As a result of their deliberations committees may make recommendations which they include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government. Recommendations related to this study are listed below.

Recommendation 1

That the Government of Canada, through the granting councils—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research:

• Increase the value of Tri-Agency graduate scholarships and postdoctoral fellowships by 50%, and index them to inflation moving forward;
• Increase the number of Tri-Agency graduate student scholarships by 50%;
• Increase the number of Tri-Agency postdoctoral fellowships by 100%; and
• Increase the Tri-Agency research grant budget provided to faculty by at least 10% per year for the next five years, to allow for increased graduate student and postdoctoral pay.

Recommendation 2

That the Government of Canada extend the length of graduate scholarships administered by the granting councils—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research—from 12 to 24 months for master’s programs and from 36 to 48 months for doctoral programs.

Recommendation 3

That the Government of Canada, through the granting councils—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research—expand the eligibility for Canada Graduate Scholarships (master’s and doctoral) to international students enrolled in Canadian institutions, keeping in mind practices of reciprocity and available funds.

Recommendation 4

That the Government of Canada, through the granting councils—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, review the criteria for awarding graduate scholarships and consider creating specific supports for under-represented groups at the graduate level.

Recommendation 5

That the Government of Canada, through the granting councils—the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research—review the quota system used to award Canada Graduate Scholarships and Vanier Doctoral Scholarships to ensure that smaller institutions are not put at a disadvantage.

Recommendation 6

That the Government of Canada amend the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Act, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Act and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Act to include student representatives on the governing councils of these three institutions.