Research calls

The School of Health (SOH) is launching a call to support collaborative, innovative proposals with an emphasis on student recruitment and training that align with the three foundational hubs; 1) Biomedical Sciences and engineering research, 2) Clinical Research and Prevention, and 3) Community Health Research. The call is open to SOH members from the “Concordia University Researcher” membership category and is meant to enable collaboration, recruit new students or reduce the time to graduation for existing students, and produce impactful outcomes that addresses critical health issues and contributes to the betterment of society. Please note that the funds for this call are from the SOH budget, which is allocated by the VPRII. In recognition of the need to critically support health research capacity at Concordia, these funds were made available after making extensive cuts to other areas in the SOH.

Objectives

Proposals should align with the following objectives:

• The proposal must involve an interdisciplinary and/or intersectoral collaboration.
• The proposal must clearly describe new recruitment and reducing time for graduation.

• The proposal should generate findings with translational potential or contribute to the sustainability of community programs.

Funding

Projects may request funding for up to two years at $25k or $50k with a minimum of 70% of the budget allocated to student support. These funds should be used to support new students or to reduce time to graduation for current students. Proposals should align with at least one of the hubs:

1. Biomedical Sciences and Engineering Research
2. Clinical Research and Prevention
3. Community Health Research

At least one project from each hub will be funded depending on budget availability.

Eligible expenses include:

• Student salaries (new student or existing student if it reduces time to graduation). Please note that the funds cannot be used for the salaries of students who already hold an external award (such as Tri-Council or FRQ). Student travel to a conference, dissemination of research.
• Other expenses that are directly relevant to the project - consumables, participant fees, cost of infrastructure use (e.g., user fees on Concordia infrastructure).

Eligibility

All applications must have a minimum of two Concordia applicants from different disciplines (e.g., Departments) who are SOH members from the “Concordia University Researcher” membership category. Co-applicants outside of Concordia University are not permitted. Collaborators can be from outside of the University but they cannot receive funds. To apply for membership, please use the following link which will take you to a simple form to complete.

Membership - Concordia University 

Deadline

All applications must be submitted by 5pm EST, on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026. Please note that this is a firm deadline and no requests for extensions will be accepted. Successful proposals will be announced by the end of March, 2026.

Applications are to be submitted to the following email address research_soh@lists.concordia.ca using “SoH_Call for proposals_PI name” in the subject field.

Should you require additional information, please contact Wendy Kunin, Lead Research Operations at wendy.kunin@concordia.ca or by phone at 514-848-2424 ext. 5295.

Note that only complete applications will be considered and evaluated.

Application process

All applications must include the following components in this order:

1. A title page with the following information:
   a. Title of proposed research project
   b. Indicate the hub that the proposal best falls under, or rank preference if fits into more than one hub.
   c. Funding level category (25k, 50k)
   d.Submitted by NAME and EMAIL
   e. List of applicants and their affiliations.
2. Research Proposal – 5-page limit (incuding tables and figures):
   a. Describe the proposed study, providing context and rationale for how it meets a critical unmet need in health.
   b. Highlight the interdisciplinary nature of the proposed study, explaining why an interdisciplinary approach is needed
   c. Provide a concise overview of the study e.g., research objectives, main goal(s).d. Describe the methodology and design, and make efforts to consider this in the context of Concordia infrastructure and resources. Consider sex and gender if relevant.
   e. Describe how the project will enable new student admissions or reduce the time to graduation for existing students (e.g., reducing TAships, fast-tracking) through their integration into the proposal. Take into consideration EDI and best practices. Refer to the VPRII presentation on EDI in your grant application for guidance.
   f. Describe the potential for knowledge transfer – e.g., plans for dissemination and uptake of findings through publications, community engagement, policy development, implementation of new programs, sustainability of existing programs, or, where applicable, declaration of invention, patent application, and commercialization.
   g. Provide a timeline for the objectives, clearly highlighting the students within the timeline.
3. References or Bibliography – 2-page limit
4. Budget justification with timetable up to 2 years – 2-page limit with emphasis on the student bursaries, the level of students they will support, and align their role with the proposed project(s). Provide percentages with a clear breakdown of how the funds will be spent on student bursaries, travel, and other eligible expenses.
5. Team description – 2-page limit with a brief overview of the research team’s knowledge, background and expertise, indicating how they will contribute to the project (for each applicant and collaborator as applicable). Explain how their contributions will be coordinated and integrated. Ensure that students are included in the description.
6. Include all CVs of all applicants in tri-agency CCV format.

Format

Proposals should be written in Arial 11-point font or Times New Roman (or equivalent) 12-point font with a maximum of six lines per inch. Margins should be formatted at 2 cm (3/4 inch) minimum around the page. Please combine all files into one pdf.

Evaluation criteria

Projects will be reviewed by the School of Health Research Committee, which will contain representation from each of the three hubs:

Part 1 (Mandatory criteria)

Student recruitment and training (Pass / Fail)

• Clear and feasible strategy for student recruitment and training that aligns with at least one of the three hubs.
• 70% of the budget allocated to support new students or to reduce time to graduation for current students

Failure to meet the criteria above will result in the proposal being deemed ineligible for funding.

Part 2 (Weighted scoring applies only if mandatory criteria is met)

1. Concept (25%):

• Clear rationale with well-defined goals or objectives grounded in relevant literature or evidence of an unmet need
• Originality and/or significance of the study
• Interdisciplinary relevance
• Suitability for student training

2. Approach (25%):

• Quality and appropriateness of the design, methodology and/or theoretical framework (e.g., state-of-the-art and potential to generate findings or outcomes that support the goals or objectives)
• Projects are suitable for student training
• Demonstrated need for interdisciplinary approaches
• Identification of potential challenges and mitigation strategies
• Use of Concordia infrastructure (if applicable)

3. Impact (30%):

• Contribution to new knowledge, understanding, or practices
• Potential for innovation, influence, or advancement in theory, policy, or application
• Potential for knowledge mobilization, dissemination, or uptake (e.g., commercialization, policy development, community engagement, or practice change)
• Potential to lead to new external funding
• Impact on student recruitment and time to graduation

4. Team (20%):

• Expertise, experience and complementarity of the team to carry out the proposed study
• Role for students is clearly indicated

Expectations:

1. Acknowledgement of the School of Health funding support in reports, publications or presentations.
2. Students will present findings at the Annual School of Health conference.
3. Submit a brief final report demonstrating how the funds were used, the impact of these findings and which milestones were met. The report should include:
   a. Title of the project;
   b. Name and titles of Principal Investigator and co-applicants;
   c. A list of students and other personnel that were involved in the project (names, program) – indicate new students and graduation dates of existing students;
   d. A full accounting of the budget demonstrating that a minimum of 70% of the budget was spent on students;
   e. Impact of funding. For example, provide a list of any publications, presentations, reports, policy, press coverage, outreach and/or public programs arising from or directly impacted by the funded project.
4. Successful applicants will be highlighted in news bulletins, social media and on the School of Health website.