NEADS National Student Awards

The NEADS National Student Awards Program is offered to encourage full access to postsecondary education for persons with disabilities, who often have higher costs and greater barriers to participation in higher education.

Students must currently be accepted to or enrolled in a post-secondary institution and provide documented proof of registration as part of the application process and on receipt of the award.

The awards will be offered to outstanding applicants who meet the criteria of the program. The awards are paid directly to the post-secondary institution the student attends to offset the cost of tuition.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada.
• Applicants must have a permanent disability.
• Applicants must be currently enrolled at a post-secondary institution as a full-time student.

*For the purpose of these awards, a permanent disability is a permanent functional limitation which affects the ability of the student to participate fully in post-secondary education.

**For high school students starting post-secondary studies in September 2023: applicants must be accepted to a post-secondary institution at the time of application.

*** Full-time is defined as 40% of a course-load, as per the Canada Student Financial Assistance Program.

Selection Criteria:

The application process will require students to demonstrate:

• Self-advocacy.
• Strong commitment to academia through study, research, and innovation.
• Exemplary record of volunteerism and/or employment and/or involvement in on campus activities.
• Demonstrated potential to be an outstanding participant in the community.
• Clearly-defined career goals or aspirations

Types of awards available

• Canada Post Award (1 at $10,000).
• AMI Robert Pearson Memorial Scholarship (2 at $5,000).
• Connor Clark & Lunn Financial Group Scholarship (1 at $5,000).
• NEADS National Student Awards ($3,000 each, number of awards varies yearly).
• NEADS Holly Bartlett Memorial Award (1 at $1,000).
• NEADS Christine Nieder Memorial Award (1 at $1,000).
• Katelyn Mitchell Memorial Scholarship for the Visually Impaired (1 at $1,000).

Selection Process

Once your application has been submitted, it will be reviewed for completeness and adherence to the above guidelines. Assuming all guidelines are met, selection committees review applications based on the selection criteria described above.

Due to the volume of applications received, only those selected to receive an award will be contacted.

Have questions? Review our Frequently Asked Questions Page. For any other inquiries pertaining to the application process please contact the financial assistance programs team at: etes@neads.ca.