Category Archives: awards

awards, competition, Events, Opportunities

HOW QUANTUM IS LIFE? COMPETITION

Leave a comment

Application Deadline: September 29, 2025

LOCATION: USA

This Competition is presented in partnership with the Paradox Science Institute. The advent of quantum mechanics overhauled the physical sciences, leading to huge leaps in physics, chemistry, and computer science. In recent years, biology has made great advances through interdisciplinary work with chemistry and physics. Yet the quantum revolution’s impact on biology remains largely unexplored. Among the most intriguing aspects is the possible role that quantum physics plays in biology. This topic has ignited vigorous and enduring debate.

ELIGIBILITY:

No purchase is necessary to enter or win. A purchase does not increase your chance of winning.

Relevant: The essay must be relevant to the topic, “How Quantum is Life?” (This is also one of the criteria for the Expert Judges’ review.)

Accessible: The essay must be readable and understandable to non-specialist audiences, not overly technical. (This is also the criteria for the Expert Judges’ review.)

Submitted via FQxI’s Submission Form—Competition Entrants must use a QSpace Forums account to submit an entry via the submission form.

Within the Text Limit: (25,000-character limit)

Minimal in References and Endnotes: An addendum is discouraged, but Competition Entrants can provide additional references and technical endnotes in the text boxes provided on the application. There is no guarantee Public Readers or Competition Evaluators, including the Expert Judges, will review these additional pages. All essays should be accessible so readers can understand the essay without these notes. Excessively technical essays could be disqualified.

Written or Translated into English: We welcome essays from across the globe, but the essay should be submitted in English. There are online translation tools, such as DeepL or Google Translate, that Competition Entrants can use. Please note: we cannot guarantee the accuracy of these online sites, so please have someone proofread your essay if possible. Please contact FQxI if you have questions.

Anonymous: Essays should make no implicit or explicit reference to the Essay Author. This includes referring to the Essay Author’s other outputs in the first person or heavily referencing the Competition Entrant’s own work, making it very clear that you are the author.

Not Harmful: Essays deemed offensive will be disqualified and will not be displayed on the site. Examples of offensive content include, but are not limited to, inappropriate language (curse words, epithets, flame wars, advertisements, etc.), pornography, and content that may incite violence or hate crimes or which denigrates specific groups of people.

Please review your essay thoroughly before submitting it to the Competition. We will not accept requests for edits once an essay is posted to the Competition Entries page.

BENEFIT:

Cash: There will be up to $53,000 in cash prizes awarded in this Competition. The Expert Judges can award multiple or no winners in each of the prize categories:

First Prize: US$10,000 each

Second Prize: US$5,000 each

Third Prize: US$2,000 each

Fourth Prize: US$1,000 each

Discretionary Prizes: as determined by the judges

APPLY
awards, Events, master's, Opportunities, other events, PhD/post doctoral

UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP (UMGF)

Leave a comment

Application Deadline: Please contact your department

LOCATION: Canada

Each year university graduate fellowships are offered to full-time master’s and PhD students to recognize and support academic excellence. The fellowships are offered to students who have demonstrated superior intellectual ability and academic accomplishment.

ELIGIBILITY:

Academic Standing: Students must have achieved a minimum admission GPA of 3.0, to be considered for this award. Please contact your department, as they may have a higher GPA requirement.

Citizenship: All students regardless of citizenship are eligible to apply.

Fields of study: Students in all fields of graduate study are eligible to apply provided their program is eligible for Tri-Agency funding.

To hold a UMGF award, recipients must also:

Have been admitted to a graduate program at the University of Manitoba as a Master’s or Ph.D. student. Pre-master’s and Occasional students are not eligible.

Maintain a minimum GPA of 3.0, and not receive a grade lower than C+ (including AX courses).

Show great promise as researchers and graduate students.

Not have an active, admission‐related hold on their student account during their provisional admission period.

Be registered full‐time in a graduate program of study in the unit that recommends them for a UMGF, and be progressing satisfactorily in the program for which they are funded.

Not have held UMGF support for more than 4 years in total.

Not be receiving any other award or scholarship that is of equal or greater monetary value than the annual value of the UMGF. Students offered an award that is equal to, or exceeds, the value of the UMGF can no longer hold the UMGF and must notify the FGS Awards Office at Graduate.Awards@umanitoba.ca to terminate their award.

Not change programs or departments/units while receiving the UMGF award.

The above is not a complete list of conditions. Please refer to the University of Manitoba Faculty of Graduate Studies FGS Award Holder’s Guide for additional conditions and other information for award holders.

Please consult your department or unit for their UMGF application process and deadline. Once the department/unit determines their selection, students are recommended to the Faculty of Graduate Studies. FGS will review the recommendations and notify award recipients with an official letter via email.

BENEFIT:

UMGF master’s awards are valued at $20,000 per year for 12 or 24 months, for up to a total of $40,000.

UMGF doctoral awards are valued at $25,000 per year for 12, 24, 36 or 48 months, for up to a total of $100,000.

Departments/units determine the value and duration of an award, and all recommended students must meet the eligibility criteria as outlined in the eligibility table.

APPLY