Funding is available to establish Chairs and Professors, and their associated research teams, in information science and engineering at Alberta universities.
Chair and Professor Establishment (CPE) grants fund world-class researchers and research teams working in target areas of computing science, computer engineering, mathematics, physics or other areas related to information and communications technology.
iCORE also has available complementary recruiting grants, called ISPR (Informatics Strategy, Planning and Recruitment) grants, which may be used to explore potential candidates for any of iCORE's Chair and Professor grant programs.
Proposals are accepted at any time and are reviewed monthly. Accepted proposals are forwarded for external review, a process that may take up to five months.
PROGRAM DETAILS
iCORE Chairs are exceptional researchers with outstanding research records that place them in the top five percent of their fields. iCORE Professors are mid-career researchers with outstanding potential whose record may not yet justify a Chair position.
CPE grants are flexible in order to address a wide variety of needs. For example, the research teams funded may vary in size from a single Chair or Professor working alone to teams with ten or more members. The research itself can range from fundamental to applied.
iCORE funds can be used to cover the salaries of chairs, professors, research associates, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students, as well as some research operating and equipment costs.
The requested funding may range from $200,000 to $1,000,000 per year for periods from two to five years. It is expected that iCORE grants will represent less than 50 percent of the total budget.
CPE grants may be used to complement other programs, such as existing Chairs or Institutes, from either provincial or federal bodies.
It is expected that CPE grants will be renewable once on a competitive basis. However, a CPE proposal should contain a transition plan for funding after the initial grant period, in the event that the grant is not renewed.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
Excellence of the candidate:
the international stature, research competence, leadership ability, research track record and experience of the proposed candidate(s);
Excellence of identified team members:
the international stature, research competence, leadership ability, research track record and experience of the proposed team members;
Potential for recruiting other high-quality researchers:
the strength of the proposal to bring other researchers and collaborators to Alberta;
Quality of the proposal:
the scientific merit, originality, technical feasibility and industrial relevance of the proposed research;
Incremental benefits to the university:
the extent to which the proposal has university and departmental support, and will enhance the university's research capacity, training, and industrial interactions;
Training of highly qualified personnel:
the opportunities for recruiting and training graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, research assistants and other personnel in iCORE's target research areas;
Actual and potential funding sources:
the extent to which the proposal identifies and leverages other sources of funding, which match or exceed iCORE's investment;
Alignment with iCORE goals:
the extent to which the candidate's track record and proposal are consistent with iCORE's target research areas, and contribute to the development of an ICT research cluster.
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
Proposals should describe in 15 pages or less (excluding attachments):
- an overview of the proposed research area, plan and goals
- proposed research leader
- proposed research team structure and members
- connection to current Alberta research and researchers
- research partners and collaborators, in Alberta, in Canada and internationally
- plan for recruiting additional research team members, if applicable
- sources of other funding or contributions, if applicable
- proposed budget and funding request from iCORE
- transition plan following CPE funding
- attached curriculum vitae for research leader and identified team members
- attached documentation for commitment of other sources of funds
Proposals must be endorsed by a university and be submitted electronically in PDF or Word format to proposals@icore.ca.
Endorsement by a university must be indicated through signed letters of support from the Faculty Dean and Chair/Head of the department. As well, a copy of the proposal and all related documents must be filed with the Research Services Office of the supporting university.
For more information, visit www.icore.ca, call 403-210-5335 or send email to info@icore.ca.