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Emerging Leaders in the Americas Program (ELAP)

NOTE: This competition is closed. A new competition is expected to be announced in February 2011.

Scholarship

Scholarship Types

Scholarships are for student exchanges and research at the college, undergraduate and graduate levels.

In addition, study tours will be offered to selected graduate students to expose them to Canadian governance, business and civil society in key priority areas.

Scholarship Duration and Value

For a college or undergraduate exchange of 4 months, a scholarship of $7,500 available per student. (* see exception)
For a graduate exchange of 5 to 6 months, a scholarship of $10,000 available per student.
Grant is not taxable for either the institution or the student.

* Where agreements between the post-secondary institutions warrant, CARICOM college and undergraduate student exchanges may be awarded for an academic year (i.e. two semesters). A scholarship of $15,000 is available per student for two semesters. Notification of intent to request two semesters must be provided at the time of application.

Background

The Government of Canada offers scholarships to Canadian publicly funded universities or colleges as part of the Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship Program (CCSP) and Government of Canada Awards (GCA).

The goal of the Emerging Leaders in the Americas Program (ELAP) is to support the development of human capital and a next generation of Leaders in the Americas while strengthening the linkages between Canadian post-secondary institutions and the ones in Latin America and the Caribbean.

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Canadian Institutions

Eligibility

The Canadian institution must apply on behalf of the student.
CBIE does not accept applications submitted directly by students or exchange partner institutions (foreign institutions).
At the college and undergraduate levels, an exchange agreement between the Canadian institution and the student's home university/college MUST be in place at the time of application.
At the graduate level, an existing exchange agreement between the Canadian institution and the student's home university is desirable. However, if there is no existing graduate exchange, graduate research applications which involve a new or established collaboration between professors from a Canadian and foreign university will be considered.
More than one exchange program at a given university or college may apply.
Students must be citizens of one of the ELAP eligible countries.
Students must be enrolled full-time at a foreign institution in an ELAP eligible country and paying tuition fees at their home institution for the full duration of the exchange.
Anyone who has obtained Canadian citizenship or who has applied or is planning to apply for permanent residency in Canada is not eligible for this scholarship.
Students already participating in an exchange program in Canada are not eligible.
Students already enrolled to a degree program at a Canadian university or college are not eligible.
Priority will be given to candidates who have not previously participated in a DFAIT student exchange program.

Eligible Countries

Caribbean: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitt's, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos
South America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela
Central America: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama
North America: Mexico

Eligible Themes/Fields

Eligible themes of study or research are in disciplines that promote good governance, prosperity, peace and security and economic development.

Conditions

Awards are conditional on receipt of the appropriate visa for the student's stay in Canada.
Students must arrive in Canada and begin their college or undergraduate studies no later than first week of January 2011 or their graduate research no later than March 15, 2011.
A scholar cannot normally hold any other major scholarships.
The scholarship will be paid by cheque made out and mailed to the Canadian university or college and not to the student.
Payment will be made in two installments: 90% of the scholarship will be paid following the receipt of the students' visa (by fax or email). The remainder 10% will be paid upon receipt of the students' proof of medical coverage in Canada.
Institutions must confirm by Monday, January 17, 2011 that the scholarship recipient will be arriving in Canada BEFORE March 15th to start their study or research program. Failure to do so will result in the cancellation of the offer or Grant Agreement.

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Application Process

How to Apply

Canadian institutions must complete the CBIE online application form by submitting it electronically. Paper application will not be accepted.

Enter your data in the fields provided, following the instructions for each item.
Upon completion, verify your data prior to submitting.
To obtain a hard copy for your records, prior to submitting, you may print the form using the print function of your browser. Note that CBIE does not require a hard copy.

Canadian institutions must submit the following required documents to CBIE, prior to the deadline.

Curriculum vitae of supervisor of the student during the research exchange visit (Maximum 5 pages).
Proof of citizenship of ELAP candidate (passport copy).
Short letter from the department or university of the student’s home institution, on letterhead, dated in the last 6 months stating that the student is currently enrolled in a full time degree program. This letter should be in English or French, or officially translated into English or French.
Declaration signed by both the Director of the Exchange program and the supervisor of the student at the Canadian institution (Available at the end of the online application).

NOTE: Professors who are submitting applications should notify the International Liaison Officer (ILO) at their respective institution. By doing so, this will assist with central coordination by the institution in the event that multiple applications need to be prioritized.

Mandatory and eligible expenses

Mandatory expenses include:

Visa and immigration expenses
Economy, round-trip airfare
Health insurance
Monthly living allowance of at least $1,200 (prorated for partial months)
Required books, supplies and equipment – not computers

Eligible expenses include:

Ground transportation to the airport in the home country and from the airport to the host institution in Canada
Optional administration fee (Maximum $300) for the Canadian university or college to cover expenses associated with the ELAP
Telecommunications (long distance) for research purposes
Conference participation within Canada (conference fees; if applicable, travel and accommodation in a city outside the host institution)
Student services fees such as library card, access to on-campus medical facilities

Tuition is NOT an allowable expense; it is expected that exchange students continue to pay tuition to their home institution.

Financial reporting is not required from the institution or the student.

Deadline

This competition is now open for Haiti in the context of the Canada-Haiti Scholarships Initiative. Deadline: July 26, 2010

Be sure to identify the name of the scholarship program for which you are applying on all documentation sent by post to CBIE.

Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE)
Attn: Emerging Leaders in the Americas Program (ELAP)
220 Laurier Ave. W., Suite 1550
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5Z9

If supporting documents are sent by e-mail, please indicate 2010 ELAP Application in the Subject Line and direct to: scholarships-bourses@cbie.ca. Please note that, for email attachments, only the following formats will be accepted: Word, Adobe PDF or JPG.

Results

Results will be announced by the end of August 2010 by e-mail to the supervisor and/or the person responsible for the exchange program listed in the online application.