Information for nominating institutions

Memorandum

Equity, diversity, and inclusion

Nominating institutions are encouraged to consider diversity on multiple levels (e.g.,research discipline, official language, cultural background, citizenship) when considering which applicants to nominate for the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS) program.

Equity and diversity must be considered at all levels of the selection/recruitment, endorsement/nomination and review processes of a Vanier CGS application. The Vanier-Banting Secretariat is actively engaged in promoting equity and diversity, as well as increasing awareness of unconscious bias with everyone involved in the selection of a Vanier Scholar. To this end, please review the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion page.

The San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment

The agencies have signed the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), a global initiative whose purpose is to support the development and promotion of best practices in the assessment of scholarly research. It aims to address the negative consequences of unintended overuse of journal publications as a primary quality indicator for research output. As signatories of DORA, the three federal granting councils recognize and value a broad range of contributions and emphasize their quality and impact.

Reviewers are asked to assess research excellence broadly, and to avoid using journal-based metrics (such as Journal Impact Factors) as a surrogate measure of the quality of individual research publications, to ensure that peer review is done with DORA.

Quotas by institution

View the annual nomination quotas for the 2021 to 2023 competitions

Eligible Canadian institutions receive three-year quotas based on 600 total nominations per federal granting agency (CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC). These three-year quotas have been determined for the 2021-2022, 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 competitions as follows:

The sum of (a) and (b) is calculated by the Secretariat to determine the total doctoral and CRC funding received by the nominating institution. This total is then converted to a fraction of the total doctoral and CRC funding received by all institutions. This fraction is multiplied by the three-year quota distribution of 600 to determine the final quota for each nominating institution.

Note: Vanier CGS quotas are calculated for a three-year period; annual quotas are determined by dividing the three-year allocation by three. Remainders are considered "floating quotas" and can be used in any year within the three-year period. Floating quotas are included in the current competition but will only be applied where the number of nominations exceeds the number of quotas for that given year.

Eligible Canadian institutions will be provided a yearly quota within the existing three-year quota allotment. Any unused annual quotas will not be carried forward. Floating quotas may be used in any of the three Fiscal Years.

Each eligible institution is assigned a separate quota from each agency for the Vanier CGS Program. For more details refer to the quota page.

Reminder! Institution may nominate applicants who self-identify as Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and/or Métis) without those nominations being counted towards their quota. Applicants who wish to self-identify themselves as an Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and/or Métis) have been instructed to complete the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS): Voluntary Self-Identification Form [ PDF (409 KB) ] and upload it within their application. This form may be used by Research Administrators to identify self-identified Indigenous applicants.

Should the institution wish to do so, the Research Administrators will need to provide a list of self-identified Indigenous applicants (Agency/name) to the Vanier-Banting Secretariat (vanier@cihr-irsc.gc.ca).

Application deadlines

There are two types of institutional deadlines:

Please note that submitting a nomination using ResearchNet will serve as a formal attestation that the applicant has provided true, complete, and accurate information in the application and its related documents.

Note: Substitutions for ineligible or rejected applications will not be permitted.

* "Indigenous Peoples" is a collective name for the original peoples of North America and their descendants. "Aboriginal Peoples" is also sometimes used as a terminology. For the purposes of this program, the three federal granting councils use the Canadian Constitution Act, 1982 definition of Aboriginal Peoples as including the First Nations, Inuk (Inuit) and Métis Peoples of Canada.

Nomination letters (maximum 2 pages)

(must follow the specifications found in the instructions provided in the Presentation standards for documents section)

Nomination letters – to be completed/signed by the Department Head nominating the candidate

Institutions must provide a nomination letter, along with the application form, for each student nominated for a Vanier CGS.

This nomination letter must be completed and signed by the Department Head nominating the candidate (equivalent or designate) and must be on the institution's letterhead. If signed by someone other than the Department Head, it should be clearly indicated in the letter that the signee has authority to nominate candidates to the Vanier CGS program.

The nomination letter should be a maximum of two pages in length and is the Institution's opportunity to outline for the selection committee what makes the nominee unique. This is the primary purpose of the nomination letter.

The rationale for choosing the candidate should be emphasized in the letter. It should give the committee context for the nominee's achievements – outline how the nominee is exceptional and how the institution both fosters and benefits the student (e.g., what kind of benefits or advantages the institution will offer). Address the following points:

  1. Rationale for the choice of candidate:
  2. Research training environment:
    • Elaborate on the appropriateness of the supervisor in terms of resources, funding, publications and other research outputs, their research and training environment. Elaborate on the funding, facilities/resources and personnel that will be made available to support the candidate as they carry out their proposed research and develop their leadership potential.
    • Discuss how the research interests/background of the student and supervisor align with the institution's priorities. (Ensure that claims about the uniqueness of the research environment are accurate.)
    • Elaborate on your institution's resources regarding any established research-related policies and protocols (e.g., OCAP® for First Nations or any established protocols by Inuit and Métis Peoples of Canada; approvals for research involving the use of humans, animals or biohazards).

      • In the case of applications in which the proposed research respectfully involves and engages Indigenous communities, describe how respectful relationships are being developed with relevant Indigenous communities to engage their collaboration in the proposed research and to promote reciprocity in terms of the benefits derived from the research process and outcomes that are meaningful and culturally appropriate. Describe any support provided to facilitate collaborations between the applicant, the host institution and Indigenous communities/partners.

        The following key concepts should be substantiated in the institution's statement:

        • Indigenous or traditional knowledge
        • Reciprocity
        • Community
        • Respect, relevance and contributions

      For more information, see our EDI page.

    • Discuss how the supervisor's commitment will be available to support the candidate in furthering their professional and leadership development.
    • If known, comment on the research group and/or faculty with whom the candidate will interact and how the Canadian institution will support the development of the candidate's leadership potential. If unknown, address the reasons behind why the candidate has not selected a supervisor and research environment.
  3. Rationale of recruiting the candidate:
    • Outline how the institution's research environment will foster the student's research interest and leadership skills.
    • Elaborate on the commitment from the department or university as to what kind of benefits they will offer the potential scholar.
  4. Recruitment:
    • Comment on how the institution's nomination of the candidate promotes the recruitment of new foreign or Canadian candidates to Canadian institutions.
    • If the candidate has completed a previous degree within your institution, provide an explanation as to why it is in the candidate's best interest to stay at the same institution (i.e., research/paid institution (or its affiliate), supervisor or co-supervisor, availability of specialized equipment).

Achieving a more equitable, diverse and inclusive Canadian research enterprise is essential for creating the excellent, innovative and impactful research necessary to seize opportunities and for responding to global challenges.

The creation of this equitable, diverse and inclusive research community is the responsibility of every member of the community, including applicants, selection committee members, referees, institutions, and the agencies.

Institutions can contribute to the three federal granting councils' efforts to counter systemic barriers, explicit and unconscious biases, and inequities by promoting the recruitment of groups underrepresented in sciences and by ensuring a strong level of institutional support is provided to these candidates in their application process.

The Secretariat acknowledges that certain circumstances may legitimately affect a nominee's record of research achievement. Institutions are encouraged to highlight in the Nomination letter the circumstances that have affected the candidates's path and how this nomination will lead to a more equitable, diverse and inclusive research community.

Official transcripts

The nominating Institution must upload the following documents to applications being nominated to the Vanier CGS program:

  1. Official transcript
  2. Summary of international transcripts (optional)

All post-secondary transcripts must be attached to each nomination package. If these transcripts include credits earned at a college or CEGEP (college of general and professional education) that have been transferred to a university degree for credit, include the college or CEGEP transcript only if the grade earned does not appear on the university transcript. One copy of the legend (reverse of each transcript) must be included; Transcript text must be horizontal and uploaded in order from least recent to most recent.

Note 1: Certified true copies of official transcripts from the university are accepted. A certified true copy is defined as a copy of the original document (or of the original translated document if official transcript is not in either English or French). The Vanier Banting Secretariat (the Secretariat) will accept copies of official transcripts if the nominating institution certifies them as true copies.

Unofficial transcripts will be accepted from nominating institutions only for programs completed or in progress at the institution nominating the student, and only where the institution will be able to provide an official copy of the transcript upon request. Note that all transcripts must be easily legible for the selection committee and must include the institution's name and/or logo. Otherwise, the Secretariat will only accept official transcripts from your nominating institution.

Revised: Note 2: Institutions nominating students who include foreign transcripts, must attach a 250-word summary/ grading scale in a PDF document to the beginning of the transcripts, describing any variations in the grading system between the foreign institutions and the Canadian-level equivalents, and/or explaining international credentials and equivalencies.

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