2024 Stars Career Development Awards

Eligibility

• Please contact your department and/or Faculty early to ensure they can support your application, as this grant requires significant confirmed resources. 

To be eligible, an applicant must:

• Be an eligible Principal Investigator as defined by Arthritis Society Canada;
• Early Career investigators: Be within 5 years of their first academic appointment and within 10 years of their most recent graduate or health professional degree (or equivalent, in a field such as medicine, dentistry, rehabilitation sciences, nursing, pharmaceutical studies, veterinary medicine, etc.) at the time of the application deadline. Candidates who have a firm offer of an academic appointment effective before the award start date are also acceptable;
• Be a Canadian citizen or resident of Canada at the time of application with a position at an eligible Canadian Host Institution;
• Have a commitment from their Host Institution* from the Faculty Dean or Research Director that includes: Institutional support (suitable lab/research space, resources and support, etc.); a minimum of 80% protected research time for the duration of the award; 3 additional years of equivalent research and salary support (at an appropriate rank and salary beyond the term of this award) as well as adequate infrastructure and physical space;
• Not hold other funding support of a similar nature and goals (i.e., recipients of salary awards and operating grants aimed at establishing their research program and/or advancing their career development as of the funding start date are not eligible to apply). These include, but are not limited to, Canada Research Chair awards, province-specific establishment grants, early career institutional chair awards and early career investigator operating grants.
• Additional information is available in this FAQ.

Summary

The Stars Career Development award was created to help firmly establish the career of early career investigators. This salary and research funding represents a three (3) year commitment by Arthritis Society Canada, together with an additional three (3) year commitment by the applicant’s Host Institution. The program provides funding to support research programs aligned with Arthritis Society Canada's 2020-2025 Research Strategy. Arthritis Society Canada will be accepting applications relevant to five research priority areas: arthritis pain, OA, IA, childhood and work.

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

Abstract registrations must be submitted by May 15, 2024 through the Arthritis Society’s online research grant portal. The abstract registration will inform the panel composition.  Registration is mandatory and will require applicant and mentor details, scientific abstract, keywords, relevance statement, and suggested reviewers and exclusions.

FULL APPLICATION

1. Note: Abstract registration is mandatory - the registration phase will NOT require an RMS record, only the full application.
2. Complete the Pre-Award record in RMS (login at https://research.ucalgary.ca/rms), and submit for academic approvals. Please be sure to advise department heads and/or ADR that an agency signature page and letters of support are required for this competition.
3. Be sure to leave sufficient time for approvals; the RMS record, together with your final and complete application, must be received by Research Services by the internal deadline of 12:00pm on June 26, 2024.
4. Research Services will review and approve the submission in RMS and complete agency signature forms: the applicant will receive a notification that they can proceed with submission to the granting agency.
5. Complete applications, including letters and signature pages, must be submitted through the AS online portal by 3:00 pm (MST) on June 26, 2024.

Host Institution Commitment

In addition to the terms and obligations set out within the Host Institution agreement, the Host Institution must commit, as part of the application process, an additional three (3) years of equivalent research and salary support to the applicant (at an appropriate rank and salary) for a total commitment of six (6) years of support. If there is rationale for a different funding model (equal to the same level of support required by the host institution), please contact  Arthritis Society Canada before starting your application. The Host Institution must also commit to providing the applicant with adequate infrastructure and physical space to conduct their research program. The incremental benefit of the salary portion of the award must be clearly indicated in the application to ensure that there is a net impact for the funded investigator, rather than a budgetary offset to the Host Institution.

In addition, applicants must identify an accomplished investigator as a mentor who will assist in the development of the research program as well as the career development of the applicant. It is preferred that the mentor be located in the same institution as the applicant but if that is not possible, a clear rationale for the chosen mentor and details of the nature and frequency of the interactions must be provided. Applicants must provide rationale if they are remaining in the same institution as their PhD and/or PhD supervisor.

All applicants are strongly advised to read all program documentation listed below as well as Arthritis Society Canada’s Strategic Plan 2020-2025: Accelerating Impact - Research Strategy. If you have any questions, please contact the research department.

Tips Sheet for Applicants [232KB]