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Source verified August 1, 2026
Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship
Supports innovation internships with Canadian organizations
Latest source updateLast Update: September 25, 2026Latest change: Mitacs updated the Business Strategy Internship supervisor rules to explicitly include faculty or designated staff at colleges, institutes, polytechnics, and CEGEPs.View change
Latest source update
Last Update: September 25, 2026
Latest change: Mitacs updated the Business Strategy Internship supervisor rules to explicitly include faculty or designated staff at colleges, institutes, polytechnics, and CEGEPs.
Business Strategy Internship supervisor eligibility updated
Mitacs revised the Business Strategy Internship supervisor eligibility language. At universities, eligible supervisors remain faculty who are eligible to hold Tri-Agency funds, and at colleges, institutes, polytechnics, and CEGEPs, eligible supervisors are now explicitly faculty or designated staff. This updates the eligible supervisor group for the program’s academic side and broadens the institutions where designated staff can serve in that role.
Funding available
$ 10,000 - $ 150,000
Deadline
Open continuously
Location
Canada
Who can apply
At universities, eligible academic supervisors are faculty who are eligible to hold Tri-Agency funds.
See full eligibility
Overview
Mitacs Business Strategy Internship provides $10,000 or $15,000 per intern for four- or six-month internships with Canadian partner organizations and academic institutions in Canada. Projects must address business innovation needs and can focus on areas such as marketing, operations, finance, or intellectual property.
/100
Opportunity Score
Moderate potential, but conditions must align.
At a glance
Funding available
Financing goals
- Increase performance through digital transformation
- Develop strategic partnerships
- Develop team skills
Eligible Funding
- Maximum amount : 150,000 $
- Minimum amount : 10,000 $
Funds Providers
Eligible candidates
Eligible Industries
- All industries
Location
- Canada
Legal structures
- Non-profit
- Public or Parapublic institution
- For-profit business
Annual revenue
- All revenue ranges
Organisation size
- All organization sizes
Audience
- All groups
Non-profit candidates
Sector of operation
- All industries
Target groups
- All the groups
Revenue structures
- All structures
Scope
- All dimensions
Next Steps
1
Determine your project
2
Validate your eligibility
Availability timeline
2026
Periods: 1
Activities funded
- Projects are designed to address one or more business innovation components, including marketing, operations, finance, and intellectual property.
- Innovation projects are expected to lead to change and improvements through exploration, design, and implementation of improvements or efficiencies in business models, products, processes, or service delivery.
Documents Needed
- Completed project proposal
- ORS sign-off template
- ORS signature page
Official resources
Program guide
Supporting document
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
- At universities, eligible academic supervisors are faculty who are eligible to hold Tri-Agency funds.
- At colleges, institutes, polytechnics, and cegeps, eligible academic supervisors are faculty or designated staff.
- Partner organizations can be for-profit corporations, not-for-profit corporations, hospitals, municipalities, or Indigenous governments in Canada.
Who is not eligible
- BSI interns with a position of ownership, employment, or influence over the daily operations at the partner organization are not eligible.
- BSI interns with close family relationships or intimate relationships with academic supervisors or employees of the partner organization are not eligible.
- Postdoctoral fellows who were employed full-time at the partner organization before applying are not eligible.
- Interns may not participate in more than one internship at the same time.
Eligible expenses
- Direct project costs for Business Strategy Internship innovation projects, in accordance with the Tri-Agency Financial Administration guidelines.
- Direct project management expenses, up to 10% of the value of the standard cash contribution of the partner organization to the grant, prior to any discounts.
- For Indigenous research and innovation projects, eligible costs include community mobilization and engagement costs, culturally relevant promotional items, cash reimbursements to compensate community participation, honoraria for Indigenous Elders and community experts, and knowledge translation or communication contracts or consultant fees.
- A salary research allowance to temporarily replace co-applicants from eligible Indigenous not-for-profit organizations to release them from their duties to the organization.
- For colleges only, eligible project costs include faculty releases from teaching duties and part-time faculty participation.
Ineligible Costs and Activities
- Mitacs funds cannot be used to buy goods or services from organizations listed as partners on the project.
- Mitacs funds cannot be used to cover expenses incurred by partner organization personnel.
Eligible geographic areas
- Canada
Selection criteria
- Reviewers assess whether the internship activities show potential to deliver innovative outcomes for the partner organization, including whether the project is novel and goes beyond the partner’s day-to-day operations.
- Reviewers assess whether the project is suitable as a non-research innovation project and which Technology Readiness Level it most closely aligns to.
- Reviewers assess whether the project describes a clear innovation challenge or improvement priority and whether the intern’s expertise is suitable for addressing it.
- Reviewers assess whether the objectives, approach, and timeline are well defined, reasonable, and sufficiently detailed, and whether the internship represents an appropriate learning and development opportunity.
- Mitacs also assesses alignment with the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships and the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern, the partner organization’s ability to provide a valuable internship experience and advance project outcomes, proper conflict of interest management, and Indigenous research and innovation expectations where applicable.
How to apply
- Confirm all participants’ eligibility with your Mitacs Advisor.
- Complete all sections of the application through the Mitacs Registration and Application Portal (RAP).
- Have all participants sign off on the application through the RAP.
- Download the completed project proposal and ORS sign-off template, then send them to the ORS or equivalent office for review and signature.
- Upload the ORS signature page to the RAP and submit the application.
Processing and Agreement
- Mitacs reviews applications for selection criteria, eligibility, and completeness, and applicants may be asked to revise incomplete sections.
- Partner organizations are invoiced upon application submission.
- Project start dates cannot pre-date the Approval letter, and project work should not start until the intern has received funds from the academic institution.
- Once the project is approved and all partner contributions have been received, award funds are released to the intern’s academic institution.
- All participants must complete an exit survey within 30 days of the project end date, and academic institutions must submit a Financial Report once all project funds have been paid out.
Additional information
- Mitacs provides online professional development courses to interns through its e-Campus, EDGE.
- Projects are designed as four-month internships and can be adjusted to six months to accommodate the intern’s other responsibilities.
- Interaction with the partner organization may take place virtually as well as in person.
- Applicants may include up to 10 interns on one proposal if each intern’s role is clearly laid out.
Contacts
Frequently Asked Questions about the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship Program
What is the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship?
Mitacs Business Strategy Internship provides $10,000 or $15,000 per intern for four- or six-month internships with Canadian partner organizations and academic institutions in Canada. Projects must address business innovation needs and can focus on areas such as marketing, operations, finance, or intellectual property.
How much funding can be received?
Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship Funds up to $150,000 of admissible expenses.
What is the deadline to apply?
The program is accepting continuous intake
Who is eligible for the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship program?
To be eligible for the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship program, you must:
The program requires an eligible intern, an eligible academic supervisor, and an eligible partner organization.
Projects must take place in Canada with Canadian partner organizations.
The project must address business innovation needs and be supervised by both a partner-organization supervisor and an academic supervisor or institutional contact.
What expenses are eligible under Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship?
Projects are designed to address one or more business innovation components, including marketing, operations, finance, and intellectual property.
Innovation projects are expected to lead to change and improvements through exploration, design, and implementation of improvements or efficiencies in business models, products, processes, or service delivery.
Who can I contact for more information about the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship?
You can contact Mitacs by email at pilots@mitacs.ca.
Where is the Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship available?
The Mitacs — Business Strategy Internship program is available across Canada.