PSL1066H - Research Grant Proposal

The Information Session for PSL1066H happens twice each year:

1. June or July

2. November

However:

• You may attend the session earlier to have more time to prepare. 

• You may attend the Information Session more than once.

• You do not need to be enrolled in PSL1066H on ACORN to take the Information Session, just registered as a PhD student in Physiology.

Please note that you may enroll earlier than the above if you're confident you'll be ready to submit the Written Proposal component by the deadline that term. Ask your Supervisor for advice as needed.

• Learning to write grants can feel like learning a new language. Make sure you start early – six months before your submission deadline is recommended. Below are some resources and suggestions to help you along the way. 
  • "The Art of Grantsmanship" by Dr. Jacob Kraicer
  • “Good Grantsmanship: The Key to Success” by Dr. Stephen Matthews
  • “The Science of Scientific Writing” by Gopen and Swan
  • “Advice for Writing Your First NIH R01s” by Spencer Laverre Smith​
  • Ask your Supervisor or Supervisory Committee members if they have any previously funded CIHR grants you could read. When reading, consider: what are they doing that mirrors the advice in the resources above? How can you apply the same techniques in your proposal?
  • Don’t hesitate to ask your Supervisor or Supervisory Committee members for assistance. They’ve done it before, and can provide mentorship.
  • Further detail on the following components will be provided in the PSL1066H Information Session that takes place in July and November of each year. Be sure to attend! 

• Using the provided Modified CIHR Grant Proposal Forms, complete all of the modules indicated (listed below). Pay close attention to the instructions and included assessment criteria (your Reviewers will use these to assess the proposal).

  • Proposal Information – Title, Abstract, Key words​

  • Questionnaire​

  • Research Proposal – 10 pages in length​

  • Complete Summary ​

  • Budget Information ​

  • Peer Review Administration Information ​

  • Other Application Material (optional)​

  • CV module​

• The Written Proposal submission must include a document that lists 4 proposed Reviewers and copies of their email confirmation agreeing to:

  • Review the student’s Written Proposal 

  • Attend the student’s Oral Defense

• Begin researching and reaching out to potential Reviewers early to ensure you can attain confirmation from four before the submission deadline.

• The proposed Reviewers do not have to be a member of the Department of Physiology, or even the University of Toronto, but they must have a faculty appointment. 

• Only one (if any) of the proposed Reviewers can also be a member of your Supervisory Committee. 

• If needed, seek advice from your Supervisor when looking for appropriate Reviewers.

• The purpose of this letter is to confirm that the Research Proposal is the student’s own work and that it is ready for review.

• Make sure your Supervisor is aware of the submission deadline for the Written Proposal and that you will need this letter before you submit.

• The Graduate Office will check each Written Proposal for completeness and prepare for the Course Coordinator a summary sheet containing the registration date of the student in the PhD program, the composition of the Supervisory Committee and the names of the 4 Reviewers suggested by the student and Supervisor. 

• Shortly after each submission deadline, the Course Coordinator assigns three Reviewers to each Written Proposal. The Course Coordinator may send the Proposal to Reviewers not provided by the student and Supervisor. This decision is up to them based on all Reviewers submitted. The Written Proposals are then distributed to the assigned Reviewers.

• Each Written Proposal will be rated by the three assigned Reviewers using the CIHR Assessment Criteria included in the forms you used to write the Proposal. In cases where not all rankings are above or below the passing ranking of 3.0 (out of a maximum possible of 4.9), the Supervisory Committee will evaluate and discuss the Reviews and decide whether the student can proceed to the Oral Defense.

• As soon as all the assessments from the Readers have been received, the Course Coordinator will review them and students will be informed if they have passed the Written Proposal component of the course, or if it must be redone. 

• If you have passed, begin scheduling the Oral Defense component immediately (see below). The Defense must take place within 30 days of receiving the pass notification.

• Contact your Reviewers and your Supervisor (who comprise your Oral Defense Committee) to schedule the date for your Oral Defense, 1.5 hours in length. The Oral Defense can be held in person or virtually (ie. via Zoom or Microsoft Teams)

• The Defense must be scheduled within 30 days of receiving the pass notification (the Defense can happen later, but it needs to be scheduled).

• All Reviewers and your Supervisor must attend the Oral Defense. One of the Reviewers should act as Chair. Please provide the PSL1066H Oral Defense Evaluation Form LINK to the Chair.

• See dropdowns below for information on preparing your Defense and what happens on the day.

• Submit a Response to Reviewers of not more than two (2) pages in length (total, not per reviewer) addressing the concerns your Reviewers raised. 

• Although students are not expected to list references in their response, they may do so if they wish; an optional 3rd page may be used for listing references only.

• Feel free to discuss the Reviewer’s comments with your Supervisor, but be sure to write the Response yourself. Start by answering the most common comments and most major comments. Minor comments or comments only highlighted by one reviewer can be answered in the oral exam. Be aware that all Reviewers will see all comments submitted.

• Submit your Response to Reviewers to the Graduate Office LINK within 3 weeks of receiving notification that you passed the Written Proposal. UNLESS: If your Oral Defense has been scheduled three weeks of the pass notification, you must submit the Response to Reviewers earlier. Reviewers should have 7 days to review your response before the Defense takes place. 

• The Oral Defense presentation should provide a brief overview of the Research Proposal. Please do not present it in full. It should be no more than 20 minutes in length.

• Highlight the main criticisms and what you changed.​

• Focus on how you responded to each Reviewer’s comments – ie. changes to objectives, experiments, or analyses.

• You may, of course, respectfully disagree with your Reviewers. Be sure to explain your reasoning clearly.

• The Oral Defense is a closed examination, meaning no outside guests are allowed.

• The Oral Defense Committee (three Reviewers + Supervisor) is chaired by one of the Reviewers. 

• In the case of absences, please note that quorum consists of the three Reviewers as they are the voting members.

• First, the Committee will meet without the student present to discuss the student’s contribution to the Written Proposal and address further inquiries (at the Chair’s discretion). 

• Next, the student will join the Committee and give their presentation (described above).

• Finally, the Committee members will ask questions that evaluate the student’s knowledge of the Written Proposal and its relevant background information. The duration of the question period should not exceed 60 minutes. 

• The student is expected to be able to answer at least 75% of the questions posed in this period.

• After the question period, the three voting members of the Committee will meet without the student to discuss and vote. The voting members of the committee will then fill out a Department of Physiology Assessment Form LINK for the Oral Defense of the Doctoral Grant Proposal. The signed form will then be forwarded to the Graduate Office.  

• If one or more of the members vote "fail" then the student is deemed to have failed the Oral Defense component of the course; abstentions are not permitted. 

• The Chair may request a deferral of the final decision pending discussion with the Course Director and possibly also the Graduate Coordinator. 

• The student and Supervisor will be informed of the outcome of the Oral Defense in writing.

• If you do not pass the Written Proposal component, you are permitted to re-enroll in PSL1066H the following term. This will be the last chance you have to pass the component.

• If you must repeat the course, resubmit the entire Written Proposal, including your response to reviewers.​

• If you pass the Written Proposal component but not the Oral Defense, you will need to redo the Oral Defense within 6 weeks (please note that this is not an option in the event of a deferred submission).

• If the student does not pass the second oral defense, she/he will be required to withdraw from the Ph.D program.

• If you don't enrol in and complete PSL1066H within the required time period (see above), you have one more chance to take the course.

• You must enrol in the course the first time it is offered after your time has run out. Should you not pass either the Written Proposal or Oral Defense components of the course, you will not be able to retake the course or do a second Oral Defense.