Graduate Student Medical Leave Award at University of Waterloo 2026

Eligibility Criteria for Graduate Student Medical Leave Award:

Applicants must:

• Be registered full-time in a research-based Master’s or PhD program for at least one academic term before going inactive for medical reasons.
• Be within the allowable program time limits:
  • Master’s students must not be beyond term 6.0.
    Doctoral students must not be beyond term 12.0.
    Students directly admitted to a PhD from a bachelor’s degree or fast-tracked from a master’s to a PhD are not eligible after term 18.0.
• Have received a departmental or school financial package in the term immediately prior to the medical leave.
• Have enrolment officially approved as “Inactive for Medical Leave.”
• Submit appropriate medical documentation to AccessAbility Services for verification.
• Be eligible to receive the award only once per program level (once during a master’s and once during a PhD).

Value of Graduate Student Medical Leave Award:

A one-time award with a maximum value of $5,000.

Application Process:

To be automatically considered, students must:

• Complete a Change of Enrolment Status form.
• Submit required medical documentation to AccessAbility Services.
• Obtain approval for “Inactive for Medical Leave” status.