Royal College Intramural Grant Program
The Royal College Intramural Grant Program was created to support research and scholarship that advance strategic areas of focus within specialty medical education. Intramural grants specifically provide a route of competitive funding for Royal College staff, contracted educators, Standing Committee members and other individuals receiving payment for services rendered and who are ineligible to apply, for example, to the Royal College extramural funding programs.
Royal College Intramural Grants support high-quality medical education and health systems-focused research and scholarship to advance the fields of residency education, continuing professional development and other health system-related areas of focus in Canada (e.g. health workforce planning).
Decisions regarding allocation of this grant, ranging from $1,000 up to $20,000 will be made in alignment with special calls for applications. Prioritization will be given to community-based research, those involving multi-disciplinary teams, and/or applications that are co-developed with patient partners. The allocation of funding can support human resources, associated publication costs, travel for presentation by the principal applicant and other project-related costs. Presentation at an associated Royal College conference is encouraged.
This year, the Royal College is seeking meaningful insight from the Canadian medical education community to contribute to policy and standards that advance specialty medicine and inform areas aligned with:
- Equity, diversity and inclusion
- Planetary health
- Competency-based medical education (e.g. innovations, adaptations, etc.)
- Specialist wellness
For more information and to view previously funded projects visit Recipients.
It is also expected that the proposal adheres to the highest scholarly standards; relevant literature, best practices and theories underlying the evaluation proposal and relevant question(s) should be explicitly described.
Application & Adjudication
Proposals will be judged on merit in accordance with alignment to the Royal College Intramural Grant, importance of project/novelty of issue(s) addressed, strength of introduction/background, relevance and alignment to the priority areas of interest, methodologic rigor, and feasibility of project completion and overall quality of application (e.g. Grantsmanship).
Eligibility
Applications must include at least one Royal College employee, educator or other paid contractor. The involvement of the Royal College employee, educator or contractor in the development of the idea, application and planned engagement in the project will require explicit description. Joint [Royal College staff / affiliate / educator and external applicant(s)] applications are possible and could include one or more departments, disciplines or faculties of medicine.
Exceptionally, when applications are received by non-standing committee members whose role(s) may place them in perceived/real conflict of interest (e.g. active member of a committee closely aligned with the project or product under adjudication) eligibility to apply will be approved only following review and consideration by members of the Intramural Grant Selection Committee.
Applications must meet contemporary standards of research and scholarship, which include the relevance of the question, the appropriateness of the methodological approach, ethical review of the submission, accountability for funds requested and the feasibility of successfully completing the project during the funding period.
Individuals who currently hold funding from the Royal College research grant programs are not eligible to receive additional funding in this competition; however, they may still supervise a trainee or student, and can be a co-investigator on proposals submitted by other principal investigators on one application/competition.
An application is considered closed only when the final submission documents and financial items have been approved.
Submission
Applications must be submitted by completing the official grant form by the application deadline (no exceptions) on or before September 26th, 2023, before 11:59pm (applicant’s local time). Attachments sent by email will not be accepted and are ineligible to be attached to the application.
Please make all attempts to exclude identifying information within the grant abstract.
What to include in your application
- Provide a clear explanation of the named Fellow’s role and contributions to the project
- Project Abstract describing the rationale, objectives, study design, methods, analysis and outcomes. (300-word maximum)
- Project Description (3,400 word maximum), this should include:
- Objectives, literature and theoretical foundations, methodology, and significance to postgraduate specialty medical education or continuing professional development;
- Summary of the study design including the process for ethics approval as applicable;
- Details on data collection, analysis, proposed project schedule and anticipated outcomes/impacts;
- Planned dissemination of research findings.
Please include all of the documents below and refer to the following guidelines.
- Reference list
- Please download and complete the Grant Budget template. Once completed, please attach the document. Use of the Royal College Budget Template is mandatory.
- Budget justification
- Letter(s) of support, from your division, department, or faculty representative
- Abbreviated curricula vitae detailing principal and co-investigators’ education, teaching and administrative positions held in the last five years, publications grants received and any additional pertinent training (maximum 4 pages each CV. Any curricula vitae that exceed the 4 pages will be truncated).
- Copy of research instruments (if available).
- Letter of approval from Ethics Board or letter of submission for ethical approval (if applicable).
Selection
The Intramural Grants Selection Committee will include a cadre of two expert scholars. They will support the receipt, processing and adjudication of proposals and collectively make determinations regarding funding.
Selection is based on the application’s scholarly merit, clarity of the proposal, and perceived impact for advancing specialty medicine.
Preference will be given to work that is considered worthy of inclusion in a peer-reviewed publication and that is closely aligned to the mission/vision of the Royal College.
Number of applications
Eligible staff, standing committee members and paid educators/contractors may apply as a principal applicant on only one submission per Intramural Grant competition so long as they do not hold any other active Royal College research grant(s) (e.g. PI on a MERG). Multiple applications are allowed only in the role of co-applicant (and not to exceed two active grants at any given time plus one principal investigator, as applicable). If you have any questions related to number of applications, contact intramuralgrants@royalcollege.ca prior to submitting your proposal. Staff will be available to assist in determining eligibility.
Duration
Funding is available for projects up to a maximum of two years in duration.
Budget
A budget outline and justification must be provided. Please refer to budgetary guidelines. An amount equivalent to 75 per cent of the grant will be disbursed upon project commencement, and 25 per cent upon project completion and receipt of a final report.
The final report must be sent to the Program Coordinator, Research Grants and Awards, Research Unit, Royal College.
Dissemination
The publication of project findings is expected. The financial support of “The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada” must be acknowledged in all publications resulting from this grant. Presentation of research is encouraged at an associated Royal College conference (e.g. International Conference on Residency Education, Simulation Summit, and CPD Accreditation Conference) or equivalent. Identifying the Royal College as a funder is expected, when applicable.
Submission deadline
11:59 p.m. (applicant’s local time) September 26, 2023. Late applications will not be considered.
Contact us
Program Coordinator, Intramural Grants
Research Unit
Email: intramuralgrants@royalcollege.ca
