College Fund - Building partnerships between colleges and their communities

Description

The purpose of the College Fund is to support partnerships between colleges and a range of public, private or not-for-profit partners.

Through the College Fund:

Supports innovative projects that enhance the capacity of Canadian colleges to carry out applied research and technology development across all disciplines
Provides colleges with the research infrastructure to foster partnerships (in their strategic priority areas) with the public, private or not-for-profit sector.

The innovation generated through these research partnerships must address the social, business, health or environmental needs of a Canadian industry or community. It is expected to lead to the creation or adaptation of knowledge and technology to develop or improve a product, process or service.

Eligibility

Canadian colleges recognized as eligible to receive funding that can apply to this competition. If your institution is already eligible, make sure your institutional agreement is up to date before you submit a proposal.

Institutions that are not currently eligible must provide the necessary documentation to become eligible no later than July 9 before the proposal deadline. Email us at eligibility@mail.com to find out more about the process and supporting documents required to apply for institutional eligibility.

The College Fund supports projects that enhance the capacity of Canadian colleges to carry out applied research and technology development and foster partnerships that generate innovative products, processes or services that address the social, business, health or environmental needs of a Canadian industry or community.

An eligible infrastructure project involves acquiring or developing research infrastructure to enhance existing applied research or technology development capacity.

Colleges can submit proposals with total requests of between $60,000 and $1 million.

To participate in our funding competitions, an institution must first be eligible to apply for, receive and administer funding.

The types of institutions that can become eligible are:

Universities
Colleges
Research hospitals
Research institutes
Non-profit research institutions that carry out their activities primarily in Canada.

To be eligible, an institution must:

Be situated in Canada
Be engaged in research and research training
Demonstrate its capacity to conduct and support research by meeting the requirements set out in Eligibility requirements: universities, colleges, research hospitals and research institutes or Eligibility requirements: non-profit research institutions.

Please answer the following questions to confirm that you are eligible to apply for this proposal

Application procedure

Deadline to submit proposals by 23:59 (applicant’s local time) on September 17.

The funding team will invest up to $15 million in research infrastructure funding and will fund up to 40 percent of a project’s eligible infrastructure costs. We will also provide up to $4.5 million for associated operating and maintenance costs through the Infrastructure Operating Fund.

Your application should contain the following:

Details of your intended program application and administration contact who can attest to your program enrollment.
Academic and Career Goals (250 words English, 300 words French)
Academic Significance (100 words English, 150 words French)
Financial Need Statement (250 words English, 300 words French)

In the official language of your choice, please provide a brief, plain-language summary on each topic. Using simple terms, describe the nature of the work, anticipated outcomes, and the manner in which this serves your educational goals.

This plain-language summary may be made available to peer reviewers, the Selection Committee(s), and to the public in the event that you are selected as a program recipient. If you wish, you may also provide the summary in both official languages.

To note: Paper applications or applications sent by email will not be accepted.

Evaluation criteria

Following Peer Review, the Selection Committee evaluates applications on their merit, compared with each other and in a national context and may use publicly available sources of information. The scholarship will be offered to candidates considered outstanding by the Committee. Where assessment results are not meaningfully different, the Committee will consider cohort factors that will contribute to a diverse and representative group.

The following points will figure prominently in the review and selection of the candidates:

Criteria	Description	Weight
Significance	The application clearly states the significance and the importance of the financial need for funding. Inclusive collaborator - whose work exemplifies inclusion and understanding of people, cultures and needs with participation among all economic, social and cultural backgrounds. Barrier breaker - whose original, transformational, future-focused generation of knowledge and technology stands to change the way we live.	25 %
Advancement of knowledge	Details on the program enrollment, how it advances knowledge in the field and the applicant’s knowledge mobilization strategy.	25 %
Methods	Sound educational research methods including a description of the approach, hypothesis and statement of problem and a commitment to ethical research conduct including honest and thoughtful inquiry, rigorous analysis, commitment to safety and research ethics, to the dissemination of research results, and adherence to professional standards.	25 %
Relevance	Relevance of the education, immediate as well as long term outcomes, and clear and compelling evidence of how the research stands to have a positive impact on Canada.	25 %

Applications may be submitted by individuals or by institutions on behalf of the applicant. In both cases, proof of insitution and program enrollment during the length of the scholarship must be provided to meet eligibility requirements.

Decisions

Applicants will be informed of the award decisions by email. This is usually within a month or two after the application deadline.

Award recipients will receive an award letter by email. The award letter will include information on the award payment and should be kept for future reference.

Privacy

The University and the Selection Committee will not release any information in the application that is specified as confidential, including names or any self-identifying information.

Anonymous demographic information may be aggregated and used by the Program Office to measure and report on performance.

The Privacy Act gives individuals the right to access and request correction of personal information about themselves.