NSERC Alliance Grants – University-Industry Research Partnerships

Also known as: NSERC Alliance

NSERC Alliance grants fund collaborative research between Canadian universities and industry partners. NSERC contributes 66.7% of direct project costs (2:1 leverage) with cost-sharing partners covering the rest — the ratio applies across project sizes. Enables companies to access academic expertise and facilities without building internal research capacity.

Who qualifies

• Canadian university researcher must be the academic lead applicant
• Industry partner provides cash co-funding (share depends on partner size and option chosen)
• Project must have clear knowledge transfer and commercial benefit to the industry partner
• Alliance grants: $20,000 to $1M per year (NSERC share), 1–5 year projects
• ⚠️ Alliance International Catalyst grant (up to $25,000): confirmed SUSPENDED for new applications as of the 2026-07-10 check — do not present this as currently actionable. Alliance International Collaboration grants are also paused until late summer 2026 per the same check.
• Agriculture, crop science, genomics, environmental, and engineering projects all eligible
• University of Manitoba, University of Winnipeg available as local academic partners

Typical applicant

Agtech, biotech, and tech companies wanting to co-develop IP with a Canadian university — ideal for companies new to Canada who want to build local research presence and access Canadian expertise

Verified against the official program page as of 2026-07-19. Programs change — always confirm current details with the program office before committing project spend.