2026 Dr. Oksana Suchowersky and Dr. Chris Eagle Clinical Fellowships

Eligibility

Candidates applying for this fellowship award must fulfil the following criteria:

• Must have been awarded a medical degree and completed or be enrolled in residency in neurology or medical genetics, and be eligible for licensure in the province of Alberta on the educational/ clinical register of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta (CPSA).
• Commitment for fellowship training of a minimum 1 year.
• Preference will be given to Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
• International applicants must be eligible for CPSA Registration, satisfy the English language proficiency requirements of the host institution, and must meet PGME Clinical Fellowship policies.

Summary

Background: The Dr. Oksana Suchowersky and Dr. Chris Eagle Clinical Fellowships were created through a generous donation with the intention of building capacity and expertise in the areas of neuro-genetics, neurology or genetics. The Fellowship fund will be open to contributions from other sources and is not to be endowed.

Our health care system depends on equipping emerging clinician-investigators and scholars with the tools and mentorship they need to advance the fields of neuro-genetics, neurology and genetics to as to improve health in these areas. As medical education providers, medical schools have a responsibility to develop funding mechanisms to train, recruit and develop the next generation of academic clinicians and researchers.

The University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) is partnering with the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry (U of A FMD) to build capacity and expertise that will provide long term health benefit to patients and families across Alberta, and well beyond our borders.
The donors pledge to support Clinical Fellowships at both the U of A FMD and at the CSM with preference in neuro-genetics, neurology or genetics.
Each University has its own established Terms of Reference but will reference their partnership throughout their governing documents.
The budget holder for the awards at CSM will be the Dean, Cumming School of Medicine.

Purpose of the Fellowship: To support training for exceptional clinical fellows conducting clinical or translational research or advanced subspecialty training in the area of neuro-genetics. If no qualified applicant can be found, the fellowship can be used to fund training in the area of neurology or genetics. The fellowship can be undertaken at the University of Calgary and University of Alberta on a rotating basis and is open to trainees from any accredited medical school who have completed or are completing residency in neurology or medical genetics.

Applications should include:

• Candidate letter of intent outlining the proposed advanced training, impact on/to the Faculty of Medicine, at University of Calgary, Cumming School of Medicine.
• A complete Fellowship Application Form. Applicants also intending to complete a research project should complete the Optional Research Application Form.
• Current Candidate curriculum vitae
• A letter of support from the respective Department Head or Divisional Director.
• Two additional letters of support outlining the proposed training and the potential impact on future clinical, scholarly and leadership activity. One of these letters must be from the proposed fellowship supervisor/ preceptor.
• Applicants must declare all other sources of funding provided to enable their advanced training
  Letters of support should be submitted directly to Jennifer.gilroy@ucalgary.ca
  Applications should be submitted to Jennifer.gilroy@ucalgary.ca
  Contact your department head for applications.

Application deadlines

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.

RESOURCES

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be!

Contact the following Research Service units for support with:

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:

Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST).

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.

For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage.

Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.

EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Research Security:

The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

Pre-Award Submissions:

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application

Financial Administration:
Funds may be used for:
•salary support (with benefits) in the case of an advanced clinical fellowship, or
•salary and research expenses in the case of a clinical or translational research fellowship, and
•educational activities and conferences
Fellows will be paid at the PGY2 level.
Should there be no candidate that fulfills all the eligibility requirements, the available funding may be carried over by the University for one year.
Fellowship Administration:
The fellowship will be administered as per the Cumming School of Medicine’s Clinical Fellowship policy.