Simon Fraser University
Research Partnerships Overview
Tuesday January 26, 2016
Monika Michalska
Research Partnerships
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Presentation Outline
1. What’s new at NSERC?
2. Overview of Research Partnerships
3. What’s new in Strategic Partnerships?
4. CRD, Strategic Partnership Grants, IRCs
5. Questions
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 $1.1 billion dollars
 11,300 professors
 3,000+ Canadian companies

30,500 post-secondary students
and post-doctoral fellows
“Making Canada a country of discoverers and innovators for
the benefit of all Canadians”
What’s New at NSERC
New VP of Research Partnerships – Bettina
Hamelin
NSERC 2020 Strategy Launched in December
2015
New Federal Government
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NSERC 2020
1.Foster a science and engineering
culture in Canada
2.Launch the new generation
3.Build a diversified and competitive
research base
4.Strengthen the dynamic between
discovery and innovation
5.Go global
Research Partnerships
NSERC’s Innovation Goal
Connect and apply the strength of the academic research system to
addressing the opportunities and challenges of building prosperity
for Canada.
The Rationale
Canadian industry needs to access the academic intellectual
capabilities that are built through Government’s investment in postsecondary R&D thereby realizing more value for Canada
Our Partnership Program Drivers
 The Canadian business competitiveness in the context of a global
economy
 Capacity and Critical Mass – academic research and training
Research Partnerships
NSERC Support Across the DiscoveryInnovation Dynamic
Centres for
Commercialization and
Research
MARKET MATURITY
Business-Led
Networks
Industry-driven
programs
basic research; research
applied to industry
Particle
Physics
Sustainable Technologies
for Energy Production
Systems (STEPS)
Strategic Partnerships
(Government Priorities)
Discovery Grants
Ecology/
Hydrogeology
GreenCentre
Canada (GCC)
Ultrasonic detection
of manufacturing
defects
Clean Energy
Chemistry
(reduce use of water in oil
sands production)
TRAINING in UNIVERSITIES
TRAINING with INDUSTRY
TECHNOLOGY MATURITY
Research Partnerships
Excellence + Partnership = NSERC’s Research Partnerships
Program Requirements
Excellence across all criteria
• Scientific merit, originality and
research competence
• Training of HQP (exposure to new
environments and challenges)
• Plan to apply research results, benefit
to Canada
Program attributes
• Involve industry and/or government
partners
• De-risk & increase investments by
partners
• Expand the expertise of partners and
hiring of HQP
• Accelerate knowledge and
technology exploitation and
exchange
• Expand the technical and
entrepreneurial skills of students
• Require accountability: regular
reporting
NSERC and NCE
Partnerships Program Landscape
INNOVATION
ENGAGE
COLLABORATE
COMMERCIALIZE
CELEBRATE
Connect
with colleges & universities
Collaborative R&D
with colleges and
universities
Idea to Innovation
for colleges &universities
Synergy Awards
for Innovation
Engage
with colleges & universities
Industrial Research
Chairs
at college and universities
Centres of Excellence for
Commercialization and
Research
Student Training in
Industry
Strategic Partnerships
with universities
College Technology
Access Centres
Networks of Centres of
Excellence
Building College
Capacity
Research Partnership Budget for 2015-2016
Total Budget:
$298.5M
Building College
Capacity
7%
Commercialize
4%
Engage
19%
Strategic Partnerships
27%
Industrial Research
Chair
11%
Celebrate
0%
Collaborative
Research and
Development
32%
Engage
Collaborate
Source: CCPP
Commercialize
Celebrate
What’s new for Strategic?
• NEW target areas
• New context, new research topics
• Strategic Networks – need only address
broad target area
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How NSERC Establishes Updated Target
Areas and Research Topics
 Review of target areas and research topics undertaken
every 5 years in order to align with current national
priorities;
 Available budget requires supporting focused
challenges (SPG is the only Partnerships program with
defined target areas)
 Review process established in consultation with and
approved by Committee on Research Partnerships and
NSERC Council
 Broad consultation of research community within
industry, academia and government
 Expert panel for each target area to define key research
challenges
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Updated Target Areas and Research
Topics
 4 national priorities aligned with NSERC mandate
were selected as the target areas:
o
o
o
o
Environment and Agriculture
Natural Resources and Energy
Information and Communications Technologies
Advanced Manufacturing
 4 to 6 research topics selected within each target area
 Refinement of research topics and challenges over
the course of the next five years, as required, to
ensure that they stay relevant in the context of
Canada’s important research challenges
http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/Professors-Professeurs/RPP-PP/SPGTargetAreasSPSDomainesCibles_eng.asp
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Budget for Priority Research Topics
• Research outside the 4 priority target areas will not be considered for
funding
• Research within target area + Outside research topics = Exceptional
Opportunity (MUST be self-identified)
Exceptional
Opportunities
In: priority
research topics
20%
80%
Out: exceptional
priorities
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Strengthening and Maintaining a Longer Term
Collaboration
Collaborative R&D Grant
(CRD)
The objective to give companies
access to the unique knowledge,
expertise, and educational
resources available at Canadian
postsecondary institutions.
The mutually beneficial
collaborations are expected to
result in industrial and/or
economic benefits to Canada.
• Industry driven R&D project
• Shared costs: Each $1 cash and
$1 in-kind from company levers
up to $2 from NSERC
• Flexible
- Entire R&D spectrum
- Duration 1-5 years
- Small to large projects
- Apply at any time
 Success rate: 85%
 Not competition-based
Strategic Partnership Grants
• Objective: To increase research and training in targeted areas
that could strongly enhance Canada’s economy, society and/or
environment within the next 10 years.
• Research and training is conducted through a partnership
between academic researchers and industry or government
organizations.
• Available budget requires supporting focused challenges.
• SPG is the only program with set target areas.
Strategic Partnership Grants
Strategic Partnership GrantProject (SPG-P)
Strategic Partnership
Grant-Network (SPG-N)
• Accelerate research in identified
target areas of national and/or
government priority
• No cash required, in-kind is
mandatory
• Competition-based
• Success rate: 20-25%
• Large-scale, multi-disciplinary
projects in targeted areas that
require a network approach
• Competition-based
• Success rate: 25-30%
Strategic Partnership Grants: Selection Criteria
SPG-N
•
•
•
•
•
•
Merit of the Research Proposal
Need for a Network Approach
Training
Interactions and Partnerships
Management and Budget
Benefits to Canada and the
Partners
Peer Review
•
•
•
•
LOI evaluation
External reviewers
Site Visit Committee
Selection Panel
CRD and Strategic Grants - Criteria
CRD
Strategic
Scientific merit
Originality of the research
Research competence
Quality of the research
Project work plan
Quality of the applicants as
researchers
Contribution to the training
of HQP
Training potential
Private-sector support
Interactions with the
supporting organizations
Industrial relevance
Benefit to Canada
Benefits to Canada and the
supporting organizations
Equally rated criteria
CRD and Strategic - evaluations
CRD
Strategic
No deadline
Annual competition – April 1
1-5 years
1-3 years, typically 3 years
No max or min, average is
about 80k/year
No max or min, average is
about 173k/year
Peer review; site visit and
ACUIG for large CRDs
Peer review and panel
Not ranked
ranked
Not sector specific
Sector specific – targeted
Success rate of about 80%
Success rate of about 25%
Must meet criteria
Equally rated criteria
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CRD and Strategic - requirements
CRD
Strategic
Eligible partner
Eligible partner
Cash + in-kind; NSERC
leverages contributions
Only in-kind is required
Eligible applicant
Eligible applicant
Letter of support + F183a
from partner(s)
Letter of support + F183a
from partner(s)
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Longer Term Collaboration, Prestigious
Appointment
Industrial Research Chair
(IRC)
The objective is to assist
universities in building on existing
strengths to achieve the critical
mass required for a major research
endeavour; assist in the
development of research efforts in
fields that have not yet been
developed in Canadian universities
and provide an enhanced training
• Industry driven R&D project
• Shared costs: 1:1 cash leverage
from NSERC
• Flexible
- Entire R&D spectrum
- 5 year term, renewable
- program of research
- Apply at any time
 Not competition-based
• 3 types of IRCs
- Associate
- Senior
- Executive
IRC Selection Criteria
• Excellence of the candidate
Commensurate with the type of Chair
requested
• Quality of the proposal
• Industrial relevance and benefits
• Training of highly qualified personnel
• Benefits to the university
• Appropriateness of the setting
IRC Evaluation Process
•
•

Site Visit
– Committee of experts in the field (4-7 people, usually 5 or 6)
– Meet at university
• Chair candidate
• University administration
• Representatives from all industrial partners
– Site Visit Report forms basis of a recommendation to fund or
not
ACUIG
– Site Visit Report provided to NSERC’s interdisciplinary
Advisory Committee on University-Industry Grants (ACUIG) for
final recommendation to Council then the RP Vice-President
signs the final decision, most often based on this
recommendation
NSERC staff available throughout the process
What’s in it for you?
 Opportunity to apply your research, your
ideas to applied problems
 Better training for students, that have
experience both in the university and
working with an industrial partner
 Increased funding for you, opportunity to
build a lasting partnership, see your ideas
implemented
What’s in it for the Partners?
Access to:
• Team of researchers with expertise in a desired area to
solve a problem
• Technology/idea of commercial interest
• Research facilities and infrastructure that the industry
lacks
• A potential source of highly qualified personnel
Competitive edge in global markets
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Who is a supporting organization?
• Have a demonstrated interest in the project
• Be involved in all stages of the research (help to develop
the proposal, interact with researchers and students,
provide input to the project)
• Validate the results of the research
• Provide guidance concerning exploitation of results
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Writing a Successful Proposal
• Engage industry partner(s) from the start
- Defining project
- Preparing application
-Strong letters of support
• Close collaboration throughout the project
- In-kind contribution
- Cash as well
• HQP training (undergraduate, graduate and PDF level)
- Appropriate level for work proposed
- Describe their roles
• Ensure all expertise needed is present
- Describe roles of co-applicants, collaborators and research staff
• Tangible benefits to Canada
• Guidelines followed and requirements addressed
• Clear summary, proposal easy to read
• Pay attention to all aspects of the proposal and all criteria, not just the
research proposal
Resources
For questions relating to fit to target area, eligibility of
partners or applicants or Program requirements for
Strategic Partnerships, please send your query to:
STRGR@nserc-crsng.gc.ca
For other RP programs:
RPP@nserc-crsng.gc.ca
613-995-1111
For questions/support regarding the on-line
application process, please contact:
Helpdesk:
(613) 995-4273
webapp@nserc-crsng.gc.ca
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Questions?
Monika Michalska
613-995-8124
monika.michalska@nserc-crsng.gc.ca
Manager
MCT
Research Partnerships
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