Funder’s website
The funder’s website can be found HERE.
Funding Value and Duration
Up to $200,000/year for 3 years
Overview
NSERC’s PromoScience Program offers financial support for organizations working with young Canadians to promote an understanding of science and engineering (including mathematics and technology). Organizations may request funds for up to three years at a time.
PromoScience supports hands-on learning experiences for young students and their teachers. Grants may be used to cover improvements to program content or delivery, as well as for new programs and activities. Grants can also be used to cover operational costs such as salaries, travel, postage, materials and supplies, provided that they relate to the promotion of science and engineering.
NSERC invites applications for initiatives that promote natural sciences and engineering (NSE) to Canada’s young people, particularly to underrepresented groups in NSE careers. In the context of PromoScience, underrepresented groups include, but are not limited to, girls; Indigenous youth (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis); youth with disabilities, members of visible minorities/racialized groups; and members of 2SLGBTQI+ communities. Recognizing the need to increase the participation of underrepresented groups in the NSE, NSERC may support additional meritorious applications with targeted programming for underrepresented groups if sufficient funds become available. PromoScience supports activities and content designed for youth in elementary school and high school (including those in the equivalent first year of college in Quebec), and their teachers, and activities that will encourage Indigenous undergraduate students to pursue graduate studies in the NSE.
Furthermore, NSERC encourages organizations to consider the needs of official language minority communities in their area while developing the activities to be proposed in the application and to strive to have official documentation and promotional material in both official languages.
Note: NSERC has a quota of one application per department and the nomination form must be signed by the OVPRI. CORIS is therefore requesting that all researchers who intend to apply submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) to their Faculty Research Offices and Maureen Mahoney, CORIS by Tuesday, August 8th. The EOI must include:
- Name & department of the PI
- Tentative title
- Tentative length of project
- Tentative budget request
- Working draft of the executive summary (150 words) that indicates the nature and goals of the program, the number of youth or teachers to be reached, and an overview of how the PromoScience funding would be spent
- Confirmation whether or not the PI or any team members hold or are a part of an active PromoScience grant
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible, you must;
- be a Canadian registered non-profit organization, post-secondary institution or non-federal museum or science center
- deliver ongoing programming in the promotion of NSE to young Canadians
A very broad range of activities promoting NSE are eligible for funding;
- Ongoing programming: Activities must be delivered on a continual basis from year to year. One-time, project-specific activities are not eligible.
- Youth-focused programming: Activities and content must be designed for youth in elementary school, high school or the first year of college in Quebec and/or their teachers. Activities and content that specifically encourage Indigenous undergraduate students to pursue graduate studies in the NSE are also eligible. Programming for youth that involves their families is encouraged. We do not support activities targeting preschool-age children, the general post-secondary student population or the general public.
- Teacher-focused programming: PromoScience supports the development of resources and tools for teachers that make it easier for them to teach science well, as well as professional development for teachers to improve their knowledge, skills and enthusiasm for teaching science to youth. Proposed programming must be independent of accredited courses or degree requirements.
- Programming in the NSE: Proposed activities must include significant NSE-focused content and be primarily focused on promoting interest and careers in the NSE. Programming focused primarily on health, medicine, social sciences or arts is not eligible for support, nor is programming primarily focused on advocacy.
- New/pilot programs: Such applications must include strong evidence of the feasibility and anticipated impact of the activities (i.e., support letters, data from similar successful programs).
- Proposals with broad impact and reach: We encourage proposals at the national, provincial, territorial and regional levels. We will not support local activities unless these target under-represented groups in NSE.
- Interactive, hands-on programming: Activities must involve social or technology-mediated interaction with a two-way flow of information and influence between youth and their facilitators. We will not support the production of books, videos, lectures, etc. that are not part of an interactive program.
- Research experience: Applicants must demonstrate how their program meets the objectives of the PromoScience program by going beyond simply providing work experience. Grants may not be used to support research but should motivate young people to study science and engineering and to pursue careers in these fields.
- Program delivery using a website: Such applications must demonstrate that the website is of an ongoing nature and interactive and should include a detailed plan that outlines the need for the site, its content and plans for ongoing maintenance.
- University-based activities: The proposed science and engineering activities must address the PromoScience objectives and must not be for recruitment purposes. If an activity is linked to university course work (i.e., university students as instructors or mentors), the course work must be clearly delineated from the youth-based outreach component for the application to be eligible.
- Organizations receiving core government funding (i.e., museums and science centres): Only activities that are not already funded through their existing core funding are eligible.
*Regarding eligibility from the program website: “only one application may be submitted per non-profit organization, non-federal museum or science center, or department in a post-secondary institution per competition year”. This means there will be a limit of one application per academic department at Carleton.
Webinar
English webinar – July 25, 2023 1:00 to 2:30 pm (Ottawa time – ET) link
French webinar – July 26, 2023 1:00 to 2:30 pm (Ottawa time – ET) link
Internal Contacts
Potential applicants are encouraged to discuss this funding opportunity with their Faculty Research Facilitator.
VPRI Resource Contact: Maureen Mahoney
Information Session
English webinar – July 25, 2023 1:00 to 2:30 pm (Ottawa time – ET) MS Teams
French webinar – July 26, 2023 1:00 to 2:30 pm (Ottawa time – ET) MS Teams
Note: Please turn off video and microphone during the meeting.
Deadlines
| Faculty Deadline | Consult your Faculty Research Facilitator. |
| OVPRI Deadline (Approval Form and Application) | August 8, 2023 (EOI)
September 7, 2023 (Application) |
| Submission to Sponsor | September 15, 2023 8:00PM EST (Application) |
Submitting Your Application
- Step 1) Submit an internal Carleton Approval Form
Submit an internal Approval Form through our central awards management database CUResearch:
https://ovpri.research.carleton.ca/Romeo.Researcher/Administrator/Default.aspx
For a user’s guide on submitting an Approval Form, click HERE. - Step 2) Submit an external application to the granting agency
Submit an external application to the corresponding grant or award agency. To navigate to the funder’s website, click HERE