Medical Council of Canada Research in Clinical Assessment Grant

Eligibility

The principal investigator (PI) must hold an appointment at a Canadian medical school, health science faculty, or in a research institute at a teaching hospital. If the PI is a graduate student, a faculty supervisor is required. This supervisor must hold an appointment at a Canadian medical school or health science faculty, or in a research institute at a teaching hospital. This supervisor must write a letter of support indicating that they will oversee the project and assume full responsibility for the grant deliverables and the disbursement of grant funds. This supervisor must also attest the applicant had a primary role in the development of the application.

Summary

The Research in Clinical Assessment grant is intended to support and provide a principal investigator with the financial resources required to further complete their research while promoting the Medical Council of Canada (MCC) vision of ensuring that physicians have the competencies to support safe, accessible health care in Canada. It is a single-year, curiosity-driven grant provided up to a value of $37,500.

The purpose and priorities of the 2025 competition are to encourage research related to the assessment of clinical competence of medical students, postgraduate trainees, or practitioners. Priority will be given to proposals that show promise in contributing to the knowledge and understanding of measurement in assessment of medical education. The proposal must focus on research, not development, in the assessment of clinical competence. Examples of assessments of clinical competence include, but are not limited to written examinations, performance-based examinations (e.g., objective structured clinical examinations), workplace-based assessments, and multisource feedback tools.

Proposals should focus on one or more of the following themes:

1. Outcomes measurement and predictive measurements (e.g., association between assessment results and future performance in practice).
2. Assessments along the continuum of a medical career (e.g., undergraduate, postgraduate, in-practice, etc.).
3. Improving feedback from assessment results (including both summative and formative assessments).
4. Measuring critical and emerging competencies in medicine.
5. Role and use of technology in and for assessment.

Submission Instructions:

1. Complete Application form provided at the MCC website.
2. To initiate internal approvals, complete the Pre-Award/Application record in RMS (https://research.ucalgary.ca/conduct-research/additional-resources/resea...), attach the pdf preview of your completed Application, and submit for approvals from your department head and/or faculty Associate Dean (Research). *Important: when submitting in RMS, please ensure that you allow time for academic approvals prior to the Research Services review deadline of 12:00pm on January 28, 2025.
3. Once these approvals are obtained, RMS will automatically forward the Application record to Research Services for institutional review and approval.
4. Research Services will review, provide feedback (by email) if necessary, and will provide the institutional approval. RSO will provide institutional signature if required.
5. Full Applications, including any supplementary documentation, should be submitted to the agency via email to grants@mcc.ca  by February 1, 2025 by 9:59PM Mountain Time

Overhead

Not eligible

Application deadlines

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.