CIHR Project Grant

The Project Grant program is designed to capture ideas with the greatest potential for important advances in fundamental or applied health-related knowledge, health care, health systems, and/or health outcomes by supporting projects or programs of research proposed and conducted by individual researchers or groups of researchers in all areas of health. The best ideas may stem from new, incremental, innovative, and/or high-risk lines of inquiry or knowledge translation approaches.

Key application considerations

  • NEW: CIHR has provided some updates for the Spring 2024 competition, including limiting the types of materials that researchers can attach to their applications.  Starting with the Spring 2024 Project Grant competition, the following attachments will no longer be accepted and if included, will be removed from the application:
    • Questionnaires, surveys, and consent forms
    • Supplementary tables, charts, figures, and photographs
    • Patient Information Sheets (for Randomized Controlled Trial applications)
    • Publications

    Some attachments will continue to be mandatory, such as certificates of completion for sex- and gender-based analysis training modules and letters of community support from Indigenous partners as applicable. Others will be optional, such as letters of collaboration that outline a specific service that will be provided such as access to equipment, provision of specific reagents, training in a specialized technique, statistical analysis, access to a patient population, etc., and additional CV information to account for any leaves, absences, illnesses, caregiving roles, etc.  Please consult the Project Grant application instructions for more information.

  • NEW: CIHR is more strictly enforcing alignment with font and formatting requirements and reserves the right to withdraw your application if it does not meet these requirements. Please note for the Spring 2024 competition, applicants will required to use the updated margin minimums of 0.79” / 2 cm.
  • Multiple Applications: Applicants may submit a maximum of two (2) Project Grant applications per competition in the role of Nominated Principal Investigator (NPA).
  • Ensuring equitable access to research funds: A portion of the competition budget will be reserved to ensure that the proportion of grants funded is at least equal to the proportion of applications submitted by early career researchers (ECRs), female applicants, and for applicants submitting applications written in French. Should the full amount set aside not be required, all remaining funds will be returned to the Project grant competition to further increase the number of grants funded.
  • Summary of Progress (2 page max): Mandatory for all Nominated Principal Applicants. This document supports your research proposal by allowing you to describe how your application fits into your overarching research program. When preparing the Summary of Progress pages, please carefully read the Application Instructions and the FAQ.
  • Equity and Diversity Questionnaire: Completion of the Equity and Diversity Questionnaire is mandatory for all CIHR Application participants. Collaborators are exempt.  The Equity and Diversity Questionnaire must be completed prior to the eSubmission deadline. 
  • Applicant Profile CV: Knowledge users, Indigenous applicants and international applicants now have the choice to use either the CCV or an Applicant Profile CVCanadian academics must still submit a CIHR Biosketch CCV. NOTE: ResearchNet will allow either version to be uploaded – be certain you are including an acceptable format CV.
  • Response to Previous Reviews: If you are resubmitting an unsuccessful Project Grant application, you may provide a response (up to 2 pages) to previous reviewers’ comments.  Applicants who upload a “response to previous reviews” must attach all the reviews and Scientific Officer (SO) notes (if provided) they received related to reviews to which they are responding.  (the reviews do not count toward the 2 page response limit).  Applicants may choose to respond only to comments that are relevant to their revised application. Your 2-page response to reviews - and the reviews being addressed - must be uploaded as a single PDF attachment. Please see Application Instructions and FAQ for updated, detailed instructions.
  • Sex and Gender Considerations: 1) The NPA is asked to complete one of the sex- and gender-based analysis training modules available online and upload with the application the Certificate of Completion in the Attach Other Application Material task. 2) In their evaluation of the application, peer reviewers assess whether or not sex- and gender-based analysis (SGBA) is a strength, weakness, or not applicable; this is to be reflected within their written evaluation and the overall score assigned to the application. We also have an SGBA helpsheet specific to CIHR Project Grant linked under Resources below. 
  • CIHR Priority Announcements (PAs): PAs offer additional sources of funding for highly ranked and competitive applications that were not funded through the Project Grant competition budget. Review the PA Funding Opportunity Details Page and PA FAQs
  • For Commercialization Projects, a Research/Technical Plan and a Commercialization plan must be integrated into the 10-page proposal. Consult CIHR's Commercialization Projects website, as well as the Peer Review Manual, Funding Opportunity Details and the Application Instructions for details.
  • All formatting within your application as well as application attachments must adhere to CIHR's  Acceptable Application Formats and Attachments.
  • Interdisciplinary Review Panel: Applications involving interdisciplinary research are accepted and encouraged in all committees. However, SSHRC, CIHR, and NSERC have formed a Tri-Agency Interdisciplinary Peer Review Committee (TAIPR), with this mandate, specifically dedicated for the review of interdisciplinary research.

Key Deadlines

(Check with your department/faculty for additional deadlines)

Registration

Researchers who intend to apply for a Project Grant must complete their registration in ResearchNet by/before February 7th, 8pm ET 

Full Application

Internal Review Process: Submit the application to Research Services for internal review by verifying and submitting the full application (including all attachments, CCVs, Priority Announcements and Previous Reviews if applicable) in ResearchNet. Please do not email the application to Research Services.

Internal

Wednesday February 21st 2024, by/before 10am ET

  • Submission of ROLA proposal
  • Submit your complete draft application in ResearchNet

*Note: Applications can be returned upon request once they have been downloaded by Research Services. Please email researchoffice@uwo.ca to request the return of your application.

Applications will be reviewed in the order they are received in ResearchNet and applications received after the internal deadline will receive truncated reviews.

External

Wednesday March 6th 2024, by/before 10am ET

  • Final application submitted in ResearchNet.
  • When you submit your application in ResearchNet, it will be routed through Research Services for review and final submission to CIHR. Research Services must forward applications to CIHR prior to the sponsor deadline.

Note: When you submit your Registration in ResearchNet, it will be sent directly to CIHR. When you submit your Application in ResearchNet, it will be routed through Research Western for review and final submission to CIHR.

Project Grant Registration Instructions

A Common CV is not required at this stage

Project Grant Application Instructions

Resources

Webinars

CIHR Webinars

CIHR will be hosting webinars to support participants with the requirements of the funding opportunity and to answer questions on how to apply.  Webinar details and archived webinars are on the CIHR website.

Western Webinars

Fall 2023 Virtual Panel Discussion about CIHR Project Grant Peer Review  

Fall 2022 Virtual Panel Discussion about CIHR Project Grant Peer Review  

Fall 2021 Virtual Panel Discussion about CIHR Project Grant Peer Review  

Spring 2021 Western Webinar and Q&A with Jane Rylett and Tim Regnault

Contact

For more information, or questions relating to the Project Grant program, please contact Western Research at researchoffice@uwo.ca