Rio Tinto Alcan Research Fellowships
Quick Facts
As part of its ongoing commitment to innovation and research, Rio Tinto Alcan offers an $18,000 research fellowship for a UBC graduate student in a field of pure or applied science related to Rio Tinto Alcan’s activities.
Early to mid-March - check with graduate program
Eligibility
To be eligible, applicants must be enrolled or accepted for full-time studies in a master’s or doctoral program for the 2012-2013 academic year in a field of pure or applied science related to Rio Tinto Alcan’s activities.
Eligible Research Areas
- Raw materials - Hydrometallurgical ore processing. Bayer process for the extraction of alumina from bauxite.
- Smelting process - Extraction of aluminum metal from alumina by molten salt electrolysis. High-temperature electrochemistry.
- Materials - Study of materials such as refractories, carbon and insulators used to produce aluminum
- Aluminum metallurgy - Processing of molten metal. Casting and fabrication of metal. Study of characteristics of aluminium and special alloys. Aluminium-based composite materials technology.
- Environment - Elimination, reduction and re-use of manufacturing process by-products. Treatment and scrubbing of gases and liquids
- Analytical techniques - Methods for analyzing and characterizing raw materials, finished products and by-products.
- Modelling and computer systems - Computer simulation of manufacturing processes, production systems, heat transfer, metal forming, structural analysis, etc.
The programme’s selection committee will consider any research projects in these areas.
While not required, it is preferred that applicants be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
Procedures
Applicants are to submit application materials to their UBC graduate program in advance of the Faculty of Graduate Studies application deadline. Applicants must check with their graduate program regarding its internal deadline. The following application materials are required. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
- Cover letter listing: Student name, UBC student number, UBC graduate program, Name of UBC supervisor, Names of those providing letters of recommendation.
- Project description: Must include proposed timetable for completion of the various steps. Maximum four pages, double spaced.
- Official transcripts for all university-level studies (including studies undertaken but not completed) up to 31 December 2011. UBC transcripts must be original and official, received by the graduate program in sealed envelope from Enrolment Services. Transcripts from institutions other than UBC must be official, but can be original or certified true copies provided by the applicant's graduate programs. Please note that students must request certified true copies of transcripts from their graduate program, not from the Faculty of Graduate Studies.
- Two letters of recommendation from professors or researchers (one of whom must be your research supervisor), who have followed the applicant’s progress during his or her university studies. Only recommendation letters signed by the person providing the reference are acceptable; original, faxed, and scanned copies sent by e-mail are acceptable.
- Updated resumé.
Graduate programs are to review and rank all applications submitted from their students. Graduate programs are to forward their top-ranked applications to the Faculty of Graduate Studies. All application materials must be received by the Faculty of Graduate Studies by 4:00pm Friday March 30, 2012. A complete application package must include:
- Graduate program Cover Letter outlining ranking of applicants, and the rationale for ranking used (two pages maximum)
- Application materials listed above
The Faculty of Graduate Studies will convene an adjudication commitee composed of UBC faculty members to review nominations submitted by graduate programs and select UBC's nominee to the national competition. Only one fellowship per university will be awarded at any one time. Rio Tinto Alcan may decide not to award a fellowship if the project fails to meet the criteria and standards of excellence set by the selection committee.
