Award and Scholarship Winners

The Governor General's Academic Medal

Silver

The SILVER medal is awarded to the undergraduate who achieves the highest academic standing upon graduation from a bachelor degree program. The number of silver medals awarded by each university shall be determined by its full-time equivalent (FTE) undergraduate enrolment:

• 1 medal – under 15,000 students
• 2 medals – 15,000 to 25,000
• 3 medals – more than 25,000.

Silver Medal Recipients

Gold

The GOLD medal is awarded to the student who achieves the highest academic standing at the graduate level. The number of gold medals awarded by each university shall be determined by its full-time equivalent (FTE) graduate enrolment:

• 1 medal – under 2,500 students
• 2 medals – 2,500 to 5,000
• 3 medals – more than 5,000.

Gold Medal Recipients

Amount: One award of a medal.

This medal is awarded to a graduating student in the Spring semester or the previous Fall or Winter Semesters. Application is not required.

Qualifications: Student who has completed semester 8 of any of the majors in Physics and who has obtained the highest cumulative average in the required Physics courses of that program, normally taken in semester 5 to 8.

Recipients

Amount: One award of a medal. 

This medal is awarded to a graduating student in the Spring semester.

Qualifications: A student who has completed semester 8 of the B.Sc. Nanoscience degree program and who has obtained the highest cumulative average in the required Nanoscience courses of that program. Semester(s): 8. 

Recipients

The awards will be made to the top 3 highest combined averages in PHYS*2240 and PHYS*2330. Application is not required.

In a time when the church was law, Copernicus took a stand and defended his theories of the cosmos.  The 16th Century scholar proposed that the Sun, and not the Earth, was the centre of the solar system, triggering the Copernican Revolution and laying the ground work for the Scientific Revolution  which followed.

Amount: Three awards of $1,000.

Qualifications: Students registered in a major offered by the Department of Physics with a minimum 80% average, and who have completed PHYS*2240 and PHYS*2330 in the previous academic semester.

Recipients

In honour of University Professor Emeritus and former Chair of the Department of Physics, Peter A. Egelstaff. Application is not required.

Peter A. Egelstaff obtained his BSc (1946) and PhD 1954 in London England.  He emigrated to Canada in 1957 to take a position as group leader at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited in Chalk River, Ontario, for two years.  He moved back to the UK as Special Merit Senior Appointment at the Atomic Energy Research Establishment in Harwell, UK until 1970 when he returned to Canada to take up the position of Chair of the Department of Physics from 1970-75.  It was rumoured that during his five-year tenure the Physics Machine Shop was occupied solely by Peter's research work, which was in the field of neutron scattering for the determination of dynamics and structure of liquids. In 1980 Peter was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.  He retired in 1990 and  was honoured as University Professor Emeritus. Dr. Egelstaff passed away January 18, 2015, in his 90th year. 

Amount: One award of $500.

Qualifications: Student who has completed 12.5 course credits, is currently registered in one of the majors in Physics and has a high cumulative average (of at least 80%) in the required Physics courses normally taken in Years 2 & 3 of the major.

Recipients

This graduate scholarship of has been established in memory of Professor Ross Hallett to honour his contributions to research in biophysics, as well as the academic life of the Department of Physics, the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, and the University of Guelph. All eligible students will be considered by the Departmental Awards Committee. Recommendations from the advisory committee will be sought by the Awards Committee for a selected short list of students, or will be volunteered by the advisory committee. Considerations will begin on May 1st of each year. Selection will be based on academic achievement and demonstrated ability and/or potential in biophysics research. This award may only be held once. No application necessary.

Students registered in a graduate program offered by the Department of Physics whose research is in the field of biophysics.

Recipients

Established in honour of J.L. (Iain) Campbell, former Provost and Vice-President (Academic), of the University of Guelph from 1995 to 2000 and former Dean of the College of Physical and Engineering Science from 1987 to 1995. Application is not required.

Iain Campbell was born in Kilmarnock, Scotland, and received B.Sc. and PhD degrees from Glasgow University.  He emigrated to Canada in 1968 to join Guelph’s Physics Department.  He was Director of the Guelph Waterloo Physics Institute from 1984 to 1987, Dean of CPES from 1987 to 1995, and Provost and Vice-President Academic from 1995 to 2000.  He received an honorary DSc from Glasgow University in 1982, an honorary DTech from the University of Lund in Sweden in 1997, and the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2003.  He was honoured as University Professor Emeritus and awarded the University’s Medal of Merit.  He is well known internationally for his work in Proton Induced X-Ray Emission (PIXE), and the computer software GUPIX developed by Campbell’s group has been supplied to over 140 ion beam analysis laboratories in 30 countries.

Amount: One award of $1,000.

Qualifications: Student who is currently registered in one of the majors in Physics and who has completed at least 12.50 credits, with a high cumulative average (at least 80%) in the required Physics courses normally taken in Year 2 and 3 of the major.

Recipients

Established on honour of Professor Emeritus James L. Hunt, Medal of Merit recipient. The recipient will have achieved the highest cumulative average over 80%. This award cannot be held with any other awards offered by the Department of Physics. Application is not required.

Jim Hunt graduated from Guelph C.V.I., and received an Hon. B.A. from Queens, and an M.A. and PhD from the U of Toronto.  He has received both a provincial and a national teaching award. He was co-designer of the MacNaughton Building, and Chair of the committee which designed the Guelph Waterloo link used for joint graduate courses.  He received the University’s Medal of Merit in 1999.  

He was the organizer of the project to design the stained glass window cover for the MacNaughton Building entrance, and most recently he has been working on using physics to create anamorphic art.  Jim created the anamorph located in the MacNaughton Foyer, as well as the recently dedicated anamorph located in the Science Complex.  He also designed, with artist Allan Mackay, a large-scale outdoor anamorph which is on permanent display in Kitchener at the intersection of King and Frederick streets. 

Amount: One of $1,500

Qualifications: Students registered in any major offered by the Department of Physics that have completed 10.0 credits and have achieved a minimum 80% cumulative average.

Recipients

Amount: One award of $1,000.

In honour of University Professor Emeritus Innes K. MacKenzie. Not tenable with the Egelstaff Scholarship. Application is not required.

Qualifications: Students who have completed 12.5 course credits and are currently registered in one of the majors in physics. It is given to a student with a high cumulative standing (of at least 80%) in the required physics courses normally taken in Years 2 & 3 of the major.

Recipients

Established by Earl B. MacNaughton, former head of the Department of Physics and founding Dean of the College of Physical Science. Application is not required.

Earl B. MacNaughton was born in Maple, Ontario. He graduated from the University of Toronto with a PhD in Physics and joined the Department of Physics in 1948. MacNaughton was instrumental in redesigning the physics curriculum and promoting research. He became the Head of Physics in 1956 and was Head of Physics & Math from 1961 to 1967.  In 1964 the University of Guelph was created, and MacNaughton soon became Associate Dean of Wellington College (1966-1970), and then Dean of the College of Physical Science from 1970-1981.  This building was named after him in 1986 for his outstanding contributions to the University as an educator and an academic administrator.  Dr. MacNaughton, was in his 96th year when he  died January 5, 2015.

Amount: One award of $500.

Qualifications: Student who has completed semester 5 and is currently registered in one of the majors in Physics and has a high cumulative average (at least 80%) in the required Physics courses normally taken in semesters 3, 4 and 5 of the major.

Recipients

Established in honour of a distinguished Physics Professor Emeritus. Selection will be made to the student with highest cumulative average. Award may be held only once. No application required.

Ten years after obtaining her Masters in Physics in 1893, Marie Curie won the Nobel Prize in Physics along side her husband Pierre, and Henri Becquerel for their work on radioactivity and became the first woman to be awarded this prize.  In 1911 she was awarded a second Nobel Prize, this time in Chemistry. One of the most famous female scientists, Marie Curie’s legacy continues to live on today.

This award is made possible by a generous anonymous donation and is given to a fourth year student with the highest cumulative average and is not tenable with any other Department of Physics Scholarship. 

Amount: One award of $1,500

Qualifications: Students registered in any major offered by the Department of Physics who have completed a minimum of 15.0 credits and have achieved a minimum of 80% cumulative average.

Recipients

Established in honour of Professor Emeritus Robin W. Ollerhead, Chair of the Department of Physics 1982-1993. The award cannot be held concurrently with another award from the Physics Department and can be held only once. No application required.

Robin W. Ollerhead obtained his BSc from the University of Western Ontario in 1959. He then went on to complete both his MSc (1960) and PhD (1964) at Yale University. After working as an Assistant Research Officer at Chalk River Nuclear Lab for several years, he joined the Department of Physics in 1968 and was Chair of the Department of Physics from 1983 to 1992.

Dr. Ollerhead was a member of the research group led by Arthur B. McDonald, who won the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics for “the discovery of neutrino oscillations, which shows that neutrinos have mass”. The Breakthrough Prize Foundation also recognized the 2015 Nobel Prize winning research and Robin was among the winners of the 2016 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.

Amount: One award of $1,750

Qualifications: Students registered in a major offered by the Department of Physics who have completed all required courses normally taken in the first 5 semesters of that major who has completed 12.5 credits and achieved a minimum 80% average in the required Physics courses normally taken in semesters 3, 4 and 5 of their major.

Recipients

Amount: One award of $900

This scholarship is awarded in the winter semester to the student with the highest cumulative average over 80%. This award is not tenable with any other Department of Physics scholarships . Application is not required.

Qualifications: Student who have completed a minimum of 10.0 credits up to a maximum of 19.75 credits and is enrolled in a physics major.

Recipients

Amount: Two awards of $1,000. 

Qualifications: A student who is currently registered in the third year of the B.Sc. Nanoscience program and who has completed between 7.50 and 9.75 credits, with a cumulative average of at least 80%.

Application not required. 

Recipients

Amount: Two awards of $1,000. 

Qualifications: A student who is currently registered in the third year of the B.Sc. Nanoscience program and who has completed between 12.50 and 14.75 credits, with a cumulative average of at least 80%. 

Application not required. 

Recipients

Amount: Two awards of $1,000. 

Qualifications: A student who is currently registered in the third year of the B.Sc. Nanoscience program and who has completed at least 17.50 credits, with a cumulative average of at least 80%. 

Application not required. 

Recipients