Setting the goal
The NCE program mobilizes Canada's research talent in the academic, private and public
sectors and applies it to achieving economic growth, sustaining job creation,
advancing knowledge and improving the quality of life of Canadians.
Program Criteria
To ensure that the NCE program objectives are met, proposals for NCE funding are assessed against
the program's five criteria of excellence:
- the excellence of the research program;
- the opportunity for developing highly qualified personnel;
- the networking and partnership possibilities;
- the opportunity for knowledge exchange and technology exploitation; and
- the quality of the management of the network.
During the term of their NCE grants, networks are also evaluated regularly against
these criteria. The quality of research is considered first and NCE funding is continued
only if the research is excellent. In other words, while research excellence is a
necessary condition for the initial or continued funding of an NCE, it is not a
sufficient condition, because the goals of the program are also reflected in the
four additional criteria.
The NCE peer-review process
To make sure that only excellent research is funded and that all applications are
treated fairly, the NCE program uses a peer-review system. Peer review is an
assessment by impartial experts of research proposals in their specific fields.
For each competition, the NCE Steering Committee appoints a Selection Committee
composed of international experts with broad expertise in the domains of the three
granting agencies. The Selection Committee reviews the reports of the expert panels
that evaluate each application and sends a priority-ranked list of networks to the
NCE Steering Committee. The Steering Committee then decides which networks will
receive funding.
Eligible research
In general, NCE competitions are open to all research areas. Before each
competition, the NCE Steering Committee may decide to target specific areas,
taking into consideration:
- the amount of funding available;
- the broad areas already represented in the existing networks; and
- the need to promote or develop specific areas in accordance with national needs.
Organizations eligible to receive funds are universities, affiliated hospitals and
research institutes, and post-secondary institutions that have a research mandate.
Researchers and organizations that receive NCE funds must meet the general
eligibility requirements of one of the three federal granting agencies administering
the program. An industry consortium may receive funds to administer a network.
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