NSERC - Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

The NSERC Collaborative Research and Training Experience (CREATE) program supports the training and mentoring of teams of highly qualified students and postdoctoral fellows from Canada and abroad through the development of innovative training programs that 

• encourage collaborative and integrative approaches, and address significant scientific challenges associated with Canada’s research priorities 
• facilitate the transition of new researchers from trainees to productive employees in the Canadian workforce 

The program also supports industrial stream applications and offers opportunity to collaborate with the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) in Germany. 

NSERC will provide funding of up to $150,000 in the first year and up to $300,000 for up to five subsequent years, for a maximum of $1.65M over six years. Collaborators may contribute additional funds. CREATE initiatives are expected to be self-sustaining by the end of six years.  

Submission Process and Deadlines 

NSERC’s deadline for receipt of a Letter of Intent (LOI) is May 2, 2022. The CREATE program is highly selective, with pre-screening based on the LOI. Only applicants successful at the LOI stage will be invited by NSERC to submit a full application. 

UPEI is limited to submitting two (2) LOI submissions for the CREATE Program.  To facilitate the identification and selection of LOI applicants, there will be an internal selection process.    

UPEI Internal Notice of Intent (NOI) – Deadline March 7, 2022 by 4pm     

Prepare a maximum two-page document with the following information: 

• Title of the project 
• Names of the principal investigator and co-applicants (minimum of one and maximum of 10 co-applicants). Explain the rationale for the team composition and how it has the necessary expertise for the successful execution of the training program.  
  • Note: NSERC limits the participation of an individual researcher in a maximum of two CREATE initiatives as either an applicant or co-applicant (active or applied for). 
  • Note to multi-university applicants: All universities who will be involved in the application must have at least one co-applicant listed in the proposal. 

• A description of the project that includes the following:  

• • the objectives, approach, originality and novelty, and expected significance of the proposed research training program, 
  • the type of research that the trainees will be involved in during the program,  
  • how the proposed approach would better prepare students for their future careers, 
  • approximate number of students and postdoctoral fellows that you are planning to train on an annual basis, 
  • name of industrial collaborator, if applicable (if applying to the industrial stream), and 
  • anticipated annual budget for the program (indicating other sources of funding, if applicable). 

Provide a CV for the principal investigator (Canadian Common CV or NSERC Form 100 format is acceptable for the UPEI NOI, but the LOI as submitted to NSERC will require completion of Form 100).

Submit these documents to Leslie Cudmore, Research Grants Coordinator, via email at lcudmore@upei.ca by March 7, 2022.  NOIs will be reviewed by an internal committee and applicants will be selected for submission to the NSERC LOI Competition.  Successful applicants will then complete the online LOI application process, as described on the NSERC website at http://nserc.gc.ca/Professors-Professeurs/Grants-Subs/CREATE-FONCER_eng.asp 

Webinars 

NSERC will hold an information session via MS Teams webinar to provide an overview of the CREATE program and application process. The dates of the sessions are as follows: 

English session:  February 10^th  2022, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (AT) 

French session:  February 11^th  2022, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (AT) 

Registration is not necessary – anyone can connect using the link provided below. 

________________________________________________________________________________ 

Microsoft Teams meeting 

Join on your computer or mobile app 

Click here to join the meeting 

Learn More | Meeting options 

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The webinar will be recorded. Following the presentation, a link to that recording will be emailed so that those who are unable to attend may watch the recorded webinar later at their convenience. Please contact Leslie Cudmore (lcudmore@upei.ca) to receive the link.  

Please send any questions regarding the CREATE program and/or the application process in advance to CREATE@NSERC-CRSNG.gc.ca.   

NSERC invites applications for initiatives that promote the natural sciences and engineering (NSE) to Canada's young people, particularly to under-represented groups in NSE careers, including girls and Indigenous peoples. 

The maximum allowable request is $200,000/year for 3 years.  Only one application may be submitted per department in a post-secondary institution per competition year.  Note that grants may not be used to support research. 

For more information, visit the PromoScience website. 

NSERC will host a 2021 PromoScience Information Session via as follows: 

Date: English webinar on July 27, 2021 

Time: 2:00 to 3:30 pm (Atlantic Time) 

Link: Access the WebEx session here. 

UPEI Submission Process 2021: 

Due to NSERC’s application limit, each department can submit only one application. 

1) Applicants will submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to their Chair (or Dean for non-departmentalized faculties) by August 11th.  The LOI (limit one page) will contain the following: 

• List of names of the principal investigator and co-investigators (and their affiliation) 
• Title of the project 
• A description of the project that includes the following information: 

- A description of the nature and goals of the program including the anticipated number of youth or teachers to be reached  

- An overview of how the PromoScience funding would be spent and details on other sources of funding (confirmed and/or anticipated). Note: NSERC will not fund 100% of the costs of a proposed activity.  NSERC’s contribution is generally up to one-third of a program’s funding. 

- A description of the relevant experience of the applicant and other team members in science or engineering promotion 

2) Chairs/Deans will select the top LOI from their faculty (or, if appropriate, encourage a collaborative application among interested applicants) and inform Research Services of the selected principal applicant from their department by August 25th.  Chairs/Deans should consult with Research Services regarding any questions about the eligibility of proposed applications. 

3) Selected applicants will prepare their application following NSERC's application process and must submit the application using the UPEI Romeo Researcher Portal for internal review and approval by September 8th, ensuing that the application is received by Research Services by September 10th.  Upon receipt of approval from Research Services, applicants must submit their application to NSERC electronically using NSERC’s ICSP Secure Submission Site. 

NSERC and Mitacs are pleased to build on the success of their existing partnership with a new joint initiative that will support the R&D efforts of Canadian university researchers and their partners, while supporting highly qualified personnel including students and/or postdoctoral fellows.

Through NSERC’s Alliance grants and Mitacs’s Accelerate, this new opportunity is available to Canadian researchers through a single application submission and review process. Applicants are invited to include in their Alliance application a request for additional support through Mitacs Accelerate internships as a component of the training of highly qualified personnel.

Alliance grants support university researchers to collaborate with partner organizations, which can be from the private, public or not-for-profit sectors, on their R&D efforts that will create economic, social and/or environmental benefits to Canada.

Accelerate puts the talent of students and postdocs to work with a paid internship at an organization that needs their expertise.

Alliance-Accelerate applications require the following information when outlining the training of highly qualified personnel:

·         A description of the role of the Mitacs interns in the research project and an explanation of the quality of the research-based training experiences provided to the interns

·         A description of how the internship partnership organization is committed to providing supervision and mentorship to the interns

·         An explanation of how the number of Mitacs interns and the number of internship units are appropriate to the scope of the project

Applicants who wish to include Mitacs Accelerate internships in their Alliance application should contact their local Mitacs business development representative to obtain the NSERC/Mitacs joint application form. Applicants must submit the NSERC/Mitacs joint application form to NSERC with their Alliance proposal.

For more information please visit the NSERC Alliance/Mitacs Accelerate Grants webpage.

The NSERC Discovery Grant (DG) Notification of Intent to Apply (NOI) is now available on the Research Portal.
 

NSERC is launching a pilot funding opportunity to support investigator-initiated individual and team projects that broadly integrate or transcend disciplines to advance knowledge in the natural sciences and engineering (NSE). Full applications submitted to this NSERC program will be reviewed by a tri-agency interdisciplinary peer review committee.

NSERC will be providing a webinar for the new Discovery Horizons program.  (Note: program information and UPEI timelines for the Letter of Intent stage can be found below.)

The NSERC Discovery Grant (DG) Notification of Intent to Apply (NOI) is now available on the Research Portal.
 

NSERC is launching a pilot funding opportunity to support investigator-initiated individual and team projects that broadly integrate or transcend disciplines to advance knowledge in the natural sciences and engineering (NSE). Full applications submitted to this NSERC program will be reviewed by a tri-agency interdisciplinary peer review committee.

In partnership with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), NSERC is piloting this new interdisciplinary peer review mechanism.

The Discovery Horizons program provides NSERC’s entry-point to the tri-agency interdisciplinary peer-review mechanism. It supports Discovery research projects that would significantly benefit from being assessed by a tri-agency interdisciplinary peer review committee, and aims to 

NSERC announces second round of funding for science communications skills 

Program Summary

NSERC is launching the second year of a pilot funding opportunity to enhance the communications skills of students and researchers in the natural sciences and engineering. Such skills will contribute to science literacy, help counter science-related misinformation, and foster a role for science in evidence-based decision making.

The pilot program, Science Communication Skills grant (pilot), is targeted at organizations that provide science communication skills training to STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) students, fellows, and faculty from Canadian post-secondary institutions. The training should have as its goal the effective communication of science to the general public. Organizations may request up to $20,000 in funding for a one year period.

Eligible activities include:

• training workshops in science communication skills
• mentorship activities
• conferences, symposia or webinars
• development of resources in tandem with delivery

Funds may be used for new activities or for improvements to content or delivery of existing activities. Training linked to course-work requirements (i.e., degree or diploma programs) is not eligible. Grants may not be used to support research.

 UPEI Submission Process and Deadlines

To facilitate selection and/or potential collaboration among applicants, UPEI will hold an internal review process. 

1) Applicants will submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to Research Services by April 9, 2021.  The LOI (maximum two pages) will contain the following:

• List of names of the principal investigator and any collaborating investigators (and their affiliation)
• Title of the project
• Description of the proposed activity(ies) and the objectives
• Relevant information about timelines, resources, targeted groups, etc.
• The planned approach for promoting participation from a diverse group of trainees
• An overview of how the funding would be spent and details on other sources of funding, as applicable
• A description of the relevant experience of the PI/team in science communication skills training

2) An internal selection process will be held, and applicants will be notified of the outcome by April 16, 2021.

3) The selected applicant will prepare their application following NSERC's application process and submit for internal approval using the Romeo Researcher Portal by May 10, 2021.  Upon confirmation of approval from Research Services, the principal investigator will upload their application to NSERC’s Secure Submission Site by May 17, 2021.