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Description
The Clinician Scientist program has two phases. Phase 1 provides stipends for up to 6 years of training support (initial 3-year award and possible 3-year renewal). Phase 2 provides a contribution to the salary of the recipient for up to six years (initial 3-year award and possible 3-year renewal). Applications to Phase 2 are restricted to recipients of Phase 1 awards. (Updated: 2010-08-25)
This program (Phase 2) is designed to provide outstanding Clinician Scientists the opportunity to develop and demonstrate their independence in initiating and conducting health research through provision of a contribution to their salary.
For Industry-Partnered Programs in this launch, candidates must secure the sponsorship of an eligible Rx&D member company before a registration can be submitted. To learn more about the CIHR/Rx&D Collaborative Research program you can visit the Innovation Programs Website.
Funds Available
CIHR's and partner contribution to the amount available for this initiative is subject to availability of funds. Should CIHR or partner funding levels not be available or are decreased for some unforeseen circumstances, CIHR and partner reserve the right to defer or suspend payments to grants received as a result of this funding opportunity.
- The total amount available for Phase 2 - Clinician-Scientist program (salary awards) is $2,880,000, of which $960,000 is for the Industry-Partnered program (CIHR portion). This amount may increase if additional funding partners decide to participate.
- The maximum salary amount for a single award $100,000 (including fringe benefits) per annum, for up to three years.
- Salary contribution: $60,000 per annum, including fringe benefits.
- Research allowance: $40,000 per annum for the first three years only.
The candidate will receive three years of support, renewable once for a total of six years. (Updated: 2010-08-25)
It is the candidate's responsibility to ensure that the renewal application is submitted at the appropriate time to avoid a gap in the funding period.
Partner Participation
CIHR is dedicated to identifying and developing collaborations with other funding organizations and stakeholders to enhance the availability of funding for this strategic initiative, and to create, where appropriate, opportunities for knowledge exchange and translation related to the scope of this particular initiative. Applicants are invited to visit the Partner to find a list of partners/collaborators and their respective mandates and/or strategic interests. This list will continue to evolve as new partners/collaborators join in this initiative. The specific research foci and requirements for each partner/collaborator are outlined in the "Objectives" section.
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Objectives
The specific objectives of this funding opportunity are:
- To provide salary support for up to six years to clinician scientists;
- To provide a reliable supply of highly skilled and qualified clinician scientists.
Relevant Research Areas:
- Applications are invited in all areas of health research.
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Eligibility
Eligibility criteria for all CIHR research funding programs apply. The business office of the institution of an eligible Nominated Principal Applicant generally administers CIHR funds. Please refer to the Individual Eligibility Requirements regarding the eligibility requirements for individuals and institutions.
Specific Eligibility Requirements
Individuals may only apply to one CIHR salary award competition in the same year (September 1 to August 31).
In order for your application to be eligible the Nominated Principal Applicant must be an independent researcher.
Eligibility requirements specific to this funding opportunity include the following:
At the time of application, candidates must:
- hold or have held a Phase 1 award in the last three years.
- have completed a minimum of two years of post-PhD research training if they hold a PhD or a minimum of three years of post-health professional degree research training if they do not hold a PhD.
- have a commitment from the nominating medical or dental school or affiliated institution that the successful candidate will hold a full-time faculty or equivalent position as a clinician-scientist at the start of the Phase 2 award. This commitment is required at the time of the initial application and with each request of renewal.
- hold the award in a Canadian medical or dental school or affiliated institution.
- hold an active Canadian license to practice as a health professional.
- devote at least 75 per cent of their time to research. This represents no less then 30 hours per week. The candidates must have a written commitment from the Institution, via letter from Dean of Faculty or Research Director which accompanies the application, committing to a minimum of 30 hours per week of protected research time for the duration of the award.
- hold peer-reviewed operating funds as a Principal Investigator or Co-Principal Investigator/Other Principal Investigator as soon as possible following this funding opportunity application deadline. If the applicant does not meet this condition, it is mandatory to seek operating grant support as a Principal Investigator in one of the following ways:
- by submitting an eligible operating grant application to the CIHR September or March Operating Grant competition; or
- by submitting an eligible application in response to a CIHR funding opportunity for which the application is similar in nature to an operating grant application. (Updated: 2010-08-25)
Industry-Partnered Programs: The applicant must secure the sponsorship of an eligible company. For purposes of this launch, a company is eligible provided that it:
- is a member of Rx&D;
- is federally or provincially incorporated in Canada (exceptions will be considered upon receipt of documentation that a researcher has been unable to develop a collaboration with a suitable federally or provincially incorporated company in Canada);
- demonstrates adequate resources to meet its commitment to a program; and
- has a demonstrable ability to apply the results of research and development itself or through agreements with other companies having the capacity to produce and market products and processes.
In addition, specific to CIHR Industry-Partnered Programs, please refer to the General Guidelines for Industry-Partnered Programs.
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Guidelines
General CIHR Guidelines
This funding opportunity will comply fully with the policies and guidelines outlined in the CIHR Grants and Awards Guide. Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate the use of Gender and Sex-Based Analysis in applications.
Allowable Costs
For the research allowance (if available), awardees should review the Use of Grant Funds section of the Tri-Agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC) Financial Administration Guide for a complete listing and description of allowable costs and activities.
Global Health Research and International Collaborations
As outlined in the CIHR Grants and Awards Guide Global Health Research Section and International Collaborations Section, applicants who are eligible for CIHR funding may apply to CIHR's funding opportunities for funds to support research to be carried out in, or in direct collaboration with researchers and/or decision-makers based in, other countries. CIHR contributes to, and supports international research projects and international collaborations to address a range of research areas, including but not limited to established priorities in global health research and contributes to the development of health-research capacity both internationally and at home.
Conditions of Funding
Successful applicants funded through this funding opportunity and any other persons working on the project must comply fully with the "policies and guidelines in the conduct of research". Policies and guidelines cover areas such as Applicant Responsibilities, Official languages policy, Access to Information and Privacy Acts, and Acknowledgement of CIHR's Support. Successful applicants will be informed of any special financial requirements prior to the release of funds or when they receive CIHR's Authorization for Funding (AFF) document.
In addition to CIHR standard guidelines and requirements, the following special requirements shall apply:
- This award must be accepted within 15 working days of the date of offer or the award will be cancelled and offered to the next fundable applicant. Note: This requirement supersedes all other policies or guidelines published by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, including, but not limited to, the Grants and Awards Guide.
- The candidates may commence the award on the first day of any month between April 1 following the application deadline and March 1 of the following year. (Updated: 2010-08-25)
- Award recipients must devote at least 75 per cent of their time to research. This represents no less then 30 hours per week. Note that the award recipient may receive local remuneration for clinical work in amounts consistent with institutional policies.
- Award recipients must to maintain an active Canadian license during the tenure of the award.
- For Industry-Partnered Programs, funding is conditional to continuing financial support by the industry partner(s).
Access to Information Act and Privacy Act, and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)
All personal information collected by CIHR about applicants is used to review applications, to recruit reviewers, to administer and monitor grants and awards, to compile statistics, and to promote and support health research in Canada. Consistent with these purposes, applicants should also expect that information collected by CIHR may be shared as described in CIHR's Policy on Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in the context of Merit, Relevance and Peer Review (CCIP).
CIHR as a federal entity is subject to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act, therefore the requirements of these two statutes will apply to all information located in CIHR's premises including, without limitation, cost-sharing agreements related to this funding opportunity and all matters pertaining thereto.
While respecting the application of the Privacy Act to federal entities, all signing parties involved in a collaborative agreement will also be bound by the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). All personal information (as identified by the PIPEDA) collected, used or disclosed in the course of any commercial activity under collaborative agreements related to the Funding opportunity will be collected, used and disclosed in compliance with the PIPEDA.
CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People
The CIHR Guidelines for Health Research Involving Aboriginal People came into effect as policy for CIHR-funded research on July 1, 2008. Applicants whose proposed research will involve Aboriginal People are strongly encouraged to familiarise themselves with these guidelines and in particular with the section "Application of the Guidelines," which outlines the situations in which these guidelines apply.
Communication Requirements
Award recipients are required to acknowledge CIHR, its institutes and partners in any communication or publication related to the project. See CIHR General Grants and Awards Policies, Communication of Competition Results for details on CIHR's communication requirements. The contributing institutes / partners will be identified on the Authorization for Funding and decision letter.
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Performance Measurement
CIHR is committed to collecting and disseminating information on the outputs and impacts of the research it funds. This information is an important part of CIHR accountability within the Federal Government and to Canadians.
- The funding recipient must contribute to the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes by participating in evaluation studies, surveys, workshops, audits and providing data or reports as required for the purpose of collecting information to assess progress and results;
- The Nominated Principal Applicant must also encourage their associates, trainees and administration to participate in the monitoring, review and evaluation of CIHR's programs, policies and processes as required.
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Review Process and Evaluation
Review Committee
A CIHR review committee will evaluate the full applications. The committee may be drawn from one of CIHR's pre-existing committees or may be created specifically for this funding opportunity. Committee members are selected based on suggestions from many sources including the institute(s) / branch(es) and partner(s), following CIHR's Policy on Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality in the context of Merit, Relevance and Peer Review (CCIP). For information on CIHR's peer review process in general, see the Understand Peer Review section of CIHR's website.
Evaluation Criteria
Clinician-Scientist Salary Awards (Phase 2) are reviewed in accordance with the CIHR Peer Review Manual for Clinician Scientist Award Applications.
The following standard criteria for evaluating applications will apply:
- Environment and Support
- Research Proposal
- Applicant Track Record
Note that reviewers will evaluate if the candidate has shown promise to become an independent researcher.
Funding Decision
Upon completion of peer review, CIHR will receive the ranking list, ratings and recommendations on funding level and award term for the applications that fall in the fundable range and have been determined to be relevant to the specific research areas and objectives of the initiative. The list will be used for funding decision-making purposes and will remain anonymous unless applicants have provided written consent to share nominative information.
Applications will be funded from the top down in order of ranking as far as budgets will allow.
Applications that receive a rating below 3.5 will not be funded.
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How to Apply
- The application process for this funding opportunity is comprised of one step: Application.
- To complete your Application, follow the instructions identified in the Salary Award - ResearchNet "Application" Phase Instructions.
- An overview of CIHR's application processes can be found under Apply for Funding.
- Reminder to applicants: Please ensure that your application is complete (including all required signatures) and submitted on time to CIHR. Effective September 1, 2008, CIHR will assume no responsibility in following-up with applicants who submit an incomplete application. Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted into the competition.
Submission Requirements
- Your Application will be submitted using ResearchNet. Scan and upload the signed signature pages including the routing slip in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet prior to submitting your application.
- Reference letters must be sent by courier to:
RE: Clinician-Scientist Salary Awards (Phase 2)
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
160 Elgin Street, Room 97
Ottawa, ON, K1A 0W9
Canada
- Note: The letters must have a courier date stamp that is on or before the deadline date. Letters of references received from sponsors not identified in the Sponsor task of the application will not be considered.
Specific Instructions
In addition to the Salary Award "Application" Phase Instructions, the candidate must adhere to the following instructions:
- 5 Year Research Plan (maximum of 5 pages)
- The 5 year research plan may address the following:
- how can the proposed research be incorporated, developed or integrated into clinical research? Clinical research combines discoveries from the basic science laboratory incorporating the observations and insights of health professionals (a key aspect of translational research). This may include basic research endeavours that have not yet reached the clinic, per se.
- Appendix 2A - Part 2
- The candidate is encouraged to establish contact with a research mentor to assist in the initial phases of a research career. Plans by the institution and/or the candidate to develop contacts with such a mentor should be described in the Appendix 2A - Part 2 section of the application.
- Dean of Faculty/Research Director letter
- The commitment letter from the Dean of Faculty or Research Director which accompanies the application, must:
- indicate the nature of the appointment or pending appointment (e.g. name of position, tenured-track or not, effective dates, definition of position, etc). If the candidate is appointed to both an academic research institution/university and an institute/hospital, the letter should specify the nature of both positions;
- provide a detailed breakdown of how at least 75% of the candidate's time will be protected for research for the duration of the award. The committee will be expecting a clear description of the engagement of the institution towards the protection of time of the candidate. All non-research related activities (e.g. clinical consultation, teaching, administrative duties, etc) should be clearly described and the amount of time spent to each activity should be detailed. If the candidate is appointed to both an academic research institution/university and an institute/hospital, the detailed breakdown of how the candidate time will be protected should be provided with both positions in mind.
- Important: Institutional support is a criterion that is considered in the evaluation of a Clinician-Scientist Phase 2 application and is therefore an important component of the application. All commitments listed above must be clearly addressed in the letter from the Dean of Faculty or Research Director.
- In order to ensure fairness in the evaluation of salary award applications, equivalent time must be guaranteed for each reviewer to assess each complete application. As a result, CIHR will accept updates to applications (i.e. notices of final acceptance of publications and notices of any other funding requested or received only) until October 15, 2010.
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Contact Information
For questions on CIHR funding guidelines, how to apply, and the peer review process contact:
Clinician-Scientist Program Delivery Coordinator
Research Capacity Development
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-954-1968 (Updated: 2010-08-25)
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: clinicianscientists@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
For questions about this initiative and research objectives contact:
Sue Geffken-Graham
Assistant Director, Patient-Oriented Research Strategy
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Telephone: 613-948-2803
Fax: 613-954-1800
Email: sue.geffken-graham@cihr-irsc.gc.ca
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Partner/Collaborator Description
Note: Additional partners/collaborators, including partners/collaborators from industry and the private sector are expected to join this funding initiative over the coming year.
Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)
CIHR is the Government of Canada's agency for health research. CIHR's mission is to create new scientific knowledge and to enable its translation into improved health, more effective health services and products, and a strengthened Canadian health-care system. Composed of 13 Institutes, CIHR provides leadership and support more than 13,000 health researchers and trainees across Canada.
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Additional Information
Transfer of an Award
The award must be held in the nominating university or in one of its affiliated institutions for at least the first three years.
During the final three years of support, CIHR will consider a transfer of award. This will require:
- A letter from the Dean of Faculty or Research Director of the institution at which the award is currently held, indicating knowledge of the transfer;
- A letter from the Dean of Faculty or Research Director of the institution requesting the transfer;
- Appendix 2(A) of the CIHR Research Module, to be completed by the Head of the Department at the institution requesting the transfer; and
- A new, completed copy of page 1 of the CIHR Research Module duly countersigned by the appropriate authorities at the new institution.
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