Science and Research committee  Okay. According to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, the support that students receive allows them to concentrate fully on their studies in their chosen field. I think this is totally false: students who receive scholarships from research granting agencies cannot concentrate on their studies because the amount offered is simply insufficient.

Science and Research committee  In fact, I think Quebec is a model for research. Recently, in the last budget, we invested in increasing the amount of student scholarships offered by the Fonds de recherche du Québec. Master's scholarships were increased by $2,500 and doctoral scholarships were increased by $4,000.

Science and Research committee  No. There are a lot of students who aren't funded. You probably already know that federal and provincial granting agencies don't provide funding to all students. Often it's the professors who have to pay the people who do research with them. There is also a direct link between funding and graduation.

Science and Research committee  It's important to fund all three areas currently covered by the three research granting agencies, both in the health sciences and in the social sciences and humanities. There can be great advances and innovations in these areas. It's also important to consider interdisciplinarity.

Science and Research committee  First of all, I would like to—

Science and Research committee  Thank you for the question. In 2018, UEQ conducted a psychological health survey of over 23,000 students. This survey gave us alarming results. Indeed, 58% of the student population has a high level of psychological distress, compared to 20% of the Quebec population. We saw how financial insecurity had a major impact on the psychological distress and emotional exhaustion of students, as well as on depressive symptoms, particularly among graduate students.

Science and Research committee  Psychological health is still as important as ever and must be taken into account. We need to take action on psychological health. The study I was telling you about was done in 2018, so it was before the pandemic. We saw that the psychological health of students was greatly affected during the pandemic.

Science and Research committee  I think we have to talk about both at the same time. When we talk about research funding, it's important to think about how the money is distributed by the three federal granting agencies. Right now, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, or SSHRC, awards four-year grants, which is a good thing.

Science and Research committee  Yes, the freeze on the amount of grants has had a significant impact on students. To give you an idea, at present, the amount of the grants isn't harmonized between the three federal granting agencies, nor is the duration of the funding. As a result, there are disparities in award amounts, which can range from as low as $17,500 to as high as $35,000 and even $50,000 for prestigious awards such as the Vanier scholarship.

Science and Research committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I would also like to thank the committee for its invitation. My name is Samy-Jane Tremblay, and I'm the president of the Union étudiante du Québec. The UEQ represents more than 91,000 university students throughout Quebec, including more than 25,000 graduate students.