Operating Grant: Leadership Award for Vaccine Research (2025)

Eligibility

For an application to be eligible, all the requirements stated below must be met:

1. The Nominated Principal Applicant (NPA) must be an independent researcher at the time of application, who is affiliated with a Canadian postsecondary institution and/or its affiliated institutions (including hospitals, research institutes and other non-profit organizations with a mandate for health research and/or knowledge mobilization).
2. The NPA must be a mid-career researcher at the time of the funding start date.
3. The NPA must have their substantive role in Canada for the duration of the requested grant term.
4. The NPA cannot be a former recipient of the CIHR-CEPI Leadership Award for Vaccine Research.
5. The NPA must have successfully completed one of the sex- and gender- based analysis online training modules through the CIHR Institute of Gender and Health. A Certificate of Completion must be included in the application (see How to Apply). Select and complete the training module most applicable to your research project. Applicants are encouraged to complete the CIHR Unconscious Bias learning module. For additional information on sex, gender and health research, applicants are encouraged to review the "How to integrate sex and gender in research" and "Why Sex and Gender Need to be Considered in COVID-19 Research" sections on the CIHR website.
6. The Institution Paid receives and administers the funds on behalf of the NPA and therefore must be authorized by CIHR before the funds can be released. If the Institution Paid is not on the List of CIHR Eligible Institutions, they are encouraged to contact the Contact Centre, in advance, to enquire about the authorization process and timelines.

In addition to the requirements listed above, for an application to be eligible for the Full Application stage:

7. The NPA will be required to include CEPI or NRC as an applicant partner in their application. If an applicant is unsuccessful in securing one of the two mandatory applicant partners, their application will be withdrawn from the competition

Important Notes:

• Leaves of absence* will be considered in the calculation of eligibility as a mid-career researcher (i.e., will not count towards the total time since the start of the independent research position) and must be included in your application (see How to Apply).
• CIHR champions equity, diversity, and inclusion as a means to support excellence in research, training and knowledge mobilization. Therefore, we encourage people from diverse backgrounds, including groups underrepresented in science such as women and racial and ethnic minorities, to apply. CIHR's position on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is available in the Tri Agency Statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
• NPAs who are uncertain of their eligibility as it relates to their career trajectory or appointment are strongly encouraged to email CIHR Contact Centre at support-soutien@cihr-irsc.gc.ca to confirm their eligibility

* Leaves of absence e.g. maternity, parental, medical, family medical, bereavement) will extend mid-career researcher status (i.e. will not be counted towards the maximum) and are credited as twice the amount of time taken. No adjustments are provided for professional leaves (e.g., training, sabbatical, administrative). No adjustments are provided for time spent on non-research related duties or for the pursuit of non-research related career activities.

Summary

This funding opportunity builds upon previous investments in vaccine research for pandemic preparedness. The first iteration of this award was launched in 2021 as the CIHR-CEPI Leadership Award for Excellence in Vaccine Research for Infectious Diseases of Epidemic Potential. It supported the career development of mid-career researchers (i.e., researchers who, at the time of the funding start date, assumed their first independent research position 5-15 years ago) and aimed to contribute to national and international efforts to prevent and prepare for future global health threats and position Canada as a leader in this research area.

This funding opportunity will build capacity and provide mid-career vaccine researchers in Canada with:

• Exposure to national and global expertise,
• Access to cutting-edge technologies and facilities, and
• Expanded academic, public health, and industrial networks that are crucial for driving innovations in the vaccine space.

Ultimately these collaborations will leverage Canada's research capabilities to accelerate progress in vaccine research, strengthen scientific partnerships, and contribute to global health security and pandemic preparedness.

CIHR is planning a 2-step process for this competition: an Expression of Interest (EOI) stage, and a Full Application stage.

Research Areas

Applications must align with the overall objectives of this funding opportunity, address global health threats and pandemic preparedness, and be relevant to either partners' research as highlighted under: Additional Information, in the section Research Areas Covered by Specific Funding Pools.

Working with Applicant Partners

The current funding opportunity represents a unique opportunity to maximize the value of federal investments in vaccine research and infrastructure as well as established international partnerships. As such, applicants will be required to identify one (1) applicant partner at the Expression of Interest stage with whom they would like to work to develop their Full Application:

• The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) (will at least match CIHR's level of support in cash contribution), or;
• The National Research Council Canada (NRC) (will at least match CIHR's level of support in In-kind contribution).

CEPI and NRC will contribute cash and/or in-kind resources to support mid-career researchers who will work on specific projects related to vaccine research for infectious diseases of epidemic potential.

Important: To prevent any potential conflicts of interest or privileged information sharing at the Expression of Interest stage, CEPI and NRC will not provide any information beyond what is provided in the above links. Applicants must refrain from contacting CEPI or NRC at the Expression of Interest stage.

Applicants successful at the Expression of Interest stage will be provided with CEPI or NRC's contact information for this program. CEPI and NRC are committed to contribute in a fair and open way to all Full Applications. As such, at the Full Application stage, applicants will be required to include CEPI or NRC as an applicant partner and to work together to prepare their application. See How to Apply for further details.

Overhead

n/a

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.

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Expression of Interest due directly to CIHR via ResearchNet by 6:00PM Calgary time on July 16, 2025. No RMS needed for this step.

Full application, plus approvals in RMS, will be required by RSO by noon on February 12, 2026. Please be sure to select "Submitted for approvals" (Under Save & Progress) in RMS in enough time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the internal RSO deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.

Do not submit through ResearchNet until RSO's signature has been granted!! 

Once institutional signature has been obtained, a copy of the CIHR signature page will be available via the RMS record, under Documents. Upload the CIHR signature page and routing slip in the Print/Upload Signature Pages task in ResearchNet by 6:00PM Calgary time on October 1, 2025.

NOTE: This funding opportunity uses the tri-agency CV. This narrative-style CV is more flexible and allows applicants to best highlight their wide range of outputs and expertise. The tri-agency CV allows applicants to capture relevant information, describe their career trajectories in more detail, provide indicators of quality and impact, and provide context to their contributions in a narrative format to help peer reviewers assess their track record. More information on the new CV is available on the tri-agency CV – frequently asked questions page.

RESOURCES

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 Application