Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award

Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award

Invests in exceptional international postdoctoral researchers relocating to Canada for industry-partnered research.

The Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award is a limited-time, highly competitive fellowship for exceptional international postdoctoral researchers — and Canadians studying abroad — who will relocate to Canada to undertake a two-year industry-partnered research collaboration. Mitacs administers the award in partnership with Canadian industry partners, and up to 10 additional fellowships are available through a co-funding arrangement with CIFAR. The application deadline has been extended to 11 September 2026. Awards are fixed at CAD $170,000 over two years ($85,000 annually), with a minimum of $70,000 per year allocated to the postdoc's stipend and up to $15,000 to cover research and relocation expenses.

The industry partner is required to contribute CAD $42,500 plus applicable taxes per year — roughly 50% of the total award value — making this a co-funded model. Eligible partners are Canadian for-profit companies, not-for-profits, municipalities, or hospitals; for-profit partners must derive more than 50% of their revenue from non-government sources. The academic supervisor must hold faculty status at a Canadian institution and be eligible to hold Tri-Agency funds. The postdoctoral fellow must currently reside outside Canada, intend to relocate for the project, and must have completed their PhD within five years of the proposed project start date. Importantly, the postdoc need not be identified or named at the time of application.

Unsuccessful applicants from this award are eligible to access standard Mitacs Accelerate funding at $60,000 per year. Applicants should confirm partner organisation eligibility and the supervisor's Tri-Agency eligibility before applying. The two-year, fixed-term nature of this award means no extensions are available, and the research project must be framed as an industry-relevant collaboration. Given the highly competitive global selection process, applications that clearly articulate the research impact, the postdoc's exceptional international profile, and the industry partner's strategic interest are most likely to succeed.