Scholarships and Bursaries in Alberta: What Exists and Who Qualifies
By Muntasir Minhaz • Published Dec 04, 2025 • Scholarships & Funding, Canadian Universities & Colleges
Alberta funds three types of awards on top of loans: merit scholarships like the Alexander Rutherford (up to $2,500) and Jason Lang ($1,000), need based bursaries such as the Northern Alberta Development Bursary and the New Beginnings Bursary, and local awards from community groups and employers.
🎓 Alexander Rutherford Scholarship: up to $2,500 total, based on your Grade 10, 11 and 12 averages
💵 Jason Lang Scholarship: $1,000 a year for full time students in year 2 or later with a 3.5 GPA
🏠 Northern Alberta Development Bursary: up to $7,000 a year if you agree to work in northern Alberta after graduation
📩 New Beginnings Bursary: non repayable funding for low income students in high demand programs
Apply through Alberta Student Aid or your school's awards office, not a separate portal for most awards
What kind of funding exists in Alberta
Alberta Student Aid splits non-loan funding into three categories. Scholarships reward academic performance. Awards recognize activities like community involvement, leadership or athletics. Bursaries target financial need or a specific barrier to enrolling. Most of them run through Alberta Student Aid rather than a separate application system.
You do not apply for most of these the way you apply for a loan. Some come through your high school transcript automatically. Others need a nomination from your institution's awards office. Check both channels before you assume nothing is available to you.
Alexander Rutherford Scholarship
The Alexander Rutherford Scholarship pays out based on your average in five designated courses across Grade 10, 11 and 12. You need to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, an Alberta resident through the grades assessed, and enrolled full time (at least 60 percent course load) in an approved post-secondary program in Alberta or elsewhere.
| Grade | 75-79.9% average | 80%+ average |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | $300 | $400 |
| 11 | $500 | $800 |
| 12 | $700 | $1,300 |
The maximum across all three years is $2,500. You apply online through Alberta Student Aid after you enroll in post-secondary studies, not while still in high school. Submit your official transcripts, then confirm full time enrollment within 30 days of getting your eligibility notice. Payment arrives about a month after your school confirms you are registered.
Jason Lang Scholarship
The Jason Lang Scholarship pays $1,000 to students in their second year or later of an undergraduate or professional degree at a publicly funded Alberta institution. From August 1, 2025 you need a GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale across your preceding fall and winter terms at full course load. You also need to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident and meet Alberta residency rules, and you cannot have already received three scholarships from this program.
Your school's Student Awards Office nominates candidates, so you do not apply directly. Deadlines vary by institution, so check with your awards office. Payments go out in December for fall nominations and March for winter nominations.
Bursaries for need and specific programs
The Northern Alberta Development Bursary pays up to $7,000 a year to students training for jobs in demand in northern Alberta, in exchange for a commitment to work in the region for one year after you finish. The New Beginnings Bursary gives non repayable funding to low income students studying in qualified high demand programs. Both sit inside the same Alberta Student Aid scholarships and awards system, so check your eligibility there before assuming you only qualify for loans.
Community and employer awards
Local credit unions, service clubs, industry associations and large Alberta employers run their own scholarship programs outside the provincial system. Your high school counselor keeps a list specific to your community, and most post-secondary awards offices publish a searchable database of institutional and external awards. If a parent or you work for a large employer, ask about a tuition benefit or a scholarship for dependents before you rule it out.
Scholarship income and your taxes
Full time postsecondary students generally do not pay tax on scholarship, award or bursary income under the Canada Revenue Agency's scholarship exemption . You still receive a T4A slip and still need to report the income on your return, but the exemption usually brings your taxable amount to zero if you were enrolled full time in a program that qualifies for the education amount. Part time students face a capped exemption instead of a full one, so check your specific enrollment status before you assume the whole amount is tax free.
Stacking multiple awards
You can usually hold a Rutherford, a Jason Lang and a bursary at the same time, since they come from different pools of money inside Alberta Student Aid. A large need based bursary can reduce how much loan you are assessed for, since your total funding package gets balanced against your calculated need. A merit scholarship rarely reduces your loan the same way. Read the terms on each award before you accept it, since a small number of institutional or external scholarships do require you to give up other funding to hold them.
How and when to apply
Set up your account at Alberta Student Aid before your first term, since scholarship eligibility checks often run through the same profile as your loan application. Watch two deadlines every year: your school's internal nomination deadline for scholarships like Jason Lang, and the online application window for Rutherford, which opens once you confirm post-secondary enrollment. Missing an internal deadline usually means waiting a full year for the next round. Build a short list of your school's awards office page, Alberta Student Aid, and one or two community or employer programs, and set a calendar reminder for each deadline at the start of the academic year.