About the award
The Renaissance Award is highly personal. It’s a chance for you to work on a project that matters to you.
- Lead a 4- to 12-month project of your choosing.
- Receive up to $25K each year, depending on the project budget.
- Students in financial need may build a wage into their budget to help compensate for time spent on the project.
- Individuals and teams of two are welcome to apply.
The Renaissance Award is really meant to promote inquiry and encourage people to do something different than they ever thought they might. This award is for students who want to go outside the box and bring some of the expertise from other specialties into their own area of study. It’s meant to encourage people to get away from a regimented stream and course of events into something that’s a little less planned, a little less obvious to most people, and to encourage exploration. We’d like students today to know that there are actually many pathways.
— Drs. Jolie Ringash and Glen Bandiera, founders of the Renaissance Award
Application support
Our certified experiential learning coordinators can help you explore ideas, set goals and make a plan before you apply. Please email experiential@mcmaster.ca and include “Renaissance Award” in the subject line.
Project support
If selected, you will require a faculty advisor and a student success coach for your project. You will be required to stay in contact with both throughout your project completion.
- Student success coach: If you are selected as a recipient, you will be assigned a student success coach who can help guide you to explore, reflect and act — all essential components of experiential learning. You will stay in touch for project updates, deliverables and any challenges that you might encounter.
- Faculty advisor: You will need to find a faculty advisor for your project. This advisor must be a faculty member from outside your program whose expertise aligns with your project goals. They will help guide your research direction and provide academic support throughout the process.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Renaissance Award, you must:
- Have completed the first year of your program
- Be a current full-time undergraduate, graduate or School of Medicine student
- Have a cumulative GPA of 10 or more
- Want to engage in a 4- to 12- month self-directed enrichment experience outside your chosen program of study
The full eligibility details are also posted on AwardSpring.