Sponsor

Canadian Cancer Society (CCS)

For More Information

For additional information, please visit the CCS website [1] for:

• Program guidelines
• Application forms
• Evaluation criteria.

Description

This opportunity aims at establishing and advancing promising early career investigators from across Canada with a focused commitment to undertaking cancer research. Through the CCS Emerging Scholar Research Grants (ESRG), early career investigators will develop their cancer research programs in Canada and pursue important scientific advances of the highest quality and potential for impact in the four pillars of health research (biomedical; clinical; health services; and social, cultural, environmental and population health).

CCS is committed to supporting all areas and disciplines of cancer research and building diverse capacity across Canada (in every province, where possible). Applications from the four pillars of health research (i.e., biomedical; clinical; health services; and social, cultural, environmental and population health) are encouraged.

Eligibility

Please review the eligibility and requirements [2] section prior to creating an application.

At the time of the grant start date (December 1, 2023), applicants:

• must be early career scientists (including clinician scientists), who hold a full-time appointment at an eligible Canadian research institution.
• must have (a) firm faculty appointment(s).
• must be within 7 years* from the start of their first independent academic appointment (minimum assistant professor level, or equivalent).
• must not be current recipients of operating grants aimed at advancing the career development of early career investigators at the time of the ESRG funding start date (this includes but is not limited to Terry Fox Research Institute New Investigator awards). Salary awards are generally accepted, however Canada Research Chair holders (at the time of grant start date) are not eligible to apply for CCS Emerging Scholar Research Grants.
• Applications must include a letter of commitment from the host institution guaranteeing the applicant protected time* allocated to cancer research as well as a description of available mentoring support and resources provided prior and during the proposal development, as well as in the future in case of success. See below for more information.

*Notes:

• Applicants' eligibility window calculated from the start of their first independent academic appointment was increased for this program from 5 to 7 years to account for the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the research community.
• Career interruptions including, but not limited to, maternal and paternal leaves, extended sick leaves, medical leaves and family care will be considered but must be described in the application. Justified career interruptions will be included in the calculation of the seven-year eligibility window.
• It is expected that at least 75% of the applicant’s time will be allocated to cancer research. However CCS recognizes that this may not be feasible for all institutions. In cases where protected time falls below 75%, CCS, with input from the review panel, will carefully evaluate the key milestones and expected timelines, terms of reference [3] and career development plan sections of the full application to ensure alignment with the goals of this funding program.

Funding Availability

The approximate funding envelope is $9M over 5 years, or 15 grants.

Maximum Project Value

$120,000 per year

Indirect Costs

0%

Project Duration

Up to 5 years