• Below are the estimated number of awards per program:
  • Three to five awards to students in the Full-Time and joint MBA programs (JD/MBA, Skoll, MGA/MBA, and PharmD/MBA)
  • Three to five awards to students in the Morning and Evening MBA
  • One or two awards from the MFRM, MMA, and MFin programs

Application Eligibility

The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) lists minimum criteria. Graduate units may impose additional criteria to apply, receive, or hold an OGS. Rotman uses the following eligibility criteria:

Legal Status

Rotman’s master’s level OGS are open only to domestic students (status at the time of application):

• Canadian citizen
• Permanent resident
• Protected Person

International competition is for PhD candidates only.

Minimum Academic Requirements

• All grades available at the time of the SGS deadline will be used.
• Candidates are welcome to check their grade eligibility with Rotman before beginning their application process.

Applicants with Two Years or Fewer of Graduate-Level Studies

Minimum A- (80% or 3.70 GPA or equivalent on UofT scale) average in each year completed of the last two years of study (10 credit-equivalent)

Applicants with More than Two Years of Graduate-Level Studies

Minimum A- (80% or 3.70 GPA or equivalent on UofT scale) average from all graduate courses completed will be used. Undergraduate marks are not considered, unless there are no marks available at the graduate level.

Program Enrolment

• Enrolled full-time for the academic year the award is held in an eligible program leading to a master’s or doctoral degree at an eligible Ontario institution.
• Executive MBA (EMBA), Global Executive MBA (GEMBA), Global Executive MBA for Healthcare and the Life Sciences (GEMBA-HLS), and Graduate Diploma in Professional Accounting (GDipPA) are ineligible programs
• Prospective students: Students must submit an OGS application to each institution and department for which they are seeking admission. OGS awards are not transferable from one university to another. If applying to multiple departments within the University of Toronto, a separate OGS application must be submitted to each department.

Eligible programs and cohorts for the 2025-26 competition

Program	Graduating Year
Master of Finance (MFin)	2026, 2027
Master of Financial Risk Management (MFRM)	2026
Master of Management Analytics (MMA)	2026
Full-Time MBA (including BASc/MBA, MGA/MBA, MD/MBA, and PharmD/MBA)	2026, 2027
JD/MBA	2026, 2027, 2028
Morning and Evening MBA	2026, 2027, 2028

Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) Standing

• Be in good standing with the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP) and Canada Student Loans (CSL).
• Applicants who have defaulted on a Canada or Ontario Student Loan, or have failed to make satisfactory repayment on a loan overpayment, are ineligible. Students who have never applied for OSAP are in good standing.
• Students who have never received OSAP are considered in good standing.

Lifetime Maximums

• Lifetime maximum of OGS at master’s level: two years
• Lifetime maximum to hold any Government awards (any level): six years
• Other government awards includes the following:
  • Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology (QEIIGSST) (formerly Ontario Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology (OGSST))
  • Ontario Trillium Scholarships (OTS)
  • Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC)
  • Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC)
  • Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR)
  • Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS)

Conditions to Hold an OGS

• Must register and remain enrolled as a full-time student in an eligible program for the duration the OGS is held.
• Withdrawal, leave of absence, early completion, or failure to complete the term, will result in repayment of funds received for the incomplete term.
• For the purpose of OGS, Full-Time MBA; Morning and Evening MBA; MFin; MFRM; MMA; BASc/MBA; JD/MBA; MGA/MBA; MD/MBA; and PharmD/MBA programs are all considered full-time studies with 100% course-load.
• EMBA, GEMBA, GEMBA-HLS, and GDipPA programs are ineligible.
• Cannot hold OGS and other government award (see list above) concurrently.
• Should students be successful at more than one governmental award, they may be required to decline others. Students cannot defer/delay Rotman OGS.
• Must be in good standing with the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP). Applicants who have defaulted on a Canada or Ontario Student Loan, or have failed to make satisfactory repayment on a loan overpayment, are ineligible to receive the award. Those with an OSAP restriction may still apply for the OGS. However, if awarded, they must have the restriction cleared within 30 days of notification in order to accept and hold the award.
• May accept research assistantships, part-time teaching positions, or other paid employment that does not affect their status as a full-time graduate student and is commensurate with the graduate unit policies.

OGS for Black and Indigenous Students

Graduate students who are Black and/or Indigenous to Canada (recognized in the Constitution Act, 1982, i.e., First Nations (Status/Non-Status), Métis, or Inuit), and have self-identified as such on their OGS applications will be eligible for automatic inclusion in SGS Inclusive Excellence Graduate Scholarship competition.

No separate application is required. All eligible applicants who have not received an OGS offer at the time of the SGS competition, will be automatically considered for an OGS and other awards provided through the Inclusive Excellence Graduate Scholarship.

Review Process

• Apply through the SGS OGS application portal using the OGS online application instructions available via the School of Graduate Studies (SGS)
• Applications are ranked by the Rotman Awards Committee
• Award recommendations are forwarded to SGS
• SGS will notify award recipients on behalf of the Province of Ontario following central OSAP checks, typically in July

University-Wide Awards

Over the years, a number of endowed awards have been established at the School of Graduate Studies through the generous support of various donors.

How to Apply

• Read the instructions on the SGS University-Wide Awards page carefully.
• Submit a complete application package by the listed deadline. The application form can be found under Application Process on the SGS website
  • If applying for more than one award, include all required supporting documents in one application package.
  • A Personal Statement for each specific award selected in your application is required.
• Referees must also complete and submit the reference form by the application deadline.

Inquiries regarding these awards or the application process may be directed to:

Financial Aid & Advising Office
School of Graduate Studies
sgs.financial.assistance@utoronto.ca

Executive MBA (EMBA)-, Global Executive MBA (GEMBA)-, and Global Executive MBA for Healthcare and the Life Sciences (GEMBA-HLS)-specific Awards

You Speak, We Listen Award – Louis Dionne Award

The You Speak, We Listen Award is conferred to a student in the graduating class of the Executive MBA Program who best embodies the ideal that students learn as much from each other as they do from the professors. This student is a role model in providing intellectual challenge to the professor and motivates/inspires classmates to stretch their ideas and opinions. The recipient is nominated by their peers at the end of the program.

Social Impact Award

This award would be conferred on a student who challenges the cohort in the areas of equality, diversity, and raising awareness around social issues that impact us all. This student embodies a social justice ideal, expands the class thinking, and helps facilitate a deeper understanding around equity and diversity in the workplace.

Valedictorian Awards

This award is presented to a member of the graduating class who could best represent the EMBA, GEMBA, and GEMBA-HLS classes at the Rotman event on Convocation day. The recipient would address the guests and speak briefly about his/her experiences while in the program. The valedictory candidate is nominated by their classmates at the end of the program. The announcement will be made on the final day of the program.

The Award for Teaching Excellence

The Award for Teaching Excellence recognizes a professor teaching in the MBA for Executives program who has inspired and influenced students to maximize the opportunities of learning by further pursuing subject matters and by applying program concepts. The Award, initiated by EMBA 20, the first one-year class, honours a member of the faculty who has a sincere dedication to teaching, who makes themself available outside of the classroom, dedicating personal time and connecting theory to real-world cases to make the program meaningful and successful within the one year format.

Award Quick Reference Chart

To view further details about each award, click on the award name to be directed to the appropriate section of the Awards – Detailed Descriptions page.

Table Legend

Program:

• EMBA = Executive MBA
• FT MBA = Full-Time MBA
• GEMBA = Global Executive MBA
• GEMBA-HLS = Global Executive MBA for Healthcare and the Life Sciences
• ME MBA = Morning and Evening MBA
• MFin = Master of Finance
• MFRM = Master of Financial Risk Management
• MMA = Master of Management Analytics
• JD/MBA = Joint JD/MBA program

Use the search field to search and filter this table (i.e. filter by program, legal status, financial need, Ontario residency, etc.).

Additional Awards

The University of Toronto also maintains the Award Explorer website in order to help students discover additional award opportunities.