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National Student Paper Competition

Connecting talented graduates with the Government of Canada

Shah Zaib and Harshad Krishnaraj are the winners of the 12th National Student Paper Competition for their paper, 'Protecting Canada's Seniors from Cyber Fraud: Education, Awareness, and Policy Solutions.'

The National Student Paper Competition (NSPC), an annual competition, offers a unique opportunity for talented graduate students to connect with senior public servants, expand their networks, nurture their leadership skills, and foster employment opportunities with the federal public service.

For more information about the competition or the submission process, contact the NSPC team at nspc‑cneu@csps‑efpc.gc.ca.



National Student Paper Competition: Promotional Video

Video: National Student Paper Competition: Promotional Video

This promotional video features testimonials from past winners, judges and organizers of the National Student Paper Competition.

Video: National Student Paper Competition: Promotional Video

Transcript

Transcript: National Student Paper Competition: Promotional Video

[00:00:00 Animated, brightly coloured concentric circles appear. Text on screen: National Student Paper Competition 2023-2024. Upbeat music plays.]

[00:00:09 Josianne Paul appears full screen.]

[00:00:12 A text appears on the screen: Josianne Paul, Acting Director, Policy and Strategic Relationships]

Josianne Paul: Hi, I'm Josianne Paul, Acting Director of the Policy and Strategic Relationships team here at the Canada School of Public Service. And it's my team that's in charge of setting up the National Student Paper Competition.

[00:00:12 A text appears on the screen: Canadian graduate students]

Josianne Paul: The National Student Paper Competition is open to Canadian graduate students of all disciplines. And the goal is to bring fresh ideas to the federal public service, while enabling them to connect with senior public servants, expand their network and facilitate their employment within the federal public service.

[00:00:40 Rajender Singh appears full screen. Text on screen: Gain experience]

[00:00:43 A text appears on the screen: Rajender Singh, 2023 – 2024 NSPC winner]

Rajender Singh: This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone who is looking to gain some experience in translating research knowledge into policy recommendations.

[00:00:53 A text appears on the screen: Great learning experience]

Rajender Singh: I would recommend the competition to other graduate students also because, it's a great learning experience and also it's a great exposure and it gives you great opportunity to network also with the people in the space.

Rajender Singh: I think for me, three specific learnings from the competition. Number one, through the process, you learn to translate research knowledge into policy recommendations. Second, you learn to present your point and, explain your issue in a high level manner to senior policy executives, senior government executives. And third, what I learned in the final, was looking at other finalist presentations, how poised, how calm they were in their delivery.

[00:01:31 Paul Pilieci appears full screen.]

[00:01:33 A text appears on the screen: Paul Pilieci, Director General, Policy, Priorities and Partnerships]

Paul Pilieci: My name is Paul Pilieci. I'm the director general of the policy, Priorities and Partnerships Directorate here at the Canada School of Public Service. My role in the National Student Paper Competition is to oversee the team that provides the wonderful support for the competition, as well as to participate in some of the judging.

[00:01:55 A text appears on the screen: Build bridges between the public service and academia]

Paul Pilieci: The National Student Paper Competition is, in my opinion, essential to the Canada School of Public Service as it's one of the key initiatives that really helps us build bridges between the public service and academia.

Paul Pilieci: I decided to hire a number of the winners of the National Student Paper Competition, because it's really evident that they bring the types of skills and information really relevant to the federal public service of today.

[00:02:06 Lydia Laflamme appears full screen.]

[00:02:09 A text appears on the screen: Lydia Laflamme, 2022 – 2023 NSPC winner]

Lydia Laflamme: As for the benefits of the competition, I think I was particularly lucky because of the media coverage for my project. So there were several media articles about my paper, and that also meant that several people tried to connect with me.

[00:02:24 A text appears on the screen: Create a network]

Lydia Laflamme: So, above all, it helped me to create a network of contacts that will serve me well in the long term to further similar ideas.

[00:02:34 Fraser Valentine appears full screen.]

[00:02:37 A text appears on the screen: Create Fraser Valentine, Executive Faculty Member and Senior Advisor to the President]

Fraser Valentine: Hi there. My name is Fraser Valentine. I'm on the faculty here at the Canada School of Public Service, and I was a judge last year for the competition.

[00:02:37 A text appears on the screen: Share ideas]

Fraser Valentine: The really wonderful thing about this competition is its dynamism. And by that I mean it attracts people from across the country to participate. And in turn, federal public servants from across the system also participate. And it's that sharing of ideas that really is the magic.

[00:02:57 Patrick Obendoerfer appears full screen.]

[00:02:59 A text appears on the screen: Patrick Obendoerfer, Senior Policy Advisor, Social Development Policy, Privy Council Office and 2014 – 2015 NSPC winner]

Patrick Obendoerfer: So my name is Patrick Obendoerfer. I'm a senior advisor at the Privy Council Office, and I was one of the winners in the 2014-15 competition.

[00:03:06 A text appears on the screen: Leverage your experience]

Patrick Obendoerfer: So after joining the competition, I leverage some of that experience to gain a role at Indigenous Services Canada in the policy sector. And then I was an advisor to the chief financial officer there, and then I worked in strategic policy. And I'm now a senior advisor at the Privy Council Office where I work in social policy.

[00:03:44 A text appears on the screen: Great introduction to public service]

Patrick Obendoerfer: I would encourage any student to join the National Student Paper Competition. It gave me the opportunity to take the concepts that I had in the paper that I wrote, and present it to the team that actually could make a difference in applying it. It gave me an opportunity to meet some of the most senior executives in the Government of Canada, including the Clerk of the Privy Council, and it introduced me, to what it's like to brief in the government of Canada and ultimately what my career would be like in the future. And so it's a great introduction into the public service, and I highly recommend the experience to anybody who can join.

[00:03:50 The CSPS animated logo appears on screen. Text on screen: canada.ca/school. Upbeat music plays.]

[00:03:57 The Government of Canada wordmark appears and fades to black.]

About NSPC

Background information

Launched in 2013, the NSPC is an annual competition organized by the Canada School of Public Service in partnership with the Canadian Association of Programs in Public Administration and the Institute of Public Administration of Canada. The competition is also supported by various Canadian higher-education institutions and associations, including the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies.

The aim of the competition is two-fold:

  • introducing innovative ideas and bright new thinkers to the Canadian public service
  • enhancing public service excellence and encouraging high performance

Benefits and outcomes of the competition

  • A strong partnership between the federal public service, universities and higher-education associations that encourages graduate students to apply academic knowledge and skills to inform Canadian public policy and the Public Service of Canada.
  • An increased number of promising graduate students in different fields of expertise across Canadian universities working with the federal public service and contributing with innovative, research-based ideas to enhance the lives of all Canadians.
  • A talented, diverse, inclusive and modern workforce equipped with the skills needed to embrace new workplace challenges, design services, mobilize knowledge, and respond to the country's evolving needs.

Prizes

The Grand Prize winner(s) of the competition will receive the following:

  • A 4-month internship with the Canadian federal public service (staffing mechanism depends on individual situation)
  • Invitations to attend or present at academic and governmental conferences and panels

The winner and the top five finalists will:

Winners

Winners

Rajender Singh

Rajender Singh: Hooked Online: A Call for Canadian Leadership in Addressing Internet Addiction (2023-2024)

Rajender Singh is a PhD candidate at Western University in London, Ontario. He conducts policy research at the intersection of technology, society, and the market. Specifically, his research investigates the novel strategies employed by Big Tech companies to enter and dominate the global education market while positioning themselves as neutral and altruistic players.

His other research involvements include studying the policy responses of U-15 Canadian universities during the COVID-19 pandemic, utilizing internet data and digital methods for social and educational research, and examining pedagogic practices in neurodiverse settings to formulate recommendations that transform educational practice.

Past Winners

2022-2023
Lydia Laflamme

Lydia Laflamme: Encouraging Environmentally Responsible Eating Behaviours Through Experimentalist Governance

Lydia Laflamme, one of two winners of the 10th National Student Paper Competition, is a master's student in political science at Université Laval in Québec. She is a member of the Research Chair on Democracy and Parliamentary Institutions, the Université Laval Research Group in Politics and Cognition, and the Leadership Chair in the Teaching of Digital Social Sciences. Her main areas of research are political psychology and electoral politics in Quebec and the rest of Canada. More specifically, she studies intergroup conflict, the impact of identity on political attitudes, and the connections between voter well-being and behaviour.

David Jones

David Jones: Strategic Recommendations for Health Canada

David Jones, one of two winners of the 10th National Student Paper Competition, is a policy analyst and advisor, specializing in economics, healthcare and public policy. Currently, David is midway through the Master of Public Policy degree at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy of the University of Toronto. He also studied Economics at the University of Cambridge in the UK. David is passionate about providing high-quality research, analysis and advice that both supports efficient policy-making and improves the welfare of society.

2021-2022
Video: Winner of the 9th National Student Paper Competition - Aisha Barkhad

Aisha Barkhad Video: Climate Change, Globalization, and Inequality: How Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases are Threatening Human Health in Canada

2020-2021
Video: Winner of the 8th National Student Paper Competition - Bhajan Gill

Bhajan Gill Video: Western University

Visit the CAPPA website to learn more about the top papers from past editions of the NSPC.

Application process

Application process

  • Are you a talented Canadian graduate student looking for an opportunity to apply your knowledge to advance the federal public service?
  • Are you interested in building your network by connecting with senior officials in the Government of Canada?
  • Do you have an inspiring and innovative idea that can improve a Canadian policy or program?

If you answered "yes" to any of these questions, consider applying to the NSPC.

Eligibility criteria
  • Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada
  • Graduate (master's and doctoral) students enrolled in a publicly funded Canadian university for at least one academic term during the 2024-2025 academic year, on a full-time or part-time basis
  • Team applications, with a maximum of two members, are permitted, although, all members must meet the above requirements. A team application that includes collaborators from other universities is permitted.

The NSPC initiative is committed to contributing to a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive Canadian public service. We strongly encourage the participation of students from equity-seeking groups, including graduate students with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ students and BIPOC students.

How to apply

If you are interested in participating in the NSPC, you should:

  • Contact a professor or supervisor in your Canadian university program or faculty to sponsor and support you through the competition's application process.
    • Submit the paper to the professor or supervisor for final approval.
    • Once your professor or supervisor approves the final draft, they are to complete the online application form and submit three versions of your paper.
  • The link to the submission portal will be available when the competition for 2024-2025 begins.

For more information on the specifics of how to apply, please refer to the application checklist tab.

Select your topic

The NSPC is designed to allow graduate students to share inspiring and innovative ideas on topics related to governance and the Public Service of Canada. Papers should focus on the current priorities and concerns of the Government of Canada. All submissions on any other issue relevant to the federal public service are also welcome. To understand our current priorities, see in particular:

More information is available on the websites of the Privy Council Office and the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat.

Each paper should be a forward-looking think piece that explores innovative ideas and approaches to help position Canada and Canadians for the coming decade through solutions delivered by the Government of Canada.

In determining the paper's topic, applicants may want to consider the following questions:

  • What are your ideas about how to ensure that the public service is ready to meet the needs of the future?
  • What are the major social, economic, technological and/or environmental challenges facing Canada in the next decade? What policy strategies should Canada pursue to address them?
  • What emerging topics will have a significant impact on the federal public service and service excellence for Canadians?
  • What would it take to move your idea from policy approval to implementation?

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Values, Ethics, and Competencies of Public Servants
  • Governance and Demographic Change in a Complex World
  • Quality of Life and the Well-Being of Canadians
  • Democracy
  • Anti-Racism, Accessibility, Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity
  • Digital Government, Artificial Intelligence, Trust, and Data Literacy
  • Climate Change, Green Economy and Sustainable Development
  • Indigenous Rights, Governance and Reconciliation
  • Geopolitics, Foreign Trade and National Security
  • Federalism in Canada
  • Future of Work
  • Public Administration Innovation
  • Energetic Transition
  • Canadian Policies and Program Improvement and Evaluation
Paper criteria

Submitted papers must meet the following technical requirements:

  • A single-authored or co-authored paper, either in English or in French
  • A new work or one adapted from an earlier original academic course or academic research work
  • A maximum of 1500 words (excluding the cover page, bibliography, footnotes/endnotes, appendices or any tables, charts and figures)
  • Essay format using any standard citation style
  • Submitted in each of the following three formats
    • PDF, including:
      • cover page with the paper's title and word count
      • author's name and email address
      • university and program of study
      • name and institutional email address of professor or supervisor who is submitting on behalf of their student
    • MS Word
      • Identical content to PDF version
    • MS Word, including:
      • cover page with only the title of the paper and the word count. Do not include the author's name and university.
Application checklist
  • 1. Find a professor or supervisor from your university program to endorse the paper and provide necessary information. (See application form.)
  • 2. Define a topic for the paper based on the competition criteria.
  • 3. Review the paper to ensure it meets the guidelines:
    • 3.1 The paper is a maximum of 1500 words, excluding the cover page, bibliography, footnotes/endnotes, appendices or any tables, charts and figures.
    • 3.2 The paper follows an essay format.
    • 3.3 The paper uses a standard citation style.
  • 4. Submitting the paper: Three copies
    • 4.1 A PDF version including:
      A cover page formatted with cover page including title, author names, email addresses, word count, university, and author university program. Name and institutional email address of professor or supervisor.
    • 4.2 An MS Word version including:
      A cover page formatted with cover page including title, author names, email addresses, word count, university, and author university program. Name and institutional email address of professor or supervisor.
    • 4.3 An anonymous MS Word version including:
      A cover page with name of paper and word count only, omitting author name and university.
Evaluation process

Evaluation process

The submitted papers will be evaluated using the matrix below.

Originality and innovation
  • Presents a novel, well-thought-out and feasible approach
  • Understands the topic, proposes innovative approaches and solutions to new and existing challenges for Canada
  • Takes a unique perspective on or dimension of an issue of concern for Canadians
Research and references
  • Well-conducted research supports the arguments
  • Draws from diverse sources of academic research and/or government publications
  • Includes complete citations and follows a consistent reference style
Structure and writing style
  • The paper follows a clear structure
  • Even flow of the paper with a logical sequence of ideas
  • Free of typos and grammatical mistakes
Relevance to the federal public service
  • The issue is a priority of the federal public service
  • Identifies the importance of the selected topic, as well as the key drivers
  • Demonstrates potential practical application by the federal public service
Relevance to the broader Canadian population
  • The issue is a concern to the broader Canadian population
  • Offers clear, realistic advice that will benefit the broader Canadian population

After all submissions have been evaluated and the scores for each essay have been tallied, the five highest-scoring essays will be selected and the authors contacted.

To determine the winner, the top five finalists will be asked to present their research to a panel of senior government executives. The panel will evaluate and rank the presentations to determine the winner based on their:

  • articulation of knowledge and integrated skills
  • ability to communicate, argue and defend innovative ideas
  • confidence and collaborative interaction with the panellists
  • willingness to propose meaningful policy recommendations to inform and enhance the federal public service and Canadian society
Key dates

Key dates

Description Date
Online submissions open September 1, 2025
Online submissions closed January 30, 2026
Announcement of top 5 finalists Spring 2026
Presentation of finalists' papers before virtual panel of senior public service executives Spring 2026
Announcement of the winner(s) Spring 2026
Accommodations

Accommodations

  • This competition is designed to remove barriers, ensure a fair assessment, and allow all candidates to fully demonstrate their competencies. Accommodation measures are available to applicants upon request by email or voluntary indication on the online submissions.
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