Queen’s University scholarships for international students in Kingston, Canada, are mostly automatic merit awards: when you apply for a first-year undergraduate place, Queen’s considers you for a Dean’s International Admission Award worth CAD 5,000 to 25,000 a year, renewable for four years, and for the one-year Principal’s Scholarship of CAD 7,000. You do not fill in a separate form for either. Graduate students get a different deal: every full-time PhD student is guaranteed at least CAD 25,000 a year in 2026-2027 for years one to four.
None of these is a full scholarship. Queen’s international tuition was about CAD 54,800 a year in Arts and Science in 2025-2026, so even the top CAD 25,000 award covers less than half. For September 2027 entry, applications are due on 1 February 2027 for Commerce, Health Sciences and Nursing and on 1 March 2027 for everything else. Below are the award values by faculty, the deadlines, the English scores and the graduate funding, checked on queensu.ca on 25 October 2026.
Queen’s University scholarships for international undergraduates
The Registrar’s page for international students lists these awards for 2027 entry. All of them except the last are automatic.
| Award | Value per year (CAD) | Renewable? | Who gets it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arts and Science International Admission Award | 5,000 to 25,000 (tiered) | Yes, 4 years in total | International fee-paying students entering a first-entry Arts and Science programme |
| Engineering International Admission Award | 10,000 to 25,000 (tiered) | Yes, 4 years | First-year Engineering (Smith Engineering) |
| Commerce International Admission Award | 15,000 to 25,000 (tiered) | Yes, 4 years | First-year Bachelor of Commerce (Smith School of Business) |
| Health Sciences International Admission Award | 10,000 or 15,000 | Yes, 4 years | First-year Bachelor of Health Sciences (not Nursing) |
| Principal’s Scholarship | 7,000 | No, 1 year | Top 3% of the competitive admission average in each first-entry programme |
| Principal Wallace Freedom of Opportunity Award | Not published | Not stated | International first-years; refugees first, then students in greatest need from developing countries |
| Principal’s Global Scholars Undergraduate Award | Not published | Yes, up to 3 more years (2.0 GPA) | Forcibly displaced students admitted through the Global Scholars pathway |
| Mehran Bibi Sheikh Memorial Entrance Scholarship | 1,500 | No | Two awards; preference for Pakistani citizens |
| Killam American Scholarship | 9,000 | No | One award for a US citizen or permanent resident |
| Prince Takamado Visiting Student Scholarship | About 60,000 toward tuition and fees | No, 1 year | One Japanese exchange student; application by 1 December |
The four faculty awards are together called the Dean’s International Award Program. Renewal for years two to four requires full-time study in the faculty you entered. Queen’s does not publish the grades that place you in each tier, so nobody can tell you in advance whether you will get CAD 5,000 or CAD 25,000. Other guides that list the Arts and Science award as starting at CAD 10,000 are out of date; the current page starts at CAD 5,000.
Who is not eligible
- International students who pay domestic fees (for example, because of a parent’s status in Canada) cannot get the Dean’s International Awards.
- Bachelor of Nursing students are excluded from the Health Sciences award.
- Students who move out of their original faculty lose the renewal.
- The awards are for students entering a first-entry undergraduate programme, so transfer and second-degree applicants should not expect them.
How much Queen’s costs for international students
The latest full tuition schedule I could open is for 2025-2026. Fees for 2027-2028 will be higher.
| Programme | First-year international tuition 2025-2026 (CAD) | Highest admission award (CAD) | Tuition left after top award |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arts and Science (BA, BSc) | 54,808 | 25,000 | About 29,800 |
| Engineering and Applied Science | 59,284 | 25,000 | About 34,300 |
| Commerce | 60,839 | 25,000 | About 35,800 |
| Health Sciences (on campus) | 33,775 | 15,000 | About 18,800 |
Smith School of Business now lists international Commerce fees of CAD 63,106.73 a year including the Student Assistance Levy, which gives a sense of how fees are moving. On top of tuition you need residence, food, books, health insurance and the funds a Canadian study permit asks you to show. Plan for the whole four years, because the award stays the same while tuition usually rises each year.
Queen’s University application deadlines for 2027 entry
There is no scholarship deadline, because the awards come from your admission file. What you must hit are the admission dates.
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1 October 2026 | Applications open |
| 20 November 2026 | Queen’s recommended date to apply |
| 1 February 2027 | Deadline for Commerce, Health Sciences and Nursing |
| 15 February 2027 | Mandatory supplementary application for Commerce, Health Sciences and Nursing; recommended date to send current transcripts |
| 1 March 2027 | Deadline for all other first-year programmes |
| 31 March 2027 | Deadline for all documents, including transcripts and English test scores |
I would apply by the 20 November recommended date. Award decisions follow your admission offer, and applying early leaves time to fix a missing transcript or test score before the March deadlines.
English requirements for Queen’s University
| Test | Undergraduate minimum |
|---|---|
| IELTS Academic | 6.5 overall, no band below 6.0 |
| TOEFL iBT (taken before January 2026) | 88 overall, at least 20 in each section |
| TOEFL (new 1 to 6 scale) | 4.5 overall, no skill below 4.0 |
| Duolingo English Test | 120 |
| PTE Academic | 60 |
| CAEL | 70 overall, no band below 60 |
| Cambridge English | 175 overall, no component below 170 |
You can skip the test if you completed the IB Diploma (SL English B alone does not count), lived in a country where English is the main language for the three years before university, or attended an English-medium school full time for those three years. If Queen’s asks you for a score and you think you are exempt, email admission@queensu.ca with your schools, the principals’ contact details and dates, and have the schools send official letters confirming instruction was in English. Graduate programmes set their own English minimums, often higher.
How to apply for Queen’s University scholarships
- Choose a first-entry programme: Arts and Science, Engineering, Commerce or Health Sciences carry the Dean’s awards.
- Apply for admission: through the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC), ideally by 20 November 2026.
- Upload your results: secondary school transcripts, national exam results (for example WAEC, KCSE, CBSE or A levels) and certified English or French translations where needed, through your Queen’s applicant portal.
- Complete the supplementary application: required for Commerce, Health Sciences and Nursing by 15 February 2027.
- Send English proof: a test score or exemption evidence by 31 March 2027.
- Watch your offer: any admission award appears with your admission or financial aid information. There is no separate scholarship form.
Queen’s tells undergraduate applicants not to send unrequested documents such as CVs, reference letters or motivation letters. Extra paperwork does not raise your award; your grades do.
Queen’s graduate scholarships and PhD funding
Graduate funding comes through your department, not the Registrar. These are the university-wide rules from the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs.
| Funding | Value | International students | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhD minimum funding guarantee | CAD 25,000 a year (2026-2027), years 1 to 4 | Yes | You must say you need financial support when you apply; many departments pay more |
| Master’s funding | Varies by programme | Yes | Most full-time research (non-professional) master’s students get support in year 1, or years 1 and 2 of a two-year programme |
| Ontario Graduate Scholarship (visa student awards) | CAD 5,000 per term for 2 or 3 terms | A small number reserved for study permit holders | A- average in each of the last two years; deadline set by your department |
| Mitacs Globalink Graduate Fellowship | CAD 15,000 | Former Globalink Research Interns | For a full master’s or PhD at a Mitacs partner university |
| China Scholarship Council PhD | CSC covers flights and living costs | Chinese citizens | Department must contribute at least the tuition cost |
Read the PhD guarantee carefully. Queen’s says tuition and ancillary fees are not covered by its funding packages; you pay them out of the package, savings or other income. Because international PhD tuition takes a large share of CAD 25,000, check your offer letter for any separate tuition award from your department before you accept.
Steps for a funded Queen’s PhD
- Pick the programme and supervisor: read faculty pages and find two or three people whose work fits yours.
- Email a potential supervisor: a short message with your background, research interests and CV, where the department recommends contact.
- Apply online: with transcripts, two academic references and any statement, proposal, writing sample or GRE your programme requires.
- Tick that you need financial support: without this, the funding guarantee does not apply.
- Apply for OGS and outside awards: the guarantee requires you to compete for major scholarships.
How to strengthen your application for a higher award
For undergraduates, the award is set by your competitive admission average, so the only lever is your grades in the courses Queen’s counts for your programme. Take the prerequisite subjects (for example, calculus and sciences for Engineering) at the highest level your school offers, and make sure predicted or final results reach Queen’s on time.
For Commerce and Health Sciences, the supplementary application also affects admission. Answer each prompt with one real example and what you did, not general claims. A sample opening for a Commerce response: “When our school canteen ran out of change every Friday, I set up a mobile-money float with two classmates and cut the queue from twenty minutes to five.” It is specific and shows initiative in a sentence.
Common mistakes
- Waiting for a scholarship form: there is none for the Dean’s awards or the Principal’s Scholarship.
- Budgeting as if the award were full: even CAD 25,000 leaves about CAD 30,000 or more of tuition a year, plus living costs.
- Missing the 31 March document deadline: a missing English score can stall your offer.
- Switching faculties after first year: it ends the renewal.
- Forgetting to request support on a PhD application: it removes you from the guarantee.
Queen’s compared with other Canadian scholarships
| University or award | International undergraduate award | Application needed? | Our guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Queen’s University | CAD 5,000 to 25,000 a year, renewable | No (automatic) | This page |
| University of British Columbia | IMES and OIS awards of CAD 10,000 to 25,000; need-based International Scholars awards | Separate application for International Scholars | UBC scholarships |
| University of Toronto (Lester B. Pearson) | Full scholarship for a small number of students | School nomination | Lester B. Pearson scholarship |
| McGill University | CAD 3,000 to 10,000 a year | Varies by award | McGill scholarships |
Who should apply and who should not
Apply if you have strong grades, want a Canadian degree with a large automatic award, and your family can cover the rest of tuition and living costs. Health Sciences is the cheapest route: on 2025-2026 fees, a CAD 15,000 award covers almost half the tuition.
If you need a full scholarship to study at all, Queen’s alone will not do it. Look at the Lester B. Pearson Scholarship at Toronto, UBC’s International Scholars Program, or full-need universities in the US, and treat Queen’s as a back-up. Graduate students who can find a supervisor are better placed: the PhD guarantee and departmental top-ups make Queen’s a realistic funded option.
FAQ on Queen’s University scholarships
Does Queen’s University offer full scholarships to international students?
Not for undergraduates. The largest admission award is CAD 25,000 a year for four years, which covers less than half of international tuition. PhD students get a guaranteed CAD 25,000 a year, from which they pay tuition.
Do I need to apply separately for Queen’s scholarships?
No. The Dean’s International Awards and the Principal’s Scholarship are considered automatically from your admission application. Only a few awards, such as the Prince Takamado scholarship, need a separate application.
What is the Queen’s University deadline for 2027?
1 February 2027 for Commerce, Health Sciences and Nursing, and 1 March 2027 for other first-year programmes. All documents, including English scores, are due by 31 March 2027.
What IELTS score does Queen’s University require?
6.5 overall with no band below 6.0 for undergraduates. Duolingo 120, PTE 60 and CAEL 70 are also accepted, and some applicants are exempt.
Sources and updates
Award names, values and eligibility come from the Queen’s Registrar’s International and US Students awards page and its automatic future student awards page. Tuition comes from the Registrar’s 2025-2026 international undergraduate fee schedule and the Smith School of Business BCom fees page. Deadlines come from the Queen’s undergraduate admission key dates page, and English scores and exemptions from its English proficiency page. Graduate funding comes from the School of Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs funding packages, Ontario Graduate Scholarship and funding for international students pages. Checked on 25 October 2026; this post will be updated when Queen’s publishes 2027-2028 fees.
I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.
