Summer Research Internships in Humanities and Social Sciences

Anyone registered as a full-time undergraduate student^[1] at the UdeS or Bishop's University for the 2025 winter semester and finishing their bachelor program at the end of the 2025 fall semester or 2026 winter semester is eligible.

The subject matter of the research project submitted as part of the 2025 summer internship must be included in the research fields covered by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)^[2]. In addition, upon submitting the request, the student must reside in Quebec and have a 3.5 GPA or higher or equivalent.

At least 20 internships will be funded for the 2025 summer. The financial assistance offered per internship amounts to $6,000, in the form of a scholarship. It comes from three sources: The VPRGS (50%), home faculty of the intern (25%), and professors responsible for the internship (25%).

The internship must be at least 10 weeks and be completed during the 2025 summer semester (May to August 2025). The intern granted this assistance must devote 290 hours to the internship. In all cases, the number of hours devoted to the internship must be a minimum of 20 hours per week. 

This program does not exclude the possibility that an intern may obtain additional financial assistance from a professor. However, combining the financial assistance obtained through this program with a major scholarship from an external agency is not permitted.

Only research projects are eligible for this competition.

Applications must be submitted by the professor responsible for the internship using the electronic form. This form is accessible only during the registration period (from February 1 to March 12, 2025 at 4:00 p.m). 

All mandatory fields (marked with an asterisk) must be filled to submit the application. An application file in PDF format will be attached to the electronic form and must contain the following two documents:

• A copy of the applicant’s transcript including the GPA and number of cumulative credits earned (unofficial copy accepted for the applicants from UdeS, but copy of the official transcript required for the Bishops's University applicants).
• The commitment form (accessible during the registration period) signed by the applicant and the professor responsible for the internship.

Only individual research projects are eligible and no internship supervisor change shall be authorized after the deadline.

To select recipients, applicant files are sorted in descending GPA order^[3], then awards are distributed until the funding envelopes are used up.

• Any application may be rejected, even when eligible, should sufficient funds become unavailable.
• In the event of withdrawal or breach regarding internship commitments, the internship supervisor shall notify the VPRGS as soon as possible.
• A waiting list will be devised in preparation for potential withdrawals. Should someone withdraw from an internship, the financial assistance offer is cancelled for that internship. The waiting list, sorted in descending GPA order, shall be used to grant the newly available financial assistance to the next applicant.

The intern’s home faculty and the internship supervisor commit to supplementing the financial assistance of the intern (25% each). The assistance obtained, combined with the portion of the VPRGS (50%) must cover the amount provided for the internship ($6,000).

By accepting the financial assistance for their summer internship, the intern commits to submitting a communication in the form of a science poster as part of the Undergraduate Research in Humanities and Social Sciences Day which will be held on September 16, 2025. For this occasion, prizes are awarded for the best posters presented. The presentation terms and conditions for the Undergraduate Research in Humanities and Social Sciences Day will be sent to the interns selected for financial assistance.

If an intern with an important reason is unable to present a poster during the Undergraduate Research in Humanities and Social Sciences Day, they will need to write and submit an internship report to the VPRGS within one month after the end of the summer internship. The drafting terms and conditions of the report will be sent to the interns selected for financial assistance.

Contact the VPRGS (concours-vrres@USherbrooke.ca) immediately in the event of any breach of its commitments or those of the intern or the person responsible for the internship.

Students registered in a program offering only part-time studies are considered eligible.

­Students registered in 4-year bachelor's degrees may also choose to participate after their second or third year of bachelor's studies. In this case, the application can only be submitted once per student.

Students completing their Bachelor of Law degree will also be considered in the second-to-last year of their program of studies if they intend to continue, in the year following the end of the bachelor’s degree, their studies at the École du Barreau du Québec (Québec bar school) or a master’s in notarial law program to obtain the professional designation of lawyer or notary.

[1] See the “Specific conditions” section at the end of the document.

[2] See http://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/funding-financement/apply-demande/background-renseignements/selecting_agency-choisir_organisme_subventionnaire-fra.aspx

[3]  Candidates’ GPAs are weighted based on the group average in each program of studies to account for this potential variability. The ranking of applications will be based on these new weighted averages