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Program Overview

Alberta Ingenuity New Faculty Awards provide an excellent start to outstanding new faculty members in Alberta. Providing significant funding as they set-up their first research laboratory guarantees that these researchers will have an impact on Alberta's academic landscape.

New Faculty Awards have a value of up to $300,000 over three years.

Deadline
March 1

Announcement of Results
July

Number of Awards
12 per competition

Start Date
Between September and March following the award announcement.

This program does not support medical or human health-related research initiatives.

Eligibility

Eligibility of Candidate

  • Candidates must have be appointed to their first ever academic research position within the past three years OR
  • If not appointed at time of application, successful candidate must be in his/her first academic career appointment to a full-time position by the start date of the award.

The appointment must be a tenure-track or potential tenure-track position for the candidate.

Eligibility of Institutions
A post-secondary institution must demonstrate its capability and commitment to support and conduct science or engineering research, and meet the following conditions:

  • Have an approved research mission, resources to conduct research, and a commensurate record of research performance.
  • Teach science or engineering disciplines and/or technologies.
  • Provide the candidate with appropriate facilities, services, and time to conduct the research.
    Furthermore, a host institution must ensure:
  • The candidate is a full time employee of the institution and is in good standing.
  • Funds are administered and accounted for appropriately.
  • The research project and institution abide by regulations concerning animal care, ethical conduct of research involving human subjects, and/or biohazards.

Term of Award

New Faculty Awards are non-renewable. They are valid for three years, with a start date between September of the competition year and March of the following year.

Start Date


Awards may start on the first day of a month between September and March following the award announcement.

Application Process


Alberta Ingenuity restricts the number of applications it will accept from each institution. Eligible candidates should contact the appropriate senior research administrator at their institution to determine the internal process for the selection of applications. The maximum number of applications from each institution is:

University of Alberta - 15
University of Calgary - 15
University of Lethbridge - 5
Athabasca University - 3
Colleges - 1 each

Submit one original COMPLETE application by the deadline. Please see the Forms and Guidelines section.

NOTE: Applications may be submitted prior to a candidate's arrival in Alberta.

Re-Application


Unsuccessful candidates may re-apply once if they continue to meet the eligibility criteria and are submitted as part of the institution's application quota. The application will follow the same application process and be reviewed in competition with other applications submitted for that competition.

Review Process and Selection Criteria


All proposals are reviewed by a minimum of three arms-length expert peer reviewers. The expert reviews are forwarded to the Alberta Ingenuity New Faculty Committee, who consider these reviews in their evaluations and provide a provisional ranking to the proposals. Recommendations are based on:

  • Excellence of the candidate
  • Merit of the proposed research
  • Contribution to training of research personnel
  • Demonstrated need for Alberta Ingenuity funds
  • Institutional support for the candidate
  • Potential impact and future benefits of research outcomes to Alberta and Canada
  • Overall quality of the application and its ranking with other applications received

Budget

Eligible areas of support from the New Faculty Award include the following:

  • Personnel and fringe benefits (technicians, research assistants and associates)
  • Trainees (graduate students, postdoctoral fellows)
  • Materials, supplies and other expendables (including animals and animal facilities)
  • Minor equipment (less than $10,000 per item)
  • Publication costs
  • Computer and library resources
  • Major equipment (more than $10,000 per item or system).
    • All requests for major equipment must have a cost quotation from a reputable supplier attached. The cost of installation, freight, transportation, duty, sales tax and GST are considered allowable expenditures.

Full or part-time salaries and fringe benefits should follow the policies of the host institution.

Recipients working in a collaborative setting may share the funds consistent with the policies and procedures of their host institution.

New Faculty Awards may NOT be used for:

  • Hospitality and entertainment expenses
  • Fees for membership in scientific societies
  • Tuition fees for students
  • Administrative support

Inquiries

For more information, please contact:

Kelly French
Manager, Grants Programs
email: kelly.french@albertainnovates.ca
phone: 780-450-5550

Candice Berezan
Director, Talent Programs
email: candice.berezan@albertainnovates.ca
phone: 780-450-5503