Postdoctoral Fellowship (B3Z), fall 2021 (2022-2023)

1. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The objectives of the Postdoctoral Fellowship program are as follows:

• Contribute to the development of the next generation of experts in the social sciences, humanities, arts and literature;
• Support individuals who have graduated from doctoral programs as they broaden the scope of their research;
• Foster the mobility of young researchers towards stimulating and dynamic scientific environments such as universities, corporate environments, government organizations and university-affiliated service centres.

In keeping with its Knowledge Mobilization Strategy , the Fonds encourage funding recipients to carry out such activities (sharing, valorization, dissemination, etc.) for the general public, whenever such activities are relevant in the context of their research.

In accordance with the Fonds de recherche du Québec open access policy for the dissemination of research  , all funding recipients must agree to provide open access to their scientific publications no later than 12 months after publication. To learn more about the FRQ’s requirements on this subject, please visit our page on open science.

Finally, the Fonds de recherche du Québec wish to contribute to supporting a research ecosystem based on equity, diversity and inclusion. Measures have been put in place to strengthen the integration of these principles. Funding recipients are also encouraged to consider them in the context of their research activities. For more information, please visit our website .

2. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applicants must meet all eligibility requirements on the competition deadline of October 13, 2021 at 4 p.m.

2.1 Eligibility period and target group
This program is aimed at applicants who:

• obtained their doctorate within 2 years (no more than 24 months) prior to the competition deadline;

OR

• who will make their initial thesis submission no later than March 1st, 2023, the deadline by which grant payments must begin.

Eligibility will be determined based on the date indicated on the doctoral diploma.

2.2 Eligibility period exceptions
Exceptions regarding postdoctoral fellowship eligibility periods will only be considered in circumstances that are beyond the applicant’s control. Applicants may suspend or postpone their studies for parental leave, major family obligations, serious illness, or because of a disability. In all such cases, supporting documents must be submitted along with the application, in the sections intended for this purpose (see Section 3.2.8 – Other Documents).

Parental leave, major family obligations or serious illness
Applicants who have interrupted or delayed their studies for parental leave, major family obligations or serious illness may be granted an eligibility period extension. In the case of parental leave, the eligibility period may be extended for up to one year per parental leave. In the case of major family obligations or a career interruption due to serious illness, the Fonds will determine the extension to be granted based on the supporting documents provided by the applicant.

Persons with disabilities
Applicants who suspend or postpone their studies for reasons related to a disability may also be granted an eligibility period extension. This exemption is in accordance with the Act to secure handicapped persons in the exercise of their rights with a view to achieving social, school and workplace integration (CQLR c. E-20.1). Supporting documents are required and must be submitted with the application.

The Fonds reserves the right to refuse any request that is not adequately justified.

2.3 Citizenship and residence

To be eligible to apply for a postdoctoral fellowship, applicants must provide proof that they lived in Québec for 6 months of the 7 months prior to the competition deadline OR have a Régie d’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ) card* that is valid at the competition deadline or proof of application for a RAMQ card and that the new card will be valid at the competition deadline.

To use a training award outside Québec, the recipient must have a valid RAMQ card or proof of application for a RAMQ card and that the new card will be valid at the competition deadline AND be a Canadian citizen at the time of application.

Individuals who do not have a valid RAMQ card or proof that they have requested a RAMQ card and that the new card will be valid at the competition deadline, or who are not Canadian citizens at the time of application, must pursue their postdoctoral internship in Québec.

Their continuous physical presence in Québec is required throughout the duration of funding, apart from break periods listed in the university calendar. Those under co-supervision are also subject to this rule.

FRQSC scholarship holders must meet the citizenship and residency requirements throughout the duration of the scholarship.

* The RAMQ card is issued by the Québec government and allows the holder to benefit from the services covered under the Québec health insurance plan. Private health insurance cards do not replace the RAMQ card and are not accepted.

2.4 Restrictions
Applicants may only submit an application to one of the following FRQSC scholarship programs in the same year: Master’s Research Scholarships (B1Z); Doctoral Research Scholarships (B2Z); Scholarships for re-entering the Research Community (A2Z); Postdoctoral Fellowship (B3Z); Postdoctoral Research-Creation Fellowship (B5).

Applicants may only hold a scholarship from one of the Fonds (CGR, Section 3.1).

Applicants who receive or have received postdoctoral funding from a recognized agency in Québec or Canada (e.g. SSHRC, NSERC, CIHR, FRQSC, FRQNT, FRQS, FCAR, CQRS, etc.) are not eligible for this competition.

Applicants who hold a regular professorial position at a university are not eligible for this program, as per Section 2.2 of the CGR.

2.5 Choice of host environment (supervision and co-supervision, if applicable)
The planned host environment(s) must enable applicants to join new scientific networks, enhance their research perspectives and develop collaborative relationships in a quality scientific environment. The applicant must plan to be present at the host environment throughout the duration of the fellowship, in accordance with the host environment integration objectives of this program. The postdoctoral research can be co-supervised, provided that the applicant spends a minimum of 6 months of the 2 years at the co-supervisory environment.

The Fonds encourages mobility outside Québec and internationally, when permitted by the program’s eligibility requirements. However, the research can be carried out in Québec if the project brings added value to the applicant’s doctoral training AND the choice is clearly justified.

Internship supervisor

The internship supervisor must have Status 1 (university researcher) or Status 2 (clinical university researcher) as defined in the CGR. (See “Definitions – Status and Roles” in the CGR.)

A fellowship holder cannot be supervised by his/her doctoral research supervisor.

Similarly, the supervisor cannot be affiliated with the institution where the applicant carried out his/her doctoral studies.

Internship co-supervisor (if applicable)

The internship can be co-supervised by a person with one of the following statuses as defined in the CGR (see “Definitions – Status and Roles”):

·          University researcher (Status 1);

·          Clinical university researcher (Status 2);

·          College researcher (Status 3);

·          Researcher in a government institution recognized by the FRQ (Status 4a);

·          Researcher in a government-sector organization not recognized by the FRQ

·          or in the private sector (Status 4b);

·          Practitioner (Status 4c);

·          Artist (Status 4d).

A fellowship holder cannot be co-supervised by his/her doctoral research supervisor.

Similarly, the co-supervisor cannot be affiliated with the institution where the applicant carried out his/her doctoral studies.

Supervising institution
The supervised internship must take place at the supervisor’s home university.

The supervised postdoctoral fellowship must be carried out at an institution other than the awarding institution or the co-supervisory/cotutelle institution (if applicable) of the doctoral degree.

3. SUBMITTING AN APPLICATION

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4. APPLICATION ASSESSMENT

4.1 Evaluation process
As indicated in Section 4 of the CGR , the Fonds receives fellowship applications and submits them for evaluation by specially formed committees. Only those applications whose scientific quality is considered satisfactory are recommended for funding by the evaluation committees.

Funding applications undergo scientific evaluation by evaluation committees composed of experts from the research fields covered by the Fonds. The members of the evaluation committees are known for their research skills and their knowledge of the research topics, methodologies and disciplinary basis of the applications under evaluation. If necessary, the evaluation committees may consult outside experts.

4.2 Evaluation criteria, indicators and weighting
Committee members evaluate the applications according to the evaluation criteria, indicators and weighting specified in these program rules, based on the Fonds Scores and Ratings Grid .

To be recommended, an application must obtain an overall score of 70% or more.

5. ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE RESULTS AND VALUE OF THE FELLOWSHIP

5.1 Announcement of results
The Fonds informs every applicant, via email, of the evaluation and funding decision made with regard to his/her application. Competition results are officially announced on the Fonds website and a letter is sent to the applicant’s E-portfolio, generally at the end of the month of April following the competition deadline.

Successful applicants must accept or refuse the fellowship within thirty (30) calendar days after the fellowship offer was sent, in the “Manage my funding” section of their E-portfolio. An applicant who fails to accept the fellowship before the deadline is considered to have refused the fellowship (CGR , Section 5.2).

5.2 Value and duration of funding
The annual value of the postdoctoral research fellowship is $45,000. The FRQSC board of directors reserves the right to modify the value of scholarships at any time, without notice, notably in accordance with the credits allocated annually by the Assemblée nationale du Québec, its strategic priorities and budgetary process.

The duration of the postdoctoral research fellowship is a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 24 months. An extension of funding for an additional year may be requested and granted on submission

and evaluation of a plan for the mobilization of knowledge stemming from the postdoctoral research, submitted to the Fonds through a funding competition during the second year of funding. This extension may only be requested once.

If the postdoctoral research is being carried out more than 250 km from Québec’s borders, an annual supplement of $10,000 will be granted for a total of $55,000 per year. In the case of co-supervision with a Québec institution, the amount will be adjusted in proportion to the number of months spent outside Québec.

6. TERMS OF THE FELLOWSHIP

To retain the fellowship, fellowship holders must meet the following basic conditions throughout the duration of funding:

• Respect the conditions relating to citizenship and place of residence.
• Have made an initial thesis submission before starting the fellowship and meet all requirements for the doctoral degree at the time of the third instalment.
• Be present at the host environment for the duration of the fellowship and devote himself/herself full-time to the postdoctoral research.
• Respect the rules relating to concurrent funding.
• Respect the rules relating to paid employment.

Fellowship holders who were not Canadian citizens at the time of application must live in Québec on a regular and daily basis throughout the entire duration of funding, even if their citizenship status changes.

Fellowship holders are required to inform the Fonds immediately if they cease to satisfy any of these conditions. Should any of these conditions no longer be met, the Fonds will be obliged to withdraw the fellowship and could request reimbursement.

6.1 Fellowship period
The fellowship period must begin between April 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023.

The fellowship is non-transferrable from one year to the next.

The fellowship is not retroactive and any work conducted in the months prior to April 2022 will not be funded. For applicants who have already begun their research, the fellowship period starts no earlier than April 1st, 2022.

6.2 Fellowship payments
Fellowship instalments must be requested by the fellowship holder for each 4-month period, in the “Manage my funding” section of the E-portfolio. The first payment will only be made once the Fonds has received a certified copy of the fellowship holder’s doctoral diploma, certified by the Registrar’s office, or an official attestation of the initial doctoral thesis submission. A copy of the doctoral diploma or proof that all requirements have been met for the doctoral degree is required for payment of the third instalment.

Triannual instalment payments are made for the duration of the fellowship eligibility period, subject to the production of a satisfactory progress report along with the request for the fourth instalment.

With the exception of the first instalment, which must be claimed no later than March 1 of the year following the awarding of the fellowship under penalty of immediate cancellation of the fellowship, any unclaimed payment can be cancelled at the end of the period it covers, without advance notice.

6.3 Presence at the host environment
To retain the fellowship, the fellowship holder must be present at the host environment for the duration of the fellowship and devote himself/herself full-time to carrying out the research activities. Failure to respect this rule could result in the withdrawal of the fellowship. If, under exceptional circumstances, these conditions cannot be respected, the Fonds must be advised as soon as possible and will determine whether the fellowship should be maintained or cancelled.

A 4-week annual vacation period is permitted.

Note that the postdoctoral fellowship cannot be suspended during the funding period. Under exceptional circumstances, the fellowship holder should contact the Fonds, which will analyze the situation on reception of the required supporting documents and approve or refuse the requested suspension.

6.4 Convertibility of the fellowship
A fellowship can be used as a start-up grant by a fellowship holder who is offered a position as a regular professor in a Québec university. The fellowship holder must have completed a full year of funding under the postdoctoral fellowship (12 months) or received 3 full fellowship instalments before requesting to convert part of the fellowship (up to $15,000) into a start-up grant for the new position. The effective date of the start-up grant is the fellowship holder’s employment start date.

This grant is subject to the same rules as those of the Research Support for New Academics

program. A person who benefits from this conversion remains eligible to apply for this program.

A SSHRC postdoctoral fellowship holder who has also received a FRQSC funding offer under this program and accepted it, may benefit from this conversion, if applicable.

6.5 Parental leave
A postdoctoral fellowship holder may receive an additional instalment for parental leave for a maximum of 6 months, if the research is interrupted in the 6 months following the birth or adoption of a child and the first instalment of the fellowship has already been paid.

This supplement cannot be divided. In case of a parental leave of a shorter duration, the supplement will be adjusted.

In addition, the fellowship holder may suspend his/her research for parental leave without pay for up to one year. However, if the fellowship holder chooses to take the 6-month paid leave, the leave without pay is reduced to 6 months for a total leave of one year.

To receive the supplement for parental leave, the fellowship holder must suspend his/her postdoctoral research.

For more information about conditions regarding parental leave, refer to Section 6.13 of the CGR .

6.6 Reimbursement of travel expenses
Travel expenses to and from the host environment at the start and end of the postdoctoral program are reimbursed when supported by receipts, provided they were not reimbursed by another agency. The maximum travel allowance is equivalent to the price of one economy airline ticket.

Fellowship holders who have not yet defended their thesis may be reimbursed for an additional round trip.

In addition, at the beginning and end of the postdoctoral fellowship, travel expenses outside Québec for the spouse and children of the fellowship holder may also be covered by the Fonds, provided they are not reimbursed by any other agency.

6.7 Concurrent awards
The fellowship may not be held concurrently with:

• A fellowship or scholarship from a Canadian granting agency such as the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA), etc;
• A fellowship or scholarship from a Québec granting agency such as the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé (FRQS), the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies (FRQNT), the Conseil de recherches en pêche et agro-alimentaire du Québec (CORPAQ), etc;
• A scholarship from the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA) or the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) awarded for the same project.

The fellowship may be held concurrently with:

• Scholarships and fellowships from ministries and agencies of the Québec and Canadian governments, other than those mentioned above;
• Private sector and university scholarships and fellowships.

7. SCHOLARSHIPS OFFERED IN PARTNERSHIP

The FRQSC offers scholarships in collaboration with partners. Eligible applicants are selected through a three-step process:

1. Applicant must select, in the Partenariats section of the application form, one or more partners whose research areas are in line with the theme of their application.
2. The FRQSC sends the partners a list of interested applicants and the information needed to assess the relevance of the applications based on their strategic and research priorities.
3. Following evaluation of the applications by a peer committee, those that obtain a scientific excellence score of 70% and are deemed relevant by the partners concerned will be considered for partnership funding.

Like all other awards offered by the FRQSC, scholarships in partnership are granted based on merit following scientific evaluation by a peer committee.

By choosing to be considered for a scholarship in partnership and on obtaining this type of funding, the applicant agrees to being contacted by the partner for activities related to the research project.

Partner:

Québec SPOR Support Unit (Unité de soutien SRAP du Québec)
The Québec Strategy for Patient-Oriented Research (SPOR) Support Unit is a provincial unit of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) national SPOR network. Nestled at the heart of a learning health system, it supports and catalyzes the continuous improvement of Québec’s health system by mobilizing the research, health and social services communities, with and for the population. The scholarships offered in partnership with the Unit allow recipients to hone their skills, gain valuable POR experience, network, and work in an interdisciplinary manner with the various actors and stakeholders of a learning health system.

8. EFFECTIVE DATE

The provisions set out in this document apply to the 2022-2023 fiscal year.

The Fonds reserves the right to modify the value of the scholarship and/or the program rules detailed in this document without prior notice.

Version updated on the website July 9, 2021.