Dorothy Killam Fellowship

Eligibility

Dorothy Killam had a vision of building Canada’s future through advanced study. Through her will, she established a perpetual trust to realize her vision and fund generations of scholars in Canada.

A Dorothy Killam Fellow is a leading researcher whose superior, ground-breaking, best-in-class research stands to have a significant impact on a national or global scale. A Fellow is someone who also reflects some of the Killam attributes:

• Inclusive collaborator
• Barrier breaker
• Research leader

The Dorothy Killam Fellowships support scholars who:

• demonstrate commitment to building Canada’s future and alignment with Killam attributes
• are early- to mid-career researchers (typically have completed their PhD no more than 15 years prior)
• are employed at a Canadian research institution

Between 5 and 8 fellowships (subject to the approval of the Selection Committee and the performance of the fund) will be awarded annually. The fellowships are awarded to individuals, but the funds are paid to and administered by the Canadian university or research institute where the individual is employed.

In order to obtain institutional approval for your Fellowship application, you must complete the Killam Approvals Form (see Important Details below). 

Summary

Like its predecessor program, the Dorothy Killam Fellowships provide support to scholars of exceptional ability by granting them time to pursue research projects of broad significance and widespread interest within the disciplines of the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, health sciences, engineering or studies linking any of these disciplines.

In collaboration with the National Killam Program Advisory Board, the Killam Trusts and the research community, the National Killam Program Office (NKPO) have redesigned and renamed the Killam Research Fellowships. The new Dorothy Killam Fellowships centres the program on Dorothy Killam's vision, aligned with her goal of increasing the scientific and scholastic attainment of Canadians.

Dorothy Killam established a perpetual trust to realize her vision to build Canada's future through advanced study and fund generations of scholars in Canada. A Dorothy Killam Fellow is a leading researcher whose superior, ground-breaking and transformative research stands to positively improve the lives of Canadians. A Dorothy Killam Fellow is also someone whose work reflects one or more of the Killam attributes:

• Inclusive Collaborator – whose work exemplifies inclusion and understanding of people, cultures and needs with participation among economic, social and cultural backgrounds
• Barrier Breaker – whose original, transformational, future focused generation of knowledge and technology stands to challenge the way we live
• Research Leader – who activates thoughtful cooperation among scholars, disciplines and institutions

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

Applications will be made online through this website.

These are release-time fellowships. INSTITUTIONAL APPROVAL OF THIS RESEARCH LEAVE IS REQUIRED - SEE BELOW.

Submission Instructions

Begin your application within the NRC online system.

Send the following three documents to the Research Services Office (researchawards@ucalgary.ca) by June 5, 2024

1. Research proposal - 1,500 words 
2. Candidate’s statement - 1,000 words
3. Killam Approvals Form: since the Fellowship includes a research leave, you must obtain approval from your Department Head, Dean/Associate Dean (Research). Complete the Killam Approvals Form, obtain signatures from your Department Head and Dean/Associate Dean (Research) and send a copy to Research Services.

Upon receipt of the above documents, Research Services will review your application and obtain the Provost's final approval for your research leave (conditional on award of the Fellowship).

Institutional approval

To facilitate institutional approval, please enter University of Calgary as your institution and check that the following institutional contact is populated in your online application form: Dr. Tiago Lier; Director, Grants, Awards and Ethics; tlier@ucalgary.ca

The application system will generate an email prompting this contact to provide institutional approval for the application. The application cannot be submitted without institutional approval. Approval will not be granted to applicants who do not follow the process outlined above.

SUPPORT Review:

The SUPPORT: Research Awards committee is available to review and provide feedback to strengthen nominations for this Fellowship. This committee is comprised of distinguished University of Calgary faculty who have won major national awards and sat on national award selection committees.

SUPPORT Review deadline (optional): April 25, 2024

Your Faculty or Associate Dean (Research) must submit the request for review to researchawards@ucalgary.ca.

1. Research proposal - 1,500 words addressing the points requested by the National Killam Program
2. Candidate’s statement - 1,000 words – which includes information on alignment with Killam attributes.
3. The candidate’s CV – up to 30 pages - including information on all publications, presentations, and grants and other fellowships received, awards and/or general recognition
4. Each submission must include a SUPPORT Review Form. 
5. Each faculty must submit a short statement describing how equity, diversity and inclusion were considered in the internal Faculty selection process.