Funding Opportunities

Applying for Funding: A Step by Step Guide

 
The Funding Application for the 2018-2019 academic year is now open. The deadline for Fall Funding Applications is December 1st, 2018. Before completing a Funding Application, please ensure that you are familiar with the following steps:

1. Read the updated Funding Handbook (2018-2019) to get a sense of the funding process, and the funds available.
2. Decide which fund to apply to. Make sure that the fund’s mandate you are applying to aligns with your initiative (all details are in the Handbook).
3. Complete your Event/Project Specific Budget, Annual/Operating Budget, and keep quotes/receipts to justify the numbers in your budgets. Note that it is mandatory to submit all budgets using these templates. Open the templates, and follow the budget instructions. Do not modify the budget format.
4. Submit your Funding Application. Please ensure all estimates, costs and supporting documents are accurate.
5. Receive your decision, and prepare your Post-Funding Report. For your Post-Funding Report, you will need to submit an updated Annual/Operating Budget, a final Event/Project Specific Budget with actual revenues/expenses, sponsorship acknowledgment, and receipts for all expenses in the Event/Project Specific Budget.
6. Congratulations! You’ve completed the SSMU Funding process. Your student organization may apply again for further initiatives and events!

For specific regulations pertaining to funding, please see the Internal Regulations of Finances (-05: Funding Committee)

For any inquiries in regards to space accommodation due to the University Centre closure, please contact the Funding Commissioner for more information.

French translation will be uploaded shortly.
 

Fund Descriptions:

Club Fund

The Club Fund is meant to provide funding for club activities throughout the semester, instead of on a per-event basis. The Club Fund is only open to full-status SSMU clubs. For year-long funding, clubs must apply during the Fall and Winter semesters. In your application, please only include the events and their corresponding budgets for the current semester.

• The Event/Project Specific Budget will be more detailed and will be the primary budget used to assess your application. The Annual Budget is to give the Committee a sense of your group’s overall finances.
• In applications, the objective of the Club must be clearly stated and the events must correspond to the mandate specified in its Constitution.

Campus Life Fund

The Campus Life Fund is a project/event-specific source of financial assistance for various initiatives taking place on or near campus including, but not limited to, projects, events, conferences, publications, and production of an academic, social, or athletic nature.

Ambassador Fund

The Ambassador Fund is a source of financial assistance for McGill Students to participate in competitions and conferences of an academic nature. Ambassador Fund applications must be event specific and off-campus. If you are hosting an academic event on or near campus we advise you to apply to the Campus Life Fund instead. The Ambassador Fund is open to tier III sports teams.

Environment Fund (Green Fund)

The Green Fund is a source of financial assistance for sustainable initiatives led by student groups or for initiatives to promote a culture of sustainability on campus. Initiatives that reduce the environmental impact of a group, and in doing so increase the associated expenses, are also eligible. For more information regarding what constitutes an environmental initiative, please see the SSMU Sustainability Policy.

Please note that the Green Fund will not subside the following:

• Recycled paper: The Committee will however, subsidize the cost difference between choosing biodegradable materials that will cost more than regular materials.

For more information regarding the eligibility for this fund, please contact the SSMU Environment Commissioners at environment@ssmu.ca.

Space Fund

The Space Fund is a source of financial assistance to support physical improvements in buildings on campus. Projects using the Space Fund have included furniture for undergraduate society offices, renovations to Ghetto Shul’s kitchen, the Flat Bike Collective vending machine, and other such projects.

Community Engagement Fund

The Community Engagement Fund is a source of financial assistance for projects which foster community building between the McGill community and external communities. Importantly, the fund is primarily intended for community engagement initiatives, not for events with the sole purpose of fundraising. Examples of projects that are funded by the charity fund are those involved in community development and the provision of social services and social capital or those where McGill students participate in and are directly engaged in a project in the community. Funding is prioritized for projects that provide services which are linked to the skill-sets of the service providers.

For more information on the eligibility of your project, please contact the Funding Commissioner at fundcom@ssmu.ca.

Equity Fund

The Equity Fund is a source of financial assistance for projects, research, and policies that aim to end discrimination and promote accessibility and inclusivity in the McGill community. These initiatives may foster leadership, encourage civic engagement, or make observable differences in the representation or experiences of individuals who are members of historically and/or currently disadvantaged groups.

Mental Health Fund

The Mental Health Fund source of financial assistance to contribute to the promotion of mental health awareness, improvement of students’ mental health, and/or the destigmatization of mental health issues on campus.

Awards of Distinction

The Students’ Society Awards of Distinction are designed to recognize students who have demonstrated a combination of strengths in both extra-curricular activities and academics at McGill University.

Scholarships valued at two thousand dollars ($2000) each, will be awarded. To be eligible, a candidate must be a SSMU member* who will have completed a minimum of twelve (12) credits during the current academic year (2017-2018) and be studying at McGill or another academic institution in an undergraduate program in the next academic year (2018-2019).

* Graduating students are not eligible.

All applications must include the following:

1. A brief cover letter with an affirmation of authenticity, signed and dated:
   “To the best of my knowledge, I certify that the information on this form is accurate and correct.”
2. A Curriculum Vitae that includes a factual and chronological list of an applicant’s principal extra-curricular activities.
3. A short (less than 1 page each) response to the following essay questions: (a) What have been your most significant contributions to the quality of student life at McGill University and why? (b) What are your long-term goals and how have your academic endeavours contributed to the achievement of these objectives?
4. A self-assessment of financial need, similar to that used by the Scholarships and Student Aid Office (SSAO) in the Brown Building.
5. A complete, official transcript from McGill. If you have extenuating circumstances which you would like the selection committee to be known of, please provide the necessary documentation.
6. 1 letter of recommendation from an individual who can attest to the significance of the applicant’s contributions to student life.
7. 1 letter of recommendation from an instructor at McGill University.