NSERC is acting on the evidence that achieving a more equitable, diverse and inclusive Canadian research enterprise is essential to creating the excellent, innovative and impactful research necessary to advance knowledge and understanding, and to respond to local, national and global challenges. This principle informs the commitments described in the Tri-Agency Statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
To promote equity, diversity and inclusion, institutions should ensure that all eligible candidates are considered and given the opportunity to self-nominate. The Canada Research Chairs webpage Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: A Best Practices Guide for Recruitment, Hiring and Retention describes how an institution can identify and select nominees to achieve these aims. On the
McDonald Institution Certification of Nominee Form, institutions must summarize the process they used to identify and select nominees and how they applied best practices in equity, diversity and inclusion.
As an eligible candidate, you may self-nominate by preparing the nomination materials listed below. Your institution must certify its support for your nomination (by completing the McDonald Institution Certification of Nominee Form). The institution confirms that you are eligible and explains how the institution will fully relieve you of teaching and administrative responsibilities while you hold the award.
Institutions may certify up to six nominations to NSERC.
Since nominations are reviewed by a multidisciplinary committee, you should write the nomination material for non-specialists.
As the nominee, you must prepare the following materials:
1. Nomination letter with two major sections:
2. NSERC Personal Data Form (Form 100) (no page limit)
3. Page one of an Application for a Grant (Form 101).
4. Environmental Information Form (Appendix A), if required.
5. External reviewers: Provide names, organizations, departments, and email addresses of five to seven researchers who could conduct an impartial review of your nomination. External reviewers should not be members of your institution, former professors or supervisors, or present or former collaborators or colleagues (see Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Agreement for Review Committee Members, External Reviewers, and Observers). NSERC strongly recommends that you suggest a cross-section of reviewers (i.e., international and Canadian reviewers, from early career to established researchers, including women and other under-represented groups, researchers at a variety of academic and non-academic institutions) with expertise in your area of research. Do not contact external reviewers in advance. NSERC reserves the right to select all or none of the suggested reviewers.
6. Terms and Conditions Form for Nominees signed by you. It is your responsibility to retain a copy of the agreed terms and conditions for your records.
7. Self-identification data: At the time of submission, you must complete a questionnaire that covers age, gender, Indigenous identity, and/or identity as a member of a visible minority group, and/or as a person with a disability. For the ID field, provide your NSERC PIN. The program collects self-identification data from all nominees to monitor levels of diversity, policies and processes for potential systemic barriers. Although completion of the questionnaire is mandatory and required before peer review, each question includes the option “prefer not to answer.” Self-identification data is not seen or used by NSERC peer reviewers.
For nominations in engineering or applied sciences, you should consult NSERC’s Guidelines for the Preparation and Review of Applications in Engineering and the Applied Sciences.
Your documents must follow NSERC’s General Presentation Guidelines. Documents that do not meet the presentation standards may be rejected or be at a disadvantage compared with those that meet the standards. Only the documents requested by NSERC will be given to the selection committee.
Your institution prepares the McDonald Institution Certification of Nominee Form.
Compile your documents into a single document in Portable Document Format (PDF). Submit your nomination electronically via Secure Submissions for NSERC’s Innovative Collaborations and Science Promotion Programs.
You must submit your nomination by 8:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) on the deadline. Late nominations will not be accepted. Once you have submitted your nomination, you will not be able to update it.
Your nomination will be reviewed by a selection committee of distinguished academic, government and industry research representatives from a variety of disciplines. Committee members are selected according to NSERC’s Guidelines Governing Membership of Selection Committees. The committee will recommend the successful candidates to NSERC.
The committee will review your nomination according to the following selection criteria:
Research achievements and impacts (40%)
Impact does not refer to quantitative indicators such as the impact factor of journals or h-index, but on the influence that results have had on other researchers, on the specific field, on the discipline as a whole or on other disciplines, or beyond the research ecosystem. Impact can be seen as, but is not limited to, advancing knowledge, developing technology, addressing socio-economic or environmental needs, or contributing to increased diversity and equity in research. The relevance of such considerations may differ depending on the discipline and the nature of the research being conducted.
Outreach, mentorship and leadership (30%)
Examples of outreach, mentorship and leadership:
Future directions (30%)