King Salman International Award for Disability Research

Eligibility

The King Salman International Award for Disability Research recognizes high‑impact scientific contributions that improve the quality of life for persons with disabilities, supporting research excellence across health, education, rehabilitation, technology, and universal access.

General Regulations

1. The award is granted to scientists, researchers, and entities who have made distinguished scientific contributions to the area of disability, and who have had their work applied to research practices.
2. The scientific production submitted for the award should fall within one of the award’s branches, as stipulated in the fifth article of this regulation.
3. All elements of the scientific production submitted for the award should adhere to the scientific method recognized in scientific communities.
4. The scientific production submitted for the award is characterized by authenticity, leadership, and innovation, and provides scientific additions that have a significant impact on the applicant’s field of specialization.
5. The scientific production submitted for the award has not been previously submitted for another similar award.
6. Previous winners of the award are not allowed to be nominated for it again, until at least five years have passed since they won the award, provided that they participate with a different scientific production than the one they were previously awarded for.
7. The award’s secretariat is not obligated to return the scientific production submitted for the award, whether or not the applicant has won.
8. Employees of the King Salman Center for Disability Research or members of the award's authority or committees are not eligible to be nominated for the award.

Summary

Main Goal of the Award: Encouraging local, regional and global efforts aimed at enriching science and knowledge in various areas of disability.

The award is granted in the five main branches of disability:

First | Health and Medical Sciences

This branch addresses scientific productions in innovative health and medical specialties for those with disabilities; early detection and intervention, medical; and health and medical rehabilitation services. It highlights these scientific efforts and activities in a way that promotes the participation of researchers and specialists. This branch covers scientific productions related to early screening and diagnosis, early intervention and treatment, - treatment interventions based on scientific evidence, best treatment practices, psychological support methods, psychological and psychiatric treatment, and physical rehabilitation.

Second | Educational and Psychological Sciences

This branch addresses scientific productions in educational and psychological sciences in the field of disability, whether this be aimed at individuals with disabilities, their families, or employees in the field. This includes designing education plans and counselling treatment programs that help to advance skills or reduce problems. It also encompasses research that designs standards that contribute to filling gaps in making diagnoses or research that enriches knowledge and skills with unique scientific, literary, or intellectual value. Such research can use both quantitative and qualitative scientific research methodologies, and single-case experimental designs. The fields covered by this branch address educational and psychological sciences, including special education, curricula, teaching, pedagogy, comparative education, management, leadership, educational policies, educational psychology, teaching techniques, and educational designs.

Third | Rehabilitation and Social Sciences

The award in the branch of rehabilitation and social sciences aims to motivate outstanding researchers, promote knowledge sharing, draw more attention to disability affairs, and inspire societal initiatives to promote equality, inclusiveness, and accessibility. This is accomplished through the recognition and honoring of individuals and organizations that have made unique and outstanding contributions, to or that have had a long-term impact on the employment of individuals with disabilities,. Such individuals and organizations have empowered disabled people to become more independent and involved in society through their research on physical and psychomotor rehabilitation, dysphagia, speech difficulties, and hearing impairment.

Fourth | Technical Applications in Areas of Disability

This branch of the award addresses scientific productions related to technology that serves individuals with disability. This includes various technological applications that contribute to identification and diagnosis, interventions and programs, guidance and counselling, and educational/medical equipment and methods. These scientific productions can be conducted in any area of disability, and any service provided to them; however, all productions should be outputs of research works that have been published in refereed and reputable scientific journals. This branch of the award welcomes researchers from other fields, such as computer science, technology, artificial intelligence, etc., providing that the submitted scientific production meets the aforementioned specifications.

Fifth | universal access

The King Salman International Award for Disability Research, through its fifth section (Universal Access), seeks to promote awareness of the importance of achieving the best standards and practices in creating facilities and facilities, and to devote the concepts and applications of universal access. It aims to highlight the efforts of the public and private sector in the application of international standards in creating the built environment of facilities and facilities to achieve the concepts of comprehensive access according to a vision that is not less in the level of organization and standards than similar awards for quality and excellence in this field, and the scientific committee of the award was keen to set the conditions and requirements Nomination in the form of models that translate the competencies of quality and excellence for each category, clarifying the mechanisms and criteria according to their value and relative weight. The Scientific Committee was also keen that the award’s methodology be clear, based on including the main sub-criteria included in the nomination application, with an indication of their numbering in the nomination application. After that, documents and documents that support the nomination application are submitted, followed by a procedural interpretation. This branch of the King Salman International Prize for Disability Research, Excellence in Providing Services to People with Disabilities, and Rewarding Distinguished Persons. You can apply for the Universal Access Award through the website of the King Salman International Prize for Disability Research, by filling in the form for Section V and submitting it on the award website www.ksadr.org .sa, For inquiries, please email: award@ksadr.org.sa

Nomination Requirements

• The nominee should have a scientific production, published on refereed publishing journals.
• Submit a list of published scientific studies (individual and joint) arranged in reverse-chronological order (abiding by the CV template approved by the award), including the following:
  1. Titles of the scientific studies.
  2. The publishing journals.
  3. The journal’s impact factor in the year of publication, according to Clarivate Analytics.
  4. The journal’s ranking (Q1, Q2, Q3) according to Clarivate Analytics.
  5. In the case that the journal is indexed under Scopus, the relevant table should be filled. If it is not ranked, then impact factor and ranking should be left blank.
• Submit a list of individual and joint books (authoring, editing, and translation).
• Submit a list of professional contributions, or community initiatives (if any) by the applicant that serve in the area of disability.
• Submit an essay of no more than 500 words, in which the applicant/nominee talks about the extent to which their scientific production contributes to the field of disabilities on a national and global level.
• Submit a letter of support written by the entity to which the nominee belongs (in case of nomination by an entity) or by a colleague in the area of disability that justifies the nomination of the candidate (to be directly electronically sent by the entity or colleague).

Nominations for the award can be made via the following:

• Local, regional and international disability research centers.
• Academic departments concerned with disability in local, regional and international colleges and universities.
• Institutions, organizations and authorities concerned with disability, locally, regionally and globally.
• A previous winner of this award.
• Self-nomination of the applicant if they meet the general regulations.
• Nomination of scientists or researchers by others who believe they are eligible for the award according to the general regulations.

Each award category carries a prize of USD 133,000, along with a certificate of appreciation and a commemorative medal recognizing the winning work. Award recipients will be invited to attend the official award ceremony in Riyadh, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Application deadlines

Program application deadline