Information and instructions for Research Administrators for managing the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D) Program

Table of contents

• Definitions
• Roles and responsibilities
• Management of Applications via ResearchNet
  • ResearchNet roles and access privileges
  • Submitting Applications to CIHR Using eApproval on ResearchNet
  • Information for Applicants on the eApproval Process
• Institutional quotas
• Eligibility review
• Selection process
  • Appointment of the institutional selection committee(s)
  • Selection review
  • Selection criteria
  • Privacy, confidentiality and conflicts of interest
  • The Official Languages Act
• Application deadline
• Post-award information
  • Policies
  • Monitoring
  • Public communications
• Contact us

Definitions

Agency: Any of the three federal granting agencies — CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC.
Quota: The maximum number of applications that an institution can forward to each agency's national competition.
Award holder: Individual who has an active award from CIHR, NSERC or SSHRC
CGRS D: Canada Graduate Research Scholarship - Doctoral Program.
CIHR: Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
eApproval: Electronic Approval Tool on ResearchNet.
Institution: A Canadian institution that receives a quota for the CGRS D program.
NSERC: Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
SSHRC: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Roles and responsibilities

Institutions are responsible for:

• complying with the Agreement on the Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions;
• abiding by the policies, deadlines, and guidelines for the CGRS - Doctoral Program;
• promoting the program, the instructions on how to apply, the Frequently Asked Questions and the Learning Activities and Resources;
• verifying the legitimacy and validity of transcripts provided in applications (i.e. transcripts are official and up-to-date);
• setting and publicizing their internal deadline in ResearchNet, in order to allow for ample time to review their applications before the November 23 deadline;
• submit the List of Applications-Form [ PDF (164 KB) ] to CIHR (for more information, refer to the Application deadline section);
• administering the awards.

Management of applications via ResearchNet

ResearchNet provides a single point of entry for applicants and institutions. The Electronic Approval Tool on ResearchNet is used to manage applications and submit applications to CIHR. The step-by-step guide for Research Administrators entitled Electronic Approval for Research Institutions is available on ResearchNet under Administration, Electronic Tool (No Quota) – Access Administrator.

ResearchNet roles and access privileges

Below is a summary of each role available on the Electronic Approval Tool for the Research Institution on ResearchNet:

1. Access Administrator (AA)

   The access administrator is granted the highest level of permissions. CIHR collects the name of one contact person from each institution who is given the role of access administrator.

   Note: If there are changes to the role of the Access Administrator (AA), CIHR must be informed by the institution as soon as possible in order to avoid any delays to the running of the competition.

   • As the access administrator of the Electronic Approval Tool, it is your responsibility to:
     • Manage the access of the principal users for each program. (there can only be one principal user per program per institution). Note that the Principal User can also be the Access Administrator.
     • Manage secondary and read-only access should the principal user be unavailable.
2. Principal User (PU)
   • The principal user is given access by the Access Administrator (AA) to the Electronic Approval Tool activity for a specific program. If the principal user changes in your institution, the Access Administrator is the only one that may assign a new person to this role.
   • As the principal user for each program, you will have the ability to:
     • Manage the access of the secondary and read-only users
     • Manage internal deadlines (global and individual)
     • Manage all applications process (access, review, approve and submit) to the funding organization.
3. Secondary User (SU)
   • The secondary user is given access to the Electronic Approval Tool activity for a specific program.
   • As the secondary user for each program, you will have the ability to:
     • Manage all applications (access, review, approve) to the funding organization.
4. Read-Only User (ROU)
   • The read-only user is given access to view an applicant's full application once a principal user has assigned them to a specific program and application(s). They will not have the ability to return, approve or submit the application to the funding organization.
   • As the read-only user, you will have the ability to:
     • Review applications assigned to you.

Submitting applications to CIHR using eApproval on ResearchNet

In order to submit applications to CIHR, Research Administrators must be assigned the role of AA, PU or SU in ResearchNet. Otherwise, they must liaise with the AA at their institution to electronically submit the applications via the eApproval process. Once the application is reviewed and approved by the institution, it can be submitted electronically to CIHR on behalf of the applicant.

Information for applicants on the eApproval process

Applicants may find detailed instructions on the eApproval process in the "Electronic Approval tool - Applicant's Guide" under the "Enter Proposal Information" task, "Details" subtask.

Institutional quotas

Each eligible Canadian institution is assigned a separate quota from each agency for the CGRS Doctoral Program. For more details on quotas for CIHR, refer to the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship-Doctoral (CGRS D) program Quotas.

Applicants who self-declare as Indigenous and whose nations or communities are located in Canada are NOT be considered as part of the institutional quota.

Applicants who are Indigenous and whose nations or communities are located in Canada have been instructed to complete the CGRS D Indigenous Attestation Form [ PDF (509 KB) ] and upload it within their application. This form may be used by Research Administrators to identify Indigenous applicants. It is the responsibility of the Research Administrators to list which applicants will be included as Indigenous applicants above and beyond the institutional quota within the List of Applications-Form [ PDF (164 KB) ]. For further information, consult the "Application deadline" section near the end of this document.

If an applicant has submitted an application in error directly to the institution, Research Administrators should reject the application so the applicant can re-submit via the proper channel. Applicants who should submit their application directly to CIHR have been instructed to complete the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship - Doctoral (CGRS D) program: Self-Declaration of No Institutional Affiliation with a Quota Form [ PDF (213 KB) ] if applicable and upload it within their application. This form may be used to identify applicants who have submitted their application to the institution in error.

Important: The "Institution Paid" field in the applicant's ResearchNeT application determines which organization will receive the application (Canadian institution with a quota or CIHR).

After consulting the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D) program: Application instructions to determine if the applicant is required to apply to an institution with a quota or directly to CIHR, refer to the following for what must be entered in the institution paid field:

• To submit an application directly to an institution with a quota, applicants must select the institution from the drop down menu of the "Institution Paid" field.
• To submit an application directly to CIHR, applicants must manually type CIHR or the name of the foreign institution in the "Other" field (depending on their location of tenure).

Where the applicant intends to hold the award has no impact on the channel through which they must apply. For more information on where and how an applicant should apply, consult the Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D) program: Application instructions. For further clarification, contact CIHR directly.

Eligibility review

Research Administrators are responsible for reviewing the applications for completeness, applicant eligibility, and subject matter eligibility. Applications must be compliant with the CGRS D funding opportunity.

It is recommended that the Research Administrators perform a thorough review of the eligibility window, as this is one of the primary reasons for the rejection of applications.

In addition, Research Administrators are responsible for:

• verifying that the applicant applied using the correct channel of application submission;
• verifying that uploaded documents are legible;
• ensuring documents that are uploaded as official transcripts also include the CGRS D Timeline for Doctoral Studies Form [ PDF (307 KB) ];
• validating that up-to-date official transcripts of the applicant's complete academic record (this includes all undergraduate and graduate studies, completed or ongoing) have been provided:
  • One copy of the legend (reverse of each transcript) must be included;
  • Transcript text must be horizontal and uploaded in order from least recent to most recent. Original copies of any uploaded transcripts must be retained since they may be requested by CIHR for verification purposes at any point in the process;
  • Providing a letter from the institution confirming the total number of full‑time equivalent months of doctoral registration as of December 31 of the year of application if transcripts are unclear.

Note 1: Institutions can determine whether or not unofficial transcripts will be accepted as part of their internal review process.

Note 2: Up-to-date official transcripts are defined as transcripts issued by the Registrar's Office and dated or issued in the fall session of the year of the application (if currently registered), or after the last term completed (if not currently registered). Opening the envelope to scan the transcript will not render it unofficial for CIHR's purposes.

Note 3: Certified true copies of official transcripts from the institution are accepted. A certified true copy is defined as a copy of the original document (or of the original translated document if official transcript is not in either English or French).

Note 4: Applicants who are or were registered at an institution that does not provide transcripts must submit, in lieu of a transcript, a letter bearing the official institution seal/stamp or a letter signed by the Dean of Graduate Studies confirming the applicant's program of study, the applicant's registration status, the date of initial registration, the degree obtained or sought and the fact that the institution does not provide transcripts.

Selection process

Appointment of the institutional selection committee(s)

The appointment of institutional selection committee(s) will be managed by the Faculty of Graduate Studies (or its equivalent). Each institution will establish the number of selection committees required to conduct the review. It is anticipated that such committees will have the necessary expertise to review the applications.

Individuals unaffiliated with the host institution may be members of the selection committees, particularly to deal with subject matter gaps caused by conflicts of interest and to ensure that applications in both official languages can be reviewed.

Peer review must be conducted in accordance with the CIHR Reviewers' Guide for Canada Graduate Research Scholarship – Doctoral (CGRS D) program.

Selection review

The purpose of the review is to identify those who will be submitted to CIHR using the institution's quotas. Institutions should not create an alternate list.

Institutions must conduct a rigorous and transparent merit review to identify applications that should be submitted to CIHR. Only application material submitted using ResearchNet can be considered during the merit review.

The merit review must be based on the selection criteria below. Criteria are weighted, and committee members must take each criterion into consideration when assigning a global score to an application. Institutions may use their own marking scheme to assign scores to applications, provided the proportional weight of each criterion is respected. Institutions may not add criteria to this list.

Considerations: Committee members must take into consideration special circumstances that may have affected the applicant's research, professional career, record of academic or research achievement, or completion of degrees. Applicants have been instructed to identify any impacts in a Special Circumstances document (found in the Other section of their application).

Selection criteria

The evaluation of CGRS D applications, whether by institutions or the agencies, is based on the following criteria:

Privacy, confidentiality and conflicts of interest

Institutions must have conflict of interest rules in place for the review of CGRS D applications. The members of the selection committees must agree to respect the institution's privacy, confidentiality and conflict of interest rules. Institutions may refer to the Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Policy of the Federal Research Funding Organizations, Access to Information Act, and Privacy Act for additional information.

The Official Languages Act

Under the Official Languages Act, federal institutions, including the agencies, must ensure respect for the rights of individual Canadians to receive services from federal institutions and organizations that provide services on their behalf, in the official language of their choice.

The agencies are committed to promoting equitable access by the following:

• ensuring that their funding opportunities enable the participation of both official language communities;
• providing applicants with equitable access to the information and resources in the official language of their choice;
• monitoring and promoting the participation of official language minority institutions, researchers and students in their programs.

Applications can be submitted in either official language; therefore, institutions must have mechanisms in place to review both English and French applications. All applicants are entitled to receive service in the official language of their choice.

If necessary, institutions can request support from the agencies to help them meet the standard of providing service in both official languages.

Application deadline

The competition deadline for institutions to submit quota applications to CIHR is November 23rd using the Electronic Approval Tool on ResearchNet. If the deadline falls on a weekend, applications can be submitted the following business day before 8:00 p.m. (ET).

Please note that CIHR will not accept modified or updated List of Applications-Form [ PDF (164 KB) ] or additional applications after the deadline. Submitting an application to CIHR using the Electronic Approval Tool is final; this action cannot be undone.

Research Administrators must:

• complete the List of Applications-Form [ PDF (164 KB) ] for the Canada Graduate Research Scholarships Doctoral Program and return it to CIHR via doctoralprogram-programmedoctoral@cihr-irsc.gc.ca.
  • The form must include an alphabetical list of recommended candidates up to the institution's application quota for CIHR.
  • Institutions are permitted to recommend an unlimited number of self-identified Indigenous applicants (whose nations or communities are located in Canada) above their application quota. These names must be identified by the Institution on the page 2 of the List of Applications Form.
• submit the recommended applications to CIHR via ResearchNet no later than 8:00 p.m. (ET) on November 23rd. If the deadline falls on a weekend, applications can be submitted the following business day before 8:00 p.m. (ET).

Note: Substitutions for ineligible or rejected applications will not be permitted.

It is the responsibility of the Research Administrator to inform all applicants of the outcome of the institution's internal selection process by December 15th. This must be done outside of ResearchNet (by email, etc).

Post-award information

Policies

The Tri-Agency Research Training Award Holder's Guide includes the post-award policies that apply to CGRS D awards.

Monitoring

The agencies will conduct periodic reviews of institutional selection processes. Agencies may contact institutions to request corrective action if it is deemed necessary.

Public communications

Successful applicants, institutions and agencies all benefit from public awareness of federally funded research and research training, and from promoting the value of this investment for Canadians.

Names of selection committee members, as well as clear conflict of interest guidelines and selection processes, must be established by the institution and published on its website.

Date modified:

2026-07-08