Aboriginal Post-Doctoral Fellowship 2016-17
Established to encourage an Aboriginal (First Nations, Inuit, Metis) post-doctoral graduate to pursue a program of research and scholarship at the University of Guelph in any discipline. The recipient will be chosen by the Aboriginal Post-Doctoral Fellowship selection committee from applicants who have completed their doctoral program within the past three years of the appointment.
Value of Fellowship: $45,000 per year, plus $5,000 travel fund per year.
Term of Fellowship: Up to two years, maximum.
Applicant Eligibility
• A North American Aboriginal applicant who has earned their PhD, or PhD-equivalent (eg., DVSc) within the past three years
Eligibility Window for Degree Completion
Applicants to the 2016–17 Aboriginal Postdoctoral Fellowship program must fulfill, or have fulfilled, all degree requirements for a PhD, or PhD-equivalent:
• between September 1, 2013 and August 15, 2016 (inclusive), and
• before the start date of their award.
Applicants who have not fulfilled all requirements for their degree at the time of application must submit proof of completion no later than September 1, 2016.
Allowable Extensions to Eligibility Window
The window of eligibility can be extended by a cumulative maximum of two years if the applicant had their career interrupted for the following reasons:
• Parental leave
• Illness
• Health-related family responsibilities
• Mandatory military service
No other exceptions will be allowed.
Any interruptions to the career/research used to extend the eligibility window for degree completion must have occurred after the fulfilment of all the requirements of your degree and before the application submission deadline.
Justification must be provided in the Letter of Special Circumstances.
"Fulfilled all requirements of the degree" refers to the date that the applicant completed all the steps required for obtaining their degree. Although these requirements may vary by institution and degree type, they normally include thesis defence corrections and thesis deposition; it is not the convocation date.
Other Eligibility Restrictions
• Applicants who currently hold or have held a post-doctoral fellowship from an external agency, such as the TriCouncil (CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC) are eligible to apply to the 2016–17 Aboriginal Postdoctoral Fellowship program only if the term of that funding officially ends on or before September 30, 2016 and prior to the start of the Aboriginal Postdoctoral Fellowship.
• Applicants who are successful in two or more competitions will have to choose which award to accept.
• Applicants must not hold a tenure-track or tenured faculty position, nor can they be on leave from such a position.
• Only in exceptionally rare circumstances will an Aboriginal Postdoctoral Fellowship be awarded to an applicant who graduated with their PhD, or equivalent, from the University of Guelph. If such an applicant chooses to apply, a solid justification must be provided.
Selection Criteria
• Research Excellence
• Quality of the applicant's proposed research program
• Institutional commitment and demonstrated synergy between applicant and institutional strategic priorities.
Timelines
June - July, 2016 / Applicants seek endorsement of potential supervisorJuly 15, 2016 / Online Application deadline
July-August 2016 / Evaluation of applications
August 2016 / Announcement of results
September 2016 - January 2017 / Position commences
Application Process
Applications must be submitted no later than July 15, 2016, using the Online Application – https://uoguelph.eu.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_5BCtFwYT9iCVSv3
The application package includes:
• Research Proposal (max. 1 page)
• Significance of Research Contributions (max. 1 page)
• Bibliography
• Supervisor’s Statement
• Curriculum Vitae
• Two letters of reference (submitted directly to the Office of Graduate Studies – , attention Aboriginal Post-Doctoral Fellowship Program)
• Letter outlining Special Circumstances (if needed) as described below:
• Career/research delays:
Identify any administrative responsibilities, family or health reasons, or any other factors that might have delayed or interrupted any of the following: academic and/or career advancement, scientific research, other research, dissemination of results, training, etc. Common examples of an interruption/delay might be a bereavement period following the death of a loved one, maternity/parental leave, or relocation of your research environment.
• Justification for extensions to the eligibility window for degree completion:
Note that your eligibility window will only be extended by the duration of the eligible delay(s)/interruption(s). It is essential that you provide specific dates for your delays and/or interruptions, including the exact number of months or days these interruptions accounted for.
• Justification for remaining in PhD research environment:
Doctoral graduates of the University of Guelph who wish to be considered for the Scholarship must provide a strong justification for this exceptional circumstance which will be assessed as part of the selection committee review process. The more similar the proposed research environment is to that of the PhD, or PhD-equivalent, the stronger the required justification.
• Justification for remaining in the same research environment (other than PhD):
At the time of application, if the applicant is affiliated with the proposed host institution (e.g. postdoctoral position) they must justify the decision to continue at the same location. The longer the applicant has been at the same institution (or research environment), the stronger the required justification.
Notification of Results
Applicants will be notified of the outcome in mid to late August.