NBHRF - Establishment Grant

Purpose
The Establishment Grant Program is intended to assist in attracting outstanding researchers to the province of New Brunswick by providing funding to establish independent health research programs within the province.   Although the investigator is the applicant, it is expected that the investigator and their department head will collaborate on the complete application. 

Scope
Research supported must be in a field of human health research, defined broadly as encompassing biomedical science, clinical research, health services and systems research, and research on the cultural, social, and environmental determinants of population health.    Priority for this program will be given to those high quality applications that reflect the mandated initiatives of the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation. 

Funding
The program is offered annually, subject to availability of funding.

• The grant may be up to $60,000 per year for up to 2 years;
• The grant may be used to match funds from another agency, provided that the request to the other agency has already been submitted or approved at the time of application to NBHRF and that all NBHRF requirements and processes are followed;
• 50% of the funds may be used toward a teaching release;
• Funds are advanced to the applicant organization only after the candidate has accepted a tenure-track employment offer and must be utilized within two years of the date disbursed.

Application Instructions at a Glance
The checklist below shows the steps an applicant will need to follow to submit an online application to NBHRF for the Establishment Grant program: 

• Complete an updated online Common CV (for the investigator and any co-investigators) validated for NBHRF
• Complete the online application form and prepare all required attachment documents including a scanned completed signature page
• Submit online application with all attachments 

Eligibility
To be eligible to apply, the investigator must:

• Submit an application to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) for funding. Once the application has been through the peer review process and scored 3.5 or above, the investigator may submit the application to NBHRF for consideration. The original application to CIHR and all CIHR review comments and evaluations must be submitted to NBHRF through the online application process.
• Not simultaneously be a graduate student, research fellowship holder or holder of any other training award, or an employee of a for-profit business.
• Not have previously held an NBHRF Establishment Grant;
• Not simultaneously hold an NBHRF New Investigator Grant;
• Be a Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or actively pursuing such status.
• Be able to commit a minimum of 50% of his/her time to conduct research; NBHRF may seek verification of this commitment.
• Be sponsored by the appropriate Department Head and Dean of a New Brunswick university.

Allowable Expenses
Allowable expenses are those necessary to carry out the research and not provided through other means. They may include:

• research administrative support;
• up to 50% of the investigators' first-year salary;
• research assistants, technicians, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows;
• general office expenses and supplies;
• reimbursement for use of hospital equipment or personnel for medical procedures;
• expenses incurred by research subjects to allow them to participate in the research but not honoraria or payments for participation, except in exceptional circumstances;
• technical advice of an unusually complex nature and/or requiring a considerable time commitment that goes beyond what could be expected in a collegial relationship;
• research equipment; Note: laptop and desktop computers are not considered allowable expenses;
• field travel;
• communications and knowledge translation; and
• travel for knowledge translation related to the program of research.

Review
Applications are reviewed to ensure that they:

• fit with the general purpose and requirements of the funding program, including the importance of the study to the applicant's research career establishment in New Brunswick;
• reflect the mandated initiatives of the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation.

Recruitment Process
The recruitment process should be transparent, open and equitable and compliant with the institution's tenure-track hiring guidelines.

Requirements for NBHRF Establishment Grant Applications

• Investigators must have obtained CIHR peer review comments and scored  3.5 or above prior to submitting this application.
• Grant applications must be completed & submitted online through the New Brunswick Health Research Foundation website.
• No additional documents will be accepted prior to or after submission.
• Completion and submission of a Canadian Common CV validated for NBHRF for the investigator and any co-investigators is required.  It must be downloaded from the Common CV website and then uploaded as an attachment to the NBHRF application using the "Browse" button on the online application form.
• The electronic signature page document (obtained by scanning the paper copy after signatures have been obtained) must be uploaded as an attachment using the "Browse" button on the application form.   There is no need to submit the paper copy of the signature page; the electronic scanned version will be sufficient.

Please ensure that the application is complete (including all required signatures) and submitted to NBHRF. Failure to do so will result in an invalid application that will not be eligible for consideration.   Once the application is received, review begins immediately.  Decisions are typically made within six to eight weeks from the time of submission, and there is no deadline for this application.

The complete application must be submitted via the online process.

Page Set Up and Format for Attachments

Headings as outlined below are to be included as attachments and page limitations respected.

Plain Language Project Summary    (maximum 1 page)

Relevance of Project/Program to Health Research in New Brunswick    (maximum 1 page)

Information on and Breakdown of Other Sources of Funding for the Project    (Amount, Source, Conditions)

Sponsor Letters    (Letter(s) from the hiring Department Head and Dean)    

Since the Establishment Grant is intended to enable recently recruited faculty members to establish independent research programs in the province, sponsor letters should focus on the fit of the proposed research program in the long term objectives of the department and speak to the research promise of the applicant and why it is important that they join this New Brunswick institution.

Copy of CIHR Application, Notice of Recommendation and Comments from CIHR Peer Review 

Submit a copy of applicable CIHR application together with CIHR notice of recommendation and peer review comments.  These will have to be uploaded as documents through the "Browse" button on the application form. 

Common CV
A completed Common CV must be created (and/or updated) in the Canadian Common CV system as part of the application process.   The CCV will have to be uploaded as a document through the "Browse" button on the application form.

Signatures
Please enter the name of the person who has the authority to bind the institution or organization to the general conditions governing grants and awards and have them sign the "Institution (To be signed by Authorized Official)" box.

Application Submission - Read Carefully
Ensure you review the application for completeness and accuracy prior to submitting as you will not have access for editing after you click the submit button.

Ensure that all attachments (files), CCVs, and signature page are uploaded with the application using the "Browse" button prior to submission.

DO NOT submit  the application prior to receiving the appropriate signatures.  The form for all required signatures is the second page of the application.  Once you have completed the first page, click "Save and Proceed", and the second page will appear.   Type in the required  names and  click "Save Draft".    Click the "Preview and Print" button and view the page to ensure the information on it is accurate.   Print the page by clicking the "Print" button.   You may logout of the application at this time.  Your information will be saved because you clicked "Save Draft".   Obtain the required signatures on the page, scan it and log back into your account.  Click the "Edit" button on your Portfolio page which will take you to your application's first page again.   Click the browse button under "Application Details Attachments" and upload the scanned signature page.  Click "Save and Proceed" and click the signature boxes on the second page.   If you are finished your application, click "Submit", if you wish to make any other changes or additions, click "Save Draft" and make those changes.

You will receive an e-mail advising that your application has been received.  In the e-mail you will also be given a unique application number, please ensure that you record this number for future reference.

Final Report
Grant Recipients are required to submit a Final Report within 90 days of the project end date by completing  the NBHRF final report form found by logging into your NBHRF account.

If the project has been funded by CIHR, a copy of the CIHR final report must be uploaded as an "Other Agency Attachment" using the "Browse" button on the form.

NBHRF Establishment Grant online application