Information on CRM-ISM Postdoctoral Fellowships

Description and Duration of the Fellowship

CRM-ISM postdoctoral fellowships are awarded to beginning researchers who recently obtained a Ph.D. Researchers who received their doctorate more than five years before the application deadline are not eligible for the fellowship. The value of the fellowship is $40,000 per year, of which one half is paid jointly by the CRM and the ISM, and the other by a research group or professor from one of the ISM member universities. The fellowship permits the recipient to devote most of his or her time to postdoctoral research under the supervision of a professor from one of the ISM member universities. The duration of the fellowship is one year, renewable for a second if the research director writes a letter of support confirming that the work completed by the fellow over the first year is satisfactory and justifies the renewal of the fellowship. The stipend of the fellowship includes no teaching assignments; if the fellow teaches during his or her stay, he or she must receive an additional salary for the teaching tasks performed. To apply for a fellowship, click here.

Procedures and Deadlines :

Candidates submit their applications electronically to the official competition website: http://www.crm.umontreal.ca/CRM-ISM/index_e.html. ISM research groups and professors then consult the applications and prepare a ranked list of candidates whom they would be willing to support - this procedure is called "the proposition of candidates." Since half of the fellowship is funded by a research group or the research director, the support of the application is essential for the application to be considered in the final selection. All of the applications proposed by research groups or professors are evaluated, along with the supporting documents from the research groups, at the meeting for the final selection of fellows. The meeting for the selection of fellows is normally held during the first week of February.

Procedures for Proposing Candidates:

Candidates must be proposed by a scientific group. Exceptionnally, we can accept propositions from individual professors if, for example, the field of research of the candidate is not well-represented by any of the scientific groups. To propose a candidate for a CRM-ISM fellowship, a letter of support which includes the following information must be sent to the CRM:

  1. a brief evaluation of the candidate's abilities and potential.
  2. a description of how the candidate would integrate into the research group, and the name of the person with whom the candidate would work.
  3. if several candidates are proposed, a ranked list should be presented with a brief explanation of the ranking.
  4. the exact source of financing coming from the research group (for example, NSERC research grant, FQRNT, etc.).

Selection Criteria for CRM-ISM Fellowships:

  1. the excellence of the dossier
  2. the integration of the candidate into a research group
  3. the guarantee of financing from a research group.

The Selection Committee also takes into consideration the CRM's theme years for the two years of tenure of the fellowship; it is expected that at least one fellowship be awarded in a field directly related to these themes.

The Selection Committee

The Selection Committee is composed of members of the ISM Steering Committee who represent the universities that participate in the programme, the director of the CRM or his representative, and up to three experts chosen by the directors of the CRM and the ISM to complete the areas of expertise represented by the members of the Steering Committee. If a field of interest is over-represented on the committee, a member of the Steering Committee can be replaced by another member of his or her Department. The Committee members must vote according to the selection criteria; they cannot represent the interests of their own research groups.

Beginning Date of the Fellowship and Non-Deferral of CRM-ISM Fellowships

The beginning date of the postdoctoral fellowship is somewhat flexible: a fellowship can start any time between the initial award of the fellowship and January 1st of the following year. It is not accepted, however, for a fellowship to be deferred beyond January 1st. If a candidate awarded a fellowship cannot respect these time-limits, the fellowship cannot be awarded to him or her. If, however, the candidate so requests, his or her candidacy will be considered the following year - on the same level as the other applications - with the condition that the CRM-ISM receives an up-to-date CV before the competition deadline, and the support of the concerned research team or professor. It is not necessary to send new letters of recommendation.