Fellowship Opportunities

As the most prestigious postdoctoral award in Canada, the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships program provides the opportunity to bring top-tier postdoctoral talent,  both nationally and internationally, to develop their leadership potential and to position them for success as research leaders of tomorrow, positively contributing to Canada's economic, social and research-based growth through leadership in a research-intensive career. For official information, regulations and procedures, visit the Banting website. At Western, the internal Banting selection process in managed by the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (SGPS).

Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person.

Eligibility: Please refer to the eligibility guidelines on the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship website.

• Canadian citizens, permanent residents of Canada and foreign citizens are eligible to apply.
• Applicants for the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowships Program must fulfill or have fulfilled all degree requirements for a PhD, PhD-equivalent or health professional degree between within a specific window – approximately 4 years – see   guidelines; and before the start of the award.
• Only in exceptionally rare circumstances will a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship be awarded to an applicant who is staying at the same institution where they completed their PhD, PhD- equivalent or health professional degree. In such cases, a solid justification – related for example to availability of highly unique equipment - must be provided. Current postdoctoral fellows already at the institution must also justify the decision to continue at the same location.
• Applicants must not hold a tenure-track or tenured faculty position.

Application Details: Please refer to the application guide on the Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship website.

• A competitive application must excel in the following three evaluation criteria (click here for more details)
  • Applicant's research excellence and leadership in the research domain
  • Quality of applicant's propsoed reserach program
  • Institutional commitment and demonstrated synergy between applicant and institutional strategic priorities.
• Applicants intending to take up the fellowship at Western should first contact their fellowship supervisor to request the support of their application.
• Applicants should consult Important Dates for Faculty Deadlines.

Application Process: Western has a 3-stage application process to review applications from potential applicants, select the most competitive applicants and provide them the Institutional Letter of Endorsement to be submitted along with the application package by the applicants.  

All applicants are responsible for meeting any Western internal deadlines set by their Faculties and SGPS.

Stage 1
Faculty-led Selection Committee, coordinated by Associate Dean Graduate, with SGPS participation, selects excellent applications to be nominated by Western. For Stage 1 review and selection process, committee requires the complete application package, minus 2 pages of the supervisor letter and, in lieu of referee letters, a brief email from each referee confirming that they will provide a letter. The application package must be submitted to the Faculty Graduate Office no later than  June 15, 2022  via email:  weresgrd@uwo.ca  

Stage 2
Nominees and their supervisors complete all components of the application package including referee letters. Complete application packages provided to SGPS no later than June 27, 2022.

Stage 3
SGPS works with nominees and supervisors to refine the packages.
Western Internal Banting Competition Deadline: July 25, 2022, at 11:59 PD EDT, NO
EXCEPTIONS

Western Research, on behalf of the Vice-President (Research), invites applications from all eligible individuals for Western’s Postdoctoral Fellowships Program. This program is administered by Western Research.

Western’s Postdoctoral Fellowships Program provides funding to the very best postdoctoral applicants who will contribute positively to research excellence at the university and help advance Western's strategic research plan.  

The Postdoctoral Fellowships Program’s objectives are to:

• Attract top-tier postdoctoral talent, nationally and internationally;
• Develop their leadership potential; and
• Position them for success as tomorrow’s research leaders.

Application deadline: Tuesday November 9 at 4:00pm (Eastern).

• Guidelines
• Application Form

Update (08/21)- Guidelines updated to clarify a pplicants may have, or be near completion of, a PhD   or PhD-equivalent or health professional degree  (see Section 2.1.1, General eligibility), and f unding for successful applications will begin on a mutually agreed upon date   within the 2022 calendar year (see Section 1.3.4, Project time period).

Value and Duration: 

• Fellowships will provide a minimum stipend of $45,000/year plus benefits for two years (non-renewable). 13% benefits, and a 1.5% stipend increase in year 2, for a total value of $102,464 over 2 years (non-renewable).
• Matching requirement:  Western Research will contribute up to 50% of the Fellowship costs. The host Faculty and/or supervisor are responsible for securing the remaining 50% of costs (through, for example, grant funding held by the supervisor, industry funding, or departmental-level or faculty-level support). Supervisors and Faculties are free to offer total stipends above $45,000/year, if they have the funding to do so.  In a limited number of cases Western Research may consider funding up to 100% of the Fellowship based on demonstrated need and lack of available matching funding. 

Eligibility: See Guidelines for full eligibility details. 

• Western University guidelines on Postdoctoral Scholars
• The applicant’s PhD (including PhD-equivalent or health professional degree) must have been granted (official convocation/graduation date)  within three (3) years prior to the proposed start date of the Postdoctoral Fellowship .  All PhD requirements must have been met by the start date of the award.  
• Applicants who received their PhD before more than three (3) years prior to the proposed start date and who have experienced circumstances or interruptions that have affected their research projects, professional career, or academic achievement since receiving their PhD are also eligible to apply
• Preference may be given to applicants who received their PhD from institutions other than Western University.
• Applicants who currently hold a postdoctoral position at Western, or have previously held a postdoctoral position at Western, are  not eligible to apply.
• Applicants cannot currently hold a permanent faculty position, or a faculty position leading to permanency. 
• Successful applicants cannot hold a postdoctoral position at another institution for the duration of this award.
• Applicants must secure written commitment of a qualified faculty member at Western who has the expertise, experience, and capacity to act as the Principal Supervisor.
• Applicants who are not Canadian citizens will be required to secure all necessary permits, visas, or documentation required by all relevant jurisdictions. More information can be found on Western’s  School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies’ website

Application Details: See Guidelines and Application Form for full details. 

1. The  Postdoctoral Fellow applicant  must submit a complete Postdoctoral Fellowships Program Application Form with the following required attachments:  

• Letters of support from three (3) referees;
• Research Project Proposal (4 pages max.); 
• Bibliography/References (2 pages max.);
• Postdoctoral Supervisor Statement (3 pages max.)
• Canadian Common CV for the Postdoctoral scholar;
• Most significant contributions (1 page max.); and
• Proof of PhD.    

2. The  Principal Supervisor  (in consultation with the Postdoctoral Applicant) must submit a Western University ROLA proposal for the application.
   The proposal must be:

• Complete (i.e., all relevant fields are populated including the fields for identifying the source of the required matching funds);
• Consistent with the application form; and
• Approved by all relevant parties through the ROLA proposal system.   

ROLA Proposal deadline: Tuesday November 2, 2021

Application deadline:  Tuesday November 9 at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern).   Email application materials to  intgrant@uwo.ca . No late submissions will be accepted.  

Contact: For more information, please contact  Deanne van Tol , Research Development Officer

• MITACS Elevate Postdoctoral Fellowship Program  MITACS has issued a call for proposals to the MITACS Elevate postdoctoral fellowship program.  MITACS Elevate is a pilot fellowship program for postdoctoral fellows (PDFs) at Ontario universities to develop collaborations with local industry.

• Value and Duration: $55,000/year with $10,000 for research support; two-year duration. 

• Number of Awards: Varies each year.

• Eligibility: Please refer to the eligibility guidelines on MITACS Elevate Postdoctoral Fellowship Program website.

• Application Details: Please refer to the application guide on the MITACS website.

• Important dates: February 10, 2021 5pm (PT) deadline to submit a completed application package to be considered for Mitacs Elevate fellowship.

• Contact: Mihaela Harmos

• The NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowships (PDF) program provides support to a core of the most promising researchers at a pivotal time in their careers. The fellowships are also intended to secure a supply of highly qualified Canadians with leading-edge scientific and research skills for Canadian industry, government and academic institutions.

• Value and Duration: $45,000 per year for two years.

• Eligibility: To be considered to be eligible for support, as of the deadline date of the year in which you apply, you must be a Canadian citizen, or a permanent resident of Canada and hold or expect to hold a doctorate in one of the fields of research that NSERC supports.

• Application Details: Please refer to the application instructions on the NSERC website.