The white rose, over the years, has come to symbolize Polytechnique Montréal’s remembrance activities marking the December 6, 1989, tragedy. This emblem of peace has become the image for annual events held since December 6, 2014, the day of the 25th anniversary of the drama. With this in mind, and in tribute to the victims, the wounded, the faculty members and the employees and students who were at the heart of the tragedy, Polytechnique created in 2015 the Order of the White Rose scholarship.

This scholarship is awarded annually by the Polytechnique Montréal administration to a woman engineering student who wishes to pursue her passion for engineering by enrolling in a graduate program – master’s or doctoral level - at the institution of her choice, in Canada or elsewhere in the world.

For a fifth year, a call for applications has been launched at Canadian universities that offer engineering programs. The name of the winner of the Order of the White Rose will be announced in December 2019.

Inspiring ambassadors

“I am truly touched that the Order of the White Rose is a scholarship created in honour of my sisters, whose right to practise the wonderful profession of engineering was taken away from them,” said Nathalie Provost, ‘Godmother’ of the Order of the White Rose. “In addition to honouring their memory, the scholarship is a helping hand extended to the next generation, and will enable a young woman to go a step further in fulfilling her dream of becoming an engineer.”

“If I were a young student receiving the Order of the White Rose, I would feel privileged to be able to perpetuate the legacy of women engineers and to add my contribution to our society’s scientific heritage. I know that the scholarship winner will feel this pride,” added Michèle Thibodeau-DeGuire, the first woman to graduate in civil engineering from Polytechnique Montréal in 1963 and the first woman to hold the position of Chair of the Board of Directors of the Corporation de l’École Polytechnique de Montréal.

A prestigious jury

The selection jury for the Order of the White Rose, to be chaired once again this year by Ms. Thibodeau-DeGuire, comprises outstanding people in Canadian higher education:

• Cristina Amon, Dean, Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, University of Toronto
• Kevin J. Deluzio, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Queen's University
• Patrik Doucet, Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Université de Sherbrooke
• Suzanne Fortier, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, McGill University
• John Newhook, Dean of Engineering, Dalhousie University
• Peter Wild, Dean of Engineering, University of Victoria

The recipients of the Order of the White Rose

Last December, Polytechnique Montréal awarded the fourth Order of the White Rose scholarship to Viviane Aubin, an electrical engineering graduate of Polytechnique Montréal. Ms. Aubin is currently working on a master’s degree in energetic engineering at Polytechnique.

Viviane Aubin and Nathalie Provost.

In 2017, Polytechnique Montréal awarded the third Order of the White Rose scholarship to Ella Thomson, an electrical engineering graduate of the University of Manitoba. Ms. Thomson is currently working on a doctorate degree in biomedical engineering at Stanford University in California.

En 2016, Polytechnique Montréal awarded the second Order of the White Rose scholarship to Liane Bernstein, a physics engineering graduate from Polytechnique Montréal. Ms. Bernstein used this scholarship to pursue her doctoral studies at The Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The first Order of the White Rose scholarship was awarded in 2015 to Tara Gholami, a mechanical engineering graduate from the University of Calgary who pursued her studies at Stanford University.

Application procedure

All Canadian engineering schools and faculties received the tools they need to launch the competition in their institution. They will have until September 2, 2019, to submit the application portfolio of the finalist chosen to represent their institution to the Order of the White Rose scholarship selection committee.

Students interested in this scholarship must find out from their institution (where they completed their bachelor's degree) which department is responsible for evaluating application portfolios and the deadline for applying. The institution is responsible for organizing the internal competition and for sending only the finalist’s portfolio to the Polytechnique selection committee.

To learn more

Application conditions on the Order of the White Rose website
Profile of Viviane Aubin, 2018 recipient of the Order of the White Rose scholarship
Profile of Ella Thomson, 2017 recipient of the Order of the White Rose scholarship
Profile of Liane Bernstein, 2016 recipient of the Order of the White Rose scholarship
Profile of Tara Gholami, 2015 recipient of the Order of the White Rose scholarship