Application Instructions—SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships

Documents to read before applying

• SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships funding opportunity description
• Regulations Governing Fellowship and Scholarship Applications
• General Guidelines for the Eligibility of Subject Matter at SSHRC
• Definitions of terms SSHRC uses in the application process
• Guidelines for the Merit Review of Indigenous Research (if applicable)
• Guide to Including Diversity Considerations in Research Design for Doctoral and Postdoctoral Award Applicants
• Guidelines for Effective Research Training
• Resource Centre

We suggest that you print and consult this web document and Help with Online Forms for reference while you are completing your online application. You can also refer to this document by clicking “Instructions” at any time within a screen.

Application process and deadline

Accommodations and accessibility

If you need help completing online application forms due to circumstances arising from a disability, contact your institution (scholarship liaison officer, research grant office or other applicant support office) as early in the application process as possible to investigate available supports. If your institution cannot provide help, or needs SSHRC to collaborate on a solution, contact SSHRC at accommodations-adaptation@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca. You can also contact SSHRC if you have questions or are seeking specific adaptation arrangements. You do not need to share your medical or sensitive personal information, and, to protect your privacy, should avoid doing so.

Frequently requested accommodations include, but are not limited to:

• one-on-one phone or video appointments to clarify funding program information or the application process, or to receive technical support;
• alternative formats of online materials to enable access using assistive technology; and
• submission of the application (in full or part) through alternate means or format (e.g., hard copy, voice recording or data entry by SSHRC staff on the applicant’s behalf).

Applicant responsibilities

Applicants must complete and verify the online SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships application form and their SSHRC web-based curriculum vitae (SSHRC web CV).

Applicants must click “Preview” and “Verify” for each page of their application as they complete it, and well ahead of the deadline. SSHRC’s online system will not accept applications that contain unverified sections. If applicants make changes to a page, they must click “Verify” again for that page to confirm that SSHRC’s online system will accept the new information when they submit their application. The criteria for final verification of the application as a whole can be stricter than for individual modules. Applicants might, therefore, need to adjust previously validated sections of the application. Note that validation confirms only that mandatory sections (including uploads and letters) have been completed; it does not validate application content.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to:

• verify content;
• ensure all required application components are submitted, that is:
  • the applicant’s SSHRC web CV;
  • two Letter of Appraisal forms;
  • the Research Appraisal form;
  • the Institutional Nomination and Commitment form; and
  • all PDF attachments; and
• provide all attachments, including letters of appraisal, in English or French only.

SSHRC’s online system will not accept incomplete applications.

The complete application, including the PDF attachments (uploads) and the SSHRC web CV, can be viewed and printed, but must be submitted electronically to SSHRC before 8 p.m. eastern, September 14, 2022. If a deadline falls on a weekend or on a public holiday observed in Ontario, where SSHRC's offices are located, the online application system will remain open until 8 p.m. (eastern) on the next business day.

After 8 p.m., the “Submit” button will disappear from an applicant’s portfolio, and no further changes or submissions will be possible.

Follow these steps:

1. Complete the application and SSHRC online CV.
2. Upload all mandatory PDF documents required for your application.
3. Provide application contributors with your program of work and related documents well in advance of the application deadline.
4. Ensure that all referees have completed the referee form (i.e., your application should include two Letter of Appraisal forms and Research Appraisal form), so that the status for the Referee module reads “Referee form completed.”
5. Ensure the department head has read SSHRC’s Guidelines for Effective Research Training and completed the Institutional Nomination and Commitment form (status on Referee module reads “Referee form completed”).
6. Verify and correct the data until the Verification Report indicates successful verification.
7. Click “Submit.”

Attaching a document

Many modules in your application will require you to attach a PDF file. You must follow the specified requirements for margins and font size, or your application will be deemed ineligible. An error message will appear if the file you are trying to attach does not meet the required specifications for page length and file size. Once you have attached the electronic file, we recommend you click “View attached file” to ensure you have the proper file and it is not corrupted.

Acknowledgement of receipt of applications

After SSHRC receives your verified and completed application form, the data provided in your application and CVs are then transferred to SSHRC’s corporate database. SSHRC will acknowledge receipt of your electronic application form once it has been processed, and will assign you an application number. Cite this number in all correspondence with us.

The email acknowledging receipt will be sent to your primary email address as entered in the CV, and will arrive four to six weeks after the deadline date. If you do not receive an email from the Research Training Portfolio six weeks after the deadline date, contact us at fellowships@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca.

Application profile

Application title
Provide a short, descriptive title for your program of work in non-technical terms. Restrict use of acronyms (e.g., UN, NATO, etc.). Use upper case only for the first word of the title, proper nouns and acronyms. Your application title will automatically be included in the “Activity details” screen.

Preferred merit review committee
Based on the subject and discipline(s) of your program of work, choose a committee using the “List…” button.

The disciplines represented by each committee are as follows:

If your main discipline is women’s studies, choose the committee based on the aspect of women’s studies you are working in. For example, if your research involves women’s literature, you should choose Committee 1.

If your main discipline is interdisciplinary studies, choose the committee based on the most prevalent discipline among those related to your research. Committee membership is composed of experts in the disciplines listed for each committee; however, SSHRC cannot guarantee expertise in each discipline listed. When selecting a committee, therefore, select the committee that lists areas most relevant to your research proposal and career trajectory. All decisions regarding committee selection rest with the applicant.

Supplement
If you wish to be considered for a supplemental award and meet the eligibility criteria, select the supplement from the drop-down menu. For each supplement selected, provide a maximum one-page justification. Successful candidates will be notified.

Joint or special initiative
If you wish to be considered for a joint or special initiative, and meet the eligibility criteria, select the initiative from the drop-down menu. For each initiative selected, provide a maximum one-page justification or other required information or form, as applicable. Successful candidates will be notified.

Does your proposal involve Indigenous research, as defined by SSHRC?
The community of merit reviewers with experience and expertise in Indigenous research will judge the extent to which the guidelines can be applied to a particular research proposal or program of study or program of work. For more information, consult the Indigenous Talent Measures page.

Select “Yes” if you wish to signal to the merit review committee that your application should be reviewed in the context of SSHRC’s definition of Indigenous research and its Guidelines for the Merit Review of Indigenous Research. Merit review committee members will be instructed to consult and follow these guidelines during the evaluation of your application.

Do you hold a teaching appointment?
Indicate whether or not you hold a teaching appointment of any kind. If “Yes,” you must attach a PDF copy of a letter from a university official confirming that you do not hold a tenure or tenure-track position (see the Teaching appointment letter section of the application form).

Applicant
The information listed in this section has been automatically transferred from your SSHRC web CV. Use the “Current position” screen in the SSHRC web CV to make any necessary changes to your current place of employment or institutional affiliation. If you wish to have a different affiliation on record for this application, use this section to enter it.

Teaching appointment letter (if applicable)

If you hold a teaching appointment of any kind, you must attach a PDF of a letter from a university official confirming that you do not hold a tenure or tenure-track position.

Program of work

Maximum four pages

Attach a PDF copy of your program of work. Write your proposal in clear, plain language. Avoid discipline-specific jargon, acronyms and highly technical terms when writing your program of work. Your application will be reviewed by members of a multidisciplinary merit review committee, not all of whom will be familiar with your area of research.

Prepare your program of work as follows:

• State the title and subject of your doctoral thesis, and discuss the relationship of your doctoral thesis to your proposed research. If the two areas of research are closely related, explain how your proposed research will develop or expand on your thesis. If the areas of research are not related, describe your proposed area of research.
• Outline your plans for achieving your research objectives. Clearly describe your theoretical approach, your methodology and how your proposed research will contribute to the advancement of knowledge.
• Justify your choice of the proposed university or research institution based on the purpose of the fellowship, as outlined in the SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships funding opportunity description, including activities beyond the original research to be undertaken. See the Tenure location section of the application form for additional information.
• If applicable, indicate any other organizations with which you will be affiliated, and provide a justification for this choice. You must clearly identify your primary place of affiliation and outline how your work at the secondary location(s) of tenure will intersect with and enhance your research at the primary location of tenure.
• If your proposed research overlaps with areas funded by other granting agencies, justify your submission of this proposal to SSHRC rather than to the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) or the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), based on the General Guidelines for the Eligibility of Subject Matter at SSHRC. If in doubt about the eligibility of your proposed research for SSHRC funding, consult SSHRC staff by emailing fellowships@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca before preparing your application.
• If your proposal involves Indigenous research, refer to the section Does your proposal involve Indigenous research, as defined by SSHRC? before preparing your program of work.
• If your project uses a research-creation approach, indicate clearly the research component of your proposed work. Outline the objectives of your research and the context, methodology and contribution to the advancement of knowledge.
• Do not use footnotes and endnotes in the program of work. Items should be cited in the bibliography.

Bibliography and citations

Maximum 10 pages

Attach a PDF file of:

• a bibliography for your proposed program of work; and
• bibliographic details for all citations included in your program of work (ensure that these are clear and complete, to allow reviewers to locate the sources easily).

SSHRC recognizes and allows the use of different referencing styles.

Diversity considerations in research design module

Once you’ve answered yes or no to the question “Do diversity considerations apply to your proposed research design?”, use the text box provided (maximum 1,700 characters) to indicate how diversity considerations are applicable or not to your research proposal.

Before completing this module, read the Guide to Including Diversity Considerations in Research Design for Doctoral and Postdoctoral Award Applicants.

Program information

Support requested

Number of months of support requested
Indicate the number of months of support sought through this application. Fellowship tenures can be requested for 12 or 24 months. Early terminations are permitted. Extensions are not available.

Expected start date of the award
Indicate when you expect to start your award. The award can begin on the first of any month between May 2023 and January 2024.

Languages

Specify the language(s) required to carry out your proposed program of work. Indicate your current proficiency in each.

Tenure location

Identify the organization and department/division where you plan to hold the award by clicking the “List…” button. If your organization and department/division are not listed, select “Other/Unknown” from the list and type the information into the box provided.

Applicants who wish to hold their award at a Canadian institution eligible to administer SSHRC funds will be paid through their host institution. Applicants should contact the proposed location of tenure in advance of submitting their application to determine the specifics of the institutional support offered by their host institution.

You can propose to affiliate with more than one organization. If applicable, identify the secondary location of tenure by clicking the “List…” button in the section “Secondary tenure location” and selecting the appropriate organization and department/division. If your organization and department/division are not listed, select “Other/Unknown” from the list and type the information in the box provided. Secondary locations of tenure can include, for example, academic, not-for-profit or community/cultural organizations, as well as organizations from the private sector.

In the “Tenure location” and the “Secondary tenure location” sections of the application form, you can list up to two places of affiliation. If you propose to affiliate with more than one organization, indicate it in your program of work and justify your choice for each host institution.

Areas of study

The information provided in this section refers to your research/study.

Ethics
State whether or not your proposed research/study involves human beings as research subjects. If it does, select “Yes” and consult the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans and submit your proposal to the research ethics board of the institution where you will undertake your graduate or postdoctoral studies. Note that you need not submit your proposal to the research ethics board prior to submitting your application.

Keywords
List keywords, separated by semicolons, that best describe your proposed research/study.

Select appropriate entries under each of the sections below using the “List…” button. Duplicate entries are not permitted.

Disciplines
Indicate and rank up to three disciplines relevant to your research/study, with Entry 1 the most relevant and Entry 3 as the least relevant.

For entries 2 and 3, if an applicable discipline is not listed, you can select an entry such as “Other (relevant discipline)” (e.g., Other Psychology, Other Anthropology, Other Sociology) from the list, and provide the information in the box provided.

You can choose “Other (relevant discipline)” only once. For instance, you cannot choose “Other Psychology” in Entry 2 and choose it again in Entry 3. Also, you can choose “Other” (with an explanation) only once.

Example:

Areas of research
Indicate and rank up to two areas of research related to your research/study, with Entry 1 the most important and Entry 2 the least important.

Temporal period
If applicable, indicate the historical period covered by your research/study.

Geographical regions
If applicable, indicate and rank up to two geographical regions covered by or related to your research/study, with Entry 1 the most important and Entry 2 the least important.

Countries
If applicable, indicate and rank up to five countries covered by or related to your research/study, with Entry 1 the most important and Entry 5 the least important.

Referees

Instructions for requesting support letters

Enter the family name, given name and email address of each referee. These fields will be used to auto-populate the referee form.

After the data are saved, the system will automatically generate an email to each person, inviting them to provide a letter of appraisal.

Inform your referees that they will receive an email with the subject line “Invitation to evaluate an application—Invitation à évaluer une demande.” It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that each invited person verifies and completes the form in advance of the application deadline.

Your application cannot be successfully verified until each referee’s form has been completed, verified and submitted by the referee.

Letters of appraisal
Provide information about the two referees who will each complete a Letter of Appraisal form:

• one letter must be completed by someone who can comment on your past and potential contributions to research (normally, your doctoral thesis supervisor); and
• the other letter should be completed by another acknowledged expert in your discipline, who can provide the merit review committee with insight into your application package in relation to the evaluation criteria.

Once a referee accepts the invitation to access and complete a letter of appraisal, they should click the Instructions tab in the navigation bar under the SSHRC logo for instructions on completing this form, including detailed instructions on how to complete the online form, best practices for limiting unconscious bias, and information about the retention of personal information under the Privacy Act.

Referees must fill in three tabs to complete a letter of reference:

• Identification tab

  Referees must complete all fields identified in bold. These include:

  • Family name (populated based on information input)
  • Given name (populated based on information input)
  • Position—select from the drop-down list
  • Discipline—select from the pop-up list
    • only Discipline 1 is required
    • “Other” field (limit 40 characters) accepts text only if “other” is chosen from within a discipline (for example, “religious studies—other religious studies”)
  • Organization—select from the pop-up list
  • Department/Division—select from the list generated based on the organization selected
  • “In what capacity are you providing a reference for the applicant?” (limit 50 characters)
  • “For how many years have you known the applicant in that capacity?” (drop-down list, maximum 20 characters)
• Letter of Appraisal tab

  This section of the form provides referees with a link to your SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships application form.

  Referees must select from a drop-down list in answer to the question “Have you read the applicant’s program of work?”

  Referees complete two fields:

  • Track record (maximum 2,300 characters): They comment on your past and potential contributions to scholarly research, and explain the importance to the discipline of the journals in which you have published and/or to assess your prospects for publication.
  • Program of work (maximum 2,300 characters): They assess the originality, the significance and feasibility, and the strengths and weaknesses of your proposed program of work, and the appropriateness of the proposed institutional affiliation(s). If applicable, they comment on your proficiency in the language(s) necessary to pursue the program of work.

  Referees are asked to focus on the proposal, its theoretical framework, and the relation of the proposal to the field and the methodology.

• Accept and Submit tab

  This section of the form allows your referee to verify their form. They must click the text that reads “Click here to verify your form.”

  If there are incomplete fields, a chart will be generated that displays all sections to complete before the letter can be successfully submitted.

  If all fields are completed, referees will receive a verification message, and must click on “I accept” to submit their letter.

Research appraisal
Provide information about the research supervisor at the organization where you plan to hold the award.

If you propose to affiliate with more than one institution, ask the supervisor at the primary location of tenure to complete the research appraisal. Research appraisals from supervisors at secondary host institutions are not required and will not be accepted.

Once the research supervisor accepts the invitation to access and complete a research appraisal, they should click the Instructions tab in the navigation bar under the SSHRC logo for instructions on completing this form, including detailed instructions on how to complete the online form, best practices for limiting unconscious bias, and information about the retention of personal information under the Privacy Act.

Your research supervisor must fill in three tabs to complete a Research Appraisal form:

• Identification tab

  Proposed supervisors must complete all fields identified in bold. These include:

  • Family name (populated based on information input)
  • Given name (populated based on information input)
  • Position—select from the drop-down list
  • Discipline—select from the pop-up list
    • only Discipline 1 is required
    • “Other” field (limit 40 characters) accepts text only if “other” is chosen from within a discipline (for example, “religious studies—other religious studies”)
  • Organization—select from the pop-up list
  • Department/Division—select from the list generated based on the organization selected
• Research Appraisal tab

  This section of the form provides your proposed supervisor with a link to your SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships application form.

  Proposed supervisors must select from a drop-down list in answer to the question “Have you read the applicant’s program of work?”

  Proposed supervisors complete one field:

  • Appraisal (max 2,300 characters): Your proposed supervisor describes how your project relates to the research interests and strengths of the supervisor’s department. They also describe how they will serve as your mentor and what you will be able to offer as a research fellow. When writing their comments, your proposed supervisor is asked to bear in mind that applications are reviewed by members of a multidisciplinary merit review committee, some members of which might not be familiar with the field or subfield in which you propose to work.
• Accept and Submit tab

  This section of the form allows your proposed supervisor to verify their form. They must click the text that reads “Click here to verify your form.”

  If there are incomplete fields, a chart will be generated that displays all sections to complete before the letter can be successfully submitted.

  If all fields are completed, the proposed supervisor will receive a verification message, and must click on “I accept” to submit the letter.

Institutional nomination and commitment
Provide information about the department head or designate at the proposed institution of affiliation.

If you propose to affiliate with more than one institution, the department head or designate at the primary location of tenure should complete the Institutional nomination and commitment form. Secondary host institutions do not have to complete this form.

Once the department head or designate accepts the invitation to access and complete an Institutional nomination and commitment form, they should click the Instructions tab in the navigation bar under the SSHRC logo for instructions on completing this form, including detailed instructions on how to complete the online form, best practices for limiting unconscious bias, and information about the retention of personal information under the Privacy Act.

The department head or designate must fill in three tabs to complete an Institutional nomination and commitment form:

• Identification tab:

  The department head or designate must complete all fields identified in bold. These include:

  • Department head details:
    • Family name (populated based on information input)
    • Given name (populated based on information input)
    • Position—select from the drop-down list
    • Organization—select from the pop-up list
  • Department/Division—select from the list generated based on the organization selected
  • Supervisor details:
    • Family name
    • Given name
• Nomination tab

  The department head or designate completes one field:

  • Nomination (max 2,300 characters): Based on SSHRC’s Guidelines for Effective Research Training, the department head or designate outlines how their institution will support effective research training and career development for you. Effective research training and career development should:
    • build both academic (research and teaching) competencies and general professional skills including knowledge mobilization, transferable to a variety of settings;
    • include international and/or intersectoral opportunities whenever possible and applicable; and
    • include specific, effective mentoring and institutional support.
• Accept and Submit tab

  This section of the form allows the department head or designate to verify their form. They must click the text that reads “Click here to verify your form.”

  If there are incomplete fields, a chart will be generated that displays all sections to complete before the letter can be successfully submitted.

  If all fields are completed, the department head or designate will receive a verification message, and must click on “I accept” to submit the letter.

Allowable inclusions (if applicable)

Maximum one page

If applicable, attach a PDF document indicating your allowable inclusions.

SSHRC asks its merit review committees to take into consideration special circumstances that could have affected applicants’ research, professional career, record of academic or research achievement, or completion of degrees. Relevant circumstances might include administrative responsibilities, maternity/parental leave, child-rearing, illness, disability, cultural or community responsibilities, socio-economic context, health-related family responsibilities, trauma and loss, or the COVID-19 pandemic. Specify the dates for any delays or interruptions.

As part of SSHRC’s Indigenous Talent Measures, Indigenous applicants are encouraged to use the “Allowable inclusions” section of their application form to describe special circumstances that could have had an impact on their academic or career paths.

All information provided to SSHRC is subject to the Privacy Act. Applicants are reminded that the information included in the “Allowable inclusions” section of their application will be shared with merit review committee members for consideration as part of their application. SSHRC merit reviewers cannot share this information outside of the merit review process, which is subject to the Tri-Agency Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Policy. For more information, see the principles for SSHRC merit review.

Applicants who completed their doctorate after September 2019 can also choose to describe relevant career interruptions or delays should they wish to do so.

Research contributions

Maximum two pages

Attach a PDF of your research contributions, grouped according to the categories listed below. List more recent contributions first.

For each contribution:

• Identify refereed publications with an “R” in the left margin. A refereed work is assessed:
  • in its entirety—not merely an abstract or extract;
  • before publication; and
  • by appropriately independent, anonymous, qualified experts (“independent” in this context means at arm’s length from the author).
• Provide bibliographic notices as they appear in the original publication (including co-authors, title, publisher, journal, volume, date of publication, page numbers, number of pages, etc.).
• Specify your role in co-created works.
• For publications in languages other than English or French, provide a translation of the title and the name of the publication.

In accordance with the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), research contributions can include, but are not limited to:

• refereed contributions, such as:
  • books, monographs, book chapters, articles in scholarly refereed journals, conference proceedings;
  • papers presented at scholarly meetings or conferences, articles in professional or trade journals;
• non-refereed contributions, such as book reviews, published reviews of the applicant/co-applicant’s work, research reports, policy papers, public lectures;
• forthcoming (submitted, revised and submitted, accepted, or in-press) contributions;
• creative outputs (to be evaluated according to established disciplinary standards, as well as creative and/or artistic merit), e.g., exhibitions, performances, publications, presentations, film, video, audio recordings; and
• other contributions to research and advancing knowledge to non-academic audiences (e.g., general public, policy-makers, private sector, not-for-profit organizations)

From this list, choose your three most significant contributions, and describe to the merit review committee the significance in terms of influence on the direction of thought and activity within the target community and in terms of significance to, and use by, other researchers and knowledge users.

Supplement justification (if applicable)

Provide a maximum one-page justification per supplement selected in the “Application profile” section.

Bora Laskin National Fellowship in Human Rights Research

• A $10,000 supplement is awarded yearly to a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship recipient conducting research in the field of human rights.

Jules and Gabrielle Léger Fellowship

• A $10,000 supplement is awarded yearly to a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship recipient conducting research on the historical and contemporary contribution of the Crown to the life of the country.

Specific requirements for joint or special initiatives (if applicable)

Provide a maximum one-page justification per initiative selected in the “Application profile” section. Different requirements apply to the Mitacs Elevate Fellowships and Alice Wilson Award initiatives. Refer to the instructions specific to each initiative.

Department of National Defence MINDS Scholarship Initiative

• SSHRC and the Department of National Defence are partnering to offer postdoctoral fellowships to individuals conducting social sciences and humanities research in areas related to the Mobilizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) Policy Challenges and/or Canada’s defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged. Postdoctoral fellowships are valued at $45,000 per year and are tenable for 12 or 24 months. Further information can be found on the MINDS Scholarship Initiative webpage.
• Applicants must select the “MINDS Scholarships Initiative” option from the drop-down menu in their application form.
• Applicants must also use the “MINDS—Justification” section in the form’s left-hand menu to explain how their proposed research project is related to one or more of the MINDS Policy Challenges and/or Canada’s defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation-SSHRC Housing Research Training Awards Program

• SSHRC and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) are partnering to offer postdoctoral fellowships to individuals conducting social sciences and humanities research in areas related to housing. Each fellowship is valued at $45,000 per year and is tenable for 12 or 24 months. Further information can be found on the CMHC Housing Research Scholarship Program website.
• Applicants must select the “CMHC-SSHRC Training Awards” option from the drop-down menu in their application form.
• Applicants must also use the “CMHC-SSHRC—Justification” section in the form’s left-hand menu to explain how their proposed research project aligns with one or more of the CMHC National Housing Strategy’s priority areas for action.

Initiative for Digital Citizen Research
Through the Initiative for Digital Citizen Research, Canadian Heritage and SSHRC are partnering to offer postdoctoral fellowship supplements, valued at $10,000, to individuals who are conducting research related to online disinformation and its impact in the Canadian context. Comparative approaches to these themes that are inclusive of, but extend beyond, the Canadian context are also eligible for supplementary funding.

To be considered for funding under this initiative, applicants must:

• select the “Initiative for Digital Citizen Research” option from the drop-down menu in their application form; and
• use the “Initiative for Digital Citizen Research—Justification” section in the form’s left-hand menu to explain how their proposed research project addresses one or more of the specific areas of research listed under the “Eligible projects” section of the Joint Initiative for Digital Citizen Research webpage.

To be offered a postdoctoral fellowship supplement under this initiative, applicants must first be successful in the SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships competition, and they must be affiliated with a SSHRC eligible Canadian postsecondary institution during their award tenure.

Sport Participation Research Initiative

• SSHRC partners with the Department of Canadian Heritage through the Sport Participation Research Initiative to provide postdoctoral award supplements.
• To be considered, applicants for a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship must select the “Sport Participation Research Initiative” option in their application form.
• Applicants are also required to use the “Sport Participation—Justification ” section in the form’s left-hand menu to explain how their research meets the Sport Participation Research Initiative’s objectives.

Mitacs Research Management Training Initiative

• As part of a joint initiative with Mitacs, SSHRC offers access to the Mitacs Research Management Training Initiative for SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship holders who wish to participate.
• This professional development opportunity consists of synchronous and asynchronous networking and training courses over a two-year period, to develop skills in leadership and management, communication and relationship building, and personal and professional management building.
• To express their interest in being considered for this training opportunity, SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship candidates must select the “Mitacs Research Management Training” option from the drop-down menu in their SSHRC application form.
• Applicants must also use the “Mitacs Elevate—Justification” section in the form’s left-hand menu to indicate how participation in this initiative aligns with, and might enhance, their professional development goals. To upload their justification to the SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship application form, they must click on the “Mitacs Elevate Justification” option from the form’s left-hand menu.
• SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship holders will be selected for this training opportunity on the basis of their relative rank in the competition and the alignment of their professional development goals, as outlined in their justification, with this initiative.

Mitacs Elevate Fellowships

• SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship applicants working with Canadian business and/or not-for-profit organizations are invited to apply for a Mitacs Elevate fellowship. The Mitacs website offers information on eligible partner organizations and eligible research.
• Eligible applicants must select the “Mitacs Elevate’’ option from the drop-down menu in their SSHRC application form.
• They are also required to complete an abridged Mitacs Elevate application form. To access the form, they must contact a Mitacs business development representative. Candidates are required to upload the Mitacs Elevate form to their SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship application by clicking on the “Mitacs Form” section in the left-hand menu of the SSHRC application form.
• When completing the “Tenure location” and the “Secondary tenure location” sections of their SSHRC application form, applicants must identify their host university as their primary institution of affiliation and their partner organization for their Mitacs application as their secondary institution of affiliation. In addition, they must include the required institutional affiliation justification, as outlined in the Program of work instructions.

Alice Wilson Award

• A $1,000 award is offered yearly by the Royal Society of Canada to three women of outstanding academic qualifications in the arts and humanities, social sciences, or science who are entering a career in scholarship or research at the postdoctoral level. The recipients are chosen from the current year’s top-ranked women who are winners of postdoctoral fellowships from the three research funding agencies—NSERC, SSHRC and CIHR.
• The top-ranked postdoctoral fellowship applicants, who have self-identified as women in their SSHRC online user profile (“My Account”), will be automatically considered for the Alice Wilson Award. However, SSHRC will seek the consent of potential nominees to provide their names to the Royal Society of Canada, who will make the final determination.

Contact information

For help with technical difficulties, contact the Helpdesk:

• Phone: 613-995-4273
• Email: webgrant@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca

For more information about SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships, visit the Resource Centre.

If you have additional questions, contact:

SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowships
Toll free: 1-855-275-2861
Email: fellowships@sshrc-crsh.gc.ca