Chinook Summer Research Award

The Alberta Innovates Summer Research Studentships and Chinook Summer Research Awards are now considered awards. There is no supervisor contribution and no requirement for number of hours worked. The time allotted to the project depends on the nature of the proposal and will be decided by the supervisor and student in the application phase. The application for these awards can now be submitted via the Bridge under the “Student” tab by clicking “Apply for uLethbridge Scholarships, Awards and Bursaries”. The applications will be available starting January 9, 2023 in the Scholarships portal. The application deadline is January 31, 2025.

Awardees are strongly encouraged to give a poster presentation of their research activities over the summer at the UG Research Symposium (an outreach initiative organized by the Faculty of Arts and Science) during the last week of August. Please stay tuned for details!

Be sure to do the following:

• Submit to both the general and undergraduate applications and any additional opportunities that are presented to you.
• Select YES when asked if you are enrolled in a summer research program.
• The application components will remain much the same. Please see below for information on the application components.

For questions about the application process, please email awards@uleth.ca or oris@uleth.ca.

Description

The Chinook Summer Research Awards aim to encourage research and advance training of undergraduate students in all disciplines. The program facilitates research advancement by providing students with a suitable research training experience with a University of Lethbridge faculty member who has an ongoing research program. It is expected that the funds requested in each competition will exceed the funds available.

The Chinook Summer Research Award is valued at $6000 for a summer project to be determined by the student and supervisor. Each student will receive one payment of $6000 over the summer months and no payroll forms are required. There are no requirements related to the number of hours worked. The supervisor and student should decide on a plan for their summer project in the application phase. Please keep in mind that students may seek other employment to supplement the award amount over the summer months. There are also no financial contributions required of the supervisor.

Eligibility

At the time of application the student must:

• Be a full-time student at the University of Lethbridge (9.0 credits)
• Plan to return to full-time undergraduate studies at the University of Lethbridge in the semester immediately following the award.

Timeline

• January : Application deadline. Applications are to be submitted using the online form.
• February – March: Applications are sent to the Chinook Review Committee for review and ranking using the Pro-Grid Decision Assist Tool (see Evaluation Criteria and Process below).
• March - April: The Committee meets to rank applications and make funding decisions.
• April: Notice of Decisions are distributed to applicants.
• May – August: Term of the award.

How to Apply

General Guidelines:

The student must link with a faculty member who has an ongoing research program. The student should discuss the application thoroughly with the faculty member prior to application. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that the complete application is submitted prior to the application deadline. Submissions for the current competition are due by January 31, 2025.

Complete applications require the following components:

1. Online application form: The applications will now be accepted using the undergraduate scholarships application via the Bridge.
2. Simple Abstract (maximum 250 words): The student should write an abstract in layman’s terms, so a person without experience in the field can understand the project. They should provide a background for the problem, a clear hypothesis, identify methods, and the expected results for the project. No references are necessary. Please include the project title with the submission. 
3. Proposal (maximum 2 pages): This document should be developed in cooperation with the proposed supervisor. Include the project title and provide a summary of the research project that highlights how the students will be involved. Be sure to describe the role of the student in the proposed project with respect to the skills they will gain and the expected outcomes.
4. Supervisor CV (recommended maximum of 5 pages): Select 3-5 of your most relevant research publications, provide the complete citation for each and briefly describe the relevance of your chosen publications to the proposed research. If you have fewer than 3 relevant publications and/or you are an ECR in the first 5 years of your academic appointment, please address the relevance of your background/expertise tot he proposed research project. 
5. Student Letter (recommended maximum of 1 page): The student must upload a letter indicating how the research proposal relates to their learning objectives. This letter should also list the student's previous awards and scholarships. The student must include an explanation for any course withdrawals and/or lower transfer credits and/or semesters of study with less than 5 courses.  
6. Reference: The student must provide an email address of a faculty member who will use the awards platform to complete a reference. This may be the supervising faculty, other U of L faculty, or a faculty member from another post-secondary institution that is known to the applicant. This maintains consistency for the reviewers. Please see the Conflict of Interest Guidelines below for guidance on requesting a recommendation https://science.gc.ca/eic/site/063.nsf/eng/h_90108244.html.
7. Transcript(s): The student must upload up-to-date official or unofficial transcript(s) of their entire academic record (including transfer credit). Transcripts from other institutions should be uploaded as well.
8. Proof of Enrollment: The student must be able to submit proof of enrollment at the time that the application is submitted, as well as when the notice of award is issued.

Evaluation Criteria and Process

The U of L uses the PROGRID system as a tool to evaluate the proposals for Chinook awards. This system utilizes an alpha-numerical rating scale. The Language Ladders used in determining this rating scale are attached to these instructions. The application form is designed around these Language Ladders, and gives the candidate and supervisor space to provide the appropriate information relating to each of the criteria listed.

In its evaluation of each application, the Chinook Review Committee will look primarily for evidence that: (1) the candidate has an excellent academic record; (2) the supervisor is conducting a productive research program; and (3) the supervisor has adequate research funding, preferably from a competitive granting agency.

The following evaluation criteria apply to all applicants:

1. Student (50%): Transcripts, Student Letters, and References are evaluated for research/scholarly/creative achievements of the applicant as well as how the project fits with the learning objectives of the student.
2. Supervisor (25%): The supervisor's capacity to oversee the proposed project is evaluated through their CV. 
3. Overall Impression of the Project (25%): The Proposal and the complete application package may be used to form the Overall Impression.  

NOTE: A limit of four applications may be submitted by a faculty supervisor. A separate research project must be submitted for each student. The supervisor must be prepared to provide direct and continuous supervision during the term of the award.

Following the application deadline, applications are evaluated by the Selection Committee who are asked to rank the application packages on the above criteria using the Pro-Grid system. Applicants and proposed supervisors are strongly advised to read the Progrid Decision Assist Tool document, especially the language ladder that will be used to assign scores and ranking. This document also provides language that will be used to assess the Letter of Recommendation. It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that the application addresses the evaluation criteria. At a roundtable meeting, the Selection Committee will rank all applicants relative to each other. Each applicant will receive a summary table of the scores from the three reviewers to compare to the language ladder in order to have an indication of the relative strengths and weaknesses in their application package. Once the applications have been placed in rank order, the first awards will be offered. It is expected that the number of fundable applications will exceed the amount of available funds for each competition. Because applicants often apply to other studentships (e.g. NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRAs), SSHRC USRAs, and Chinook Summer Studentships), ORIS will work towards funding as many students as possible with all available awards. It is hoped that all awards will be accepted and finalized near the end of March or early April.

Conflict of Interest Guidelines* for Recommendation Selection

A conflict of interest is a conflict between a person’s duties and responsibilities with regard to the review process, and that person’s private, professional, business or public interests. There may be a real, perceived or potential conflict of interest when the review committee member, external reviewer or observer:

• May receive professional/personal benefit resulting from the funding opportunity or application being reviewed;
• Has a professional/personal relationship with an applicant or the applicant’s institution; or
• Has a direct/indirect financial interest in a funding opportunity or application being reviewed.

A conflict of interest may exist when review committee members, external reviewers or observers:

• Are a relative or close friend or have a personal relationship with the applicant(s);
• Have had long-standing scientific or personal differences with the applicant(s); or
• Feel for any reason unable to provide an impartial review of the application.

The ORIS reserves the right to resolve areas of uncertainty and to determine if a conflict exists.