Canadian Mathematical Society Edmonton, AB June, 2011 Anne-Marie Thompson, Director
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Transcript of Canadian Mathematical Society Edmonton, AB June, 2011 Anne-Marie Thompson, Director
Canadian Mathematical Society Edmonton, AB
June, 2011
Anne-Marie Thompson, DirectorMadeleine Bastien, Team Leader
Physical and Mathematical SciencesResearch Grants
Outline
2011 Discovery Grants Competition Results
NSERC News
Questions & Discussions
2011 Discovery Grants CompetitionGeneral Context
Second year of implementation of Conference model, as recommended by the Grant Selection Committee Structure Review
– 12 Evaluation Groups of which Mathematics & Statistics is one
– Flexible composition of Sections to ensure comprehensive review of applications
– Members from different Evaluation Groups joined various Sections to review applications covering topics that cross the traditional boundaries between disciplines
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2011 Discovery Grants CompetitionGeneral Context
Two-stage review process as recommended by the International Review of the Discovery Grants Program
Process separates the merit assessment from the funding recommendation
Evaluation Groups do not make direct funding recommendations for any individual application
Executive Committee makes final funding recommendation to NSERC which balances bin values and success rates, within available budget
Merit assessment of applications decoupled from the previous grant held by applicants
Mathematics and Statistics Evaluation Group Membership (2011)
- Group Chair: Gail Ivanoff (Ottawa)
- Section Chairs: - Matthias Neufang (Carleton)
- David Stephens (McGill)
- John Stockie (SFU)
- Michael Bennett (UBC) - Benoit Collins (Ottawa)
- Rudolph Beran (U.C. Davis) - Richard Cook (Waterloo)
- Octavian Cornea (Montréal) - Robert McCann (Toronto)
- Alan Dow (UNC, Charlotte) - Alexander Melnikov (Alberta)
- Hermann Eberl (Guelph) - Duncan Murdoch (UWO)
- Nantel Bergeron (York) - Lia Bronsard (McMaster)
Mathematics and Statistics Evaluation Group Membership (2011)
- Holger Teismann (Acadia) - Peter Song (U. Michigan)
- Frederi Viens (Purdue) - Olivier Collin (UQAM)
- Liqun Wang (Manitoba) - Xiao Zhao (MUN)
- Christopher Godsil (Waterloo) - Alejandro Murua (Montréal)
- Eyal Goren (McGill) - Sheldon Lin (Toronto)
- Julie Zhou (Victoria) - Thomas Brustle (Bishop’s)
- Alexandra Shlapentokh (East Carolina U.)
Overall Statistics – 2011 DG Competition
Number of Applications
No. of Awards
Amount Awarded
Success rate (%)
AverageGrant
Early-Career Researchers 457 245 $5.5M 54 $22.5k
Established Researchers
Applicants who held a
grant1,858 1,377 $48.3M 74 $35.0k
Applicant not previously holding a
grant1
1,167 380 $10.7M 33 $28.1k
1. Includes returning unfunded applicants and experienced researchers submitting a first application.
Mathematics & Statistics Competition Results for 2011 (2010)
No. of Applications
No. of Awards
Amount Awarded
Success rate (%)
AverageGrant
Early-Career Researchers
28(41)
19(30)
$216k($432k)
68(73)
$11.4k($14.4k)
Established Researchers
Applicants who held a
grant
165(192)
130(134)
$2,383k($2,880k)
79(70)
$18.3k($21.5k)
Applicant not
previously holding a
grant1
78(57)
30(16)
$408k($226k)
38(28)
$13.6k($14.1k)
1. Includes returning unfunded applicants and experienced researchers submitting a first application.
2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics
Established ResearchersEarly-career ResearchersRenewals Others
Statistics 79% 32% 57%
Pure & Applied Mathematics
79% 43% 79%
2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics
Multiple calibration sessions leading up to competition
Differences in interpretation in merit indicators between Mathematics and Statistics Sections– Example includes assessment of training plan
– Distinguishing between Insufficient vs Moderate vs Strong
– Still thinking about expected outcome
Difference in distribution between Sections
Led to separation of budgets
Desire to fund up to Quality Bin J (SSS) for both Math and Statistics; peak is at J
2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics
Bin distribution - Comparison between Math and Stats2011
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2010 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics
Bin distribution - Comparison between Math and Stats2010
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2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics
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Funded ER Funded ECR
Unsuccessful ER Unsuccessful ECR
Grant Value
Options Considered Challenge was number of applications in Bins A-D (13) and in
Bin J (48 Established Researchers)
Same levels as 2010– Bin H for Established Researchers (ERs) with Success Rate (SR)
under 40%
Moderate reductions in bin levels– Bin I for ERs with SR under 50%
Considered Split Budgets– Minor adjustments to levels for Stats to fund to Bin J for ERs (15)– Moderate adjustments in Math still resulted in funding to Bin I
Recommendation was to maintain SR and therefore reduce amounts for 66 applicants in Bins D-I to allow for funding of Bin J (33)
For Next Year Clarifying HQP instructions and other points in Peer
Review Manual Working with NSERC-Math&Stats Liaison Committee
to identify new members Rotating Section Chairs during competition & daily
meetings of the Group and Section Chairs Scheduling of reviews between Sections early in
competition week Members observing deliberations of other Sections Focus on calibration – cases used, tools
Discovery Accelerator Supplements2011 Competition
Provide timely resources to outstanding researchers who:
– have a well-established research program
– who demonstrate strong potential to become international leaders in their respective area of research
$120,000 over three years
8 supplements awarded in Mathematics and Statistics
Research Tools & Instruments2011 Competition Results
Reminder: The budget of the RTI program comes mostly from year-end funds
Research Tools & Instruments ECR ER
Number of Applications 1 7
Number of Awards 0 5
Funding Rate 0% 25%
Total budget $0 $120,776
Other Information from NSERC
Canadian Council of Academies Assessment
Performance Indicators and best practices in the NSE – Qualitative and quantitative indicators and metrics relevant to
budget allocation– International best practices in the construction, methodological
review, and use of indicators for research evaluation and budget allocation
– Key considerations and principles for the appropriate use and balance / weighting of performance indicators / metrics for budget allocation
Timeline – report in late spring 2012
NSERC Frontiers Initiative includes two elements:
– Discovery Frontiers, focused on discovery research– Innovation Frontiers, focused on research
partnerships with industry
All funded projects will include an international partnership component that taps into global expertise
Discovery Frontiers’ first call for proposals (2010): Northern Earth System Research - $4 million over a four-year period
Work is ongoing to identify potential new themes for next fall.
Communication Tools for the Discovery Grants Program
New ways to communicate program information and details about the peer review process to prospective applicants
Two videos have been finalized and are now available in the Professors section of NSERC’s Web site– Tips on applying for an NSERC Discovery Grant
– Demystifying the review process for NSERC Discovery Grants
Description of HQP Training in Discovery Grant Applications
New! Additional page added to the section “Proposal” of Form 101 – to be used to address the criterion “Contributions to the training of Highly Qualified Personnel”
Applicants are asked to describe their plans for the training of HQP in that page
Instructions on how to complete Form 101 are being updated (available on NSERC’s Web site as of August 5, 2011) – important that applicants consult instructions before preparing their proposals
Budget Description in Discovery Grant Applications
New! A maximum of two (2) pages can be used for the section “Budget Justification” in which applicants provide the explanation and justification for the budget items identified in the “Proposed Expenditures” page
Instructions on how to complete Form 101 will be updated in this respect as well - important that applicants consult instructions before preparing their proposals
NSERC-Mathematics and Statistics Liaison Committee Members
Richard Cook (University of Waterloo)
Walter Craig (McMaster University)
Rachel Kuske (University of British Columbia)
Anthony Lau (University of Alberta)
Louis-Paul Rivest (Université Laval)
John Stockie (Simon Fraser University)
To contact us…
Anne-Marie Thompson
Director [email protected]
Madeleine
BastienTeam
Patricia Rouillard
Program Officer
Judie FosterProgram Officer
Gilles PlouffesProgram Assistant
Questions and Discussion