Test your concept

Have an idea for a major funding competition, but don’t know where to start?

Test Your Concept sessions are hosted by SUPPORT to assist researchers early in the development of a research proposal. Test Your Concept sessions give you an opportunity to pitch your idea to experts from across campus with no risk or commitment. Feedback will be provided at the end of your pitch to help guide your next steps. This opportunity is open to any interested faculty members regardless of what stage of development you are at.

Benefits of pitching:

  1. Engage with members of SUPPORT to identify what could make your application stronger
  2. Environmental scan – get help to identify potential collaborators and existing research infrastructure in the campus community
  3. Gain insight into the feasibility of your project from the key servicing units at the university
  4. Guidance on how to proceed with your research proposal and identify potential funding opportunities

 

SUPPORT Committees include representatives from:

  • Associate Vice-President(s) Research
  • Facilities Development (FD)
  • Institutional Programs Division (IPD), Research Services 

Current Opportunity

It is expected that the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) will launch its next Innovation Fund (IF) competition in 2021, with funding decisions expected in 2022. In anticipation of this launch, (internally referred to as Round 11). SUPPORT will host a series of Test Your Concept sessions in late 2020/early 2021.   

Next sessions

Currently, there are no upcoming Test Your Concept sessions.

How it works

Sign up for a session

Submit a preliminary project title to ipd@ucalgary.ca and indicate which session you would like to participate in. These sessions are first come, first served. You will receive an email confirmation with the session location and your assigned timeslot. All team members should attend the session.

If the project or a similar project has been presented at a previous session, the team should be prepared to explain what has changed since the prior iteration.

Submit a concept

You will be required to submit a short summary to ipd@ucalgary.ca at least one week before your scheduled session. This should include:

  • A short description of your area of interest and an overview of the proposed project
  • A list of any potential collaborators internal and external to the University of Calgary
  • An environmental scan of similar programs in Canada and internationally

Pitch

You will have a limited amount of time (usually 5-10 minutes) to pitch your research project to the SUPPORT committee. Visuals are encouraged, however, the time limit will be strictly enforced to ensure ample time for discussion and feedback. Please prepare accordingly.

Feedback and discussion

You will be provided with a feedback summary from your session, but please come prepared to take your own notes during the discussion. Participants will also be added to the appropriate mailing list for future communications regarding pertinent competitions.