Tribe Network Graduate Scholarship and Internship

The Tribe Network is a community of racialized people pursuing entrepreneurship and innovation. Their mission is to foster a culture of leadership, collaboration, creativity, and growth for racialized individuals.

• Saint Mary's University, in partnership with the Tribe Network, is offering graduate students who self-identify as Black* or Indigenous** the opportunity to apply for a scholarship that will financially support the student through their graduate studies, as well as establish a connection with the Tribe Network to help identify an internship position if needed for their program.

This scholarship is in addition to any other scholarship or bursary the student has received through Admissions or Achievements.

Recipients of the Tribe Network Graduate Scholarship will receive $10,000 annually (students can reapply) to reduce the costs of tuition and provide living support. Saint Mary's University and the Tribe Network will assist graduate students with internship placements with an external partner (e.g., companies, not-for-profits, etc.) if needed for their program. While we cannot guarantee an internship placement, SMU and Tribe will provide support in this area for scholarship winners.

Apply here: Tribe Network Graduate Scholarship

For inquiries about the scholarship, please contact Shane Costantino at: dean.fgsr@smu.ca

For inquiries about the internship, please contact Danielle Goodfellow at: danielle.goodfellow@smu.ca

Eligibility:

• Saint Mary's University graduate student in any discipline involving computing and analytics.
• Be either applying to be (or have been accepted as) a new/entering graduate student for September 2026, or a current Saint Mary's graduate student who will still be registering for the September 2026 semester.
• Self-Identify as Black* or Indigenous**

For your application to be complete, please prepare and include the following documents:

• In up to 250 words (maximum one page), please outline how your studies will focus on computing or data analytics. You should discuss your background and/or experience in computing/analytics, how you will be using computing/analytics in your graduate program, and what you hope to learn/achieve from your graduate program.
• In up to 250 words (maximum one page), please discuss your connection to the community and how your graduate studies focused on computing/analytics may impact your community connections. You may discuss your home community, or your connection to Nova Scotia communities, or both - depending on your own circumstances. Finally, also provide a short reflection on what receiving this scholarship would mean for your academic and career development.
• Your resume (this will help with matching applicants to internship opportunities), and;
• Your unofficial transcripts. If you are a current Saint Mary's graduate student, you need only include your unofficial transcript from Self-Service Banner (PDF format). If you are applying to be (or have been accepted as) a new/entering graduate student, please include the unofficial transcripts from other institutions you've attended (the same that are required to apply for graduate studies at SMU).

Deadline:

• Applications must be submitted by February 27, 2026.
• Decisions will be made in April/May.

Committee:

Your application will be reviewed by a committee of individuals who are working towards supporting each applicant with the best possible outcome. The committee consists of four individuals from Saint Mary's University: Dr. Adam Sarty (Associate Vice-President, Research), Indigenous Student Advisor, Black Student Advisor, and Alfred Burgesson (Founder and CEO) with Tribe Network.

Applicants will be contacted after the application has been received and reviewed by the committee.

*Black (African Nova Scotian, African Canadian or Black Immigrants)
**Indigenous (First Nation, Métis, Inuit)