Studentship Awards

The 2024 competition is now open!

The Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children Studentship Award provides operational funding for successfully selected trainee projects. One-year of funding is available up to $15,000 for graduate students, post-doctoral research fellows, and clinical trainees to be paid one time per project. We are interested in a diversity of projects and welcome those that use innovative data analytics.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be enrolled at the University of Toronto in one of the following:
  • degree-granting graduate program;
  • post-graduate clinical training in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine; or
  • any post-doctoral position (at UofT or affiliated research institute)
• Proposed project must be aligned with the vision of the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children: "Harnessing interdisciplinary research to promote the flourishing of every child and family".
• Projects must be feasible to complete in 1 year.
• Strong research and supervisory track record must be demonstrated by applicant’s and supervisor’s CV.
• Proposed project must be for work outside of supervisor’s existing grant funding.
• Salary is not an eligible expense.

Note: graduate student project proposals do not have to be thesis work.

How to apply

Submit a complete package of application materials in a single PDF document, in the following order:

1. Complete the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children Studentship Application Form.
2. Submit 2-page project proposal.
3. Submit up to 1-page of references (max) & budget (not included in 2-page proposal limit).
4. Submit proof of academic track record, as follows:
   • graduate students: transcript & CV
   • postdoctoral fellows & clinical trainees: research graduate transcript (regardless of the year in which the degree was completed) & CV (Medical school transcripts are not required)
5. Complete the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children Supervisor Application Form.
6. Submit supervisor’s CV (can be a biosketch, but all current grants must be listed).
7. Supervisor Letter of Support.

Note: applications found to be incomplete will be returned to applicants for an opportunity to submit missing information.

Timeline 

Applications are due on Friday, August 2, 2024 at 12:00 pm (noon). Funding decisions will be communicated via email by September. 

Expectations

• Submit a project report at the end of term. The final project report, including key outcomes (e.g., peer-reviewed grant applications and publications), must be submitted within 60 days of the termination of the studentship to: leong.centre@sickkids.ca. Any requests for extension must be received in writing in advance of the end of your grant term. (Please specify the requested length of extension and rationelle). 
• Inform the Centre in writing of any publications (including abstracts), media, or measures of impact from the project.
• Acknowledge funding from the Edwin S.H. Leong Centre for Healthy Children at the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children in all publications and presentations. Use the Centre logo in all presentations, posters, print material, websites, etc. (high resolution graphic available upon request).
• Participate in ongoing engagement with the Centre, including presenting your work at educational events such as Leong Centre Rounds, responding to requests for survey/feedback, attending Trainee Hub events, etc.
• Inform the Centre in writing of any successful grants that build upon this work.

Adjudication criteria

Many factors are considered in the evaluation of an application and will be awarded at the discretion of the Co-Directors. Criteria for awarding funding include, but are not limited to:

• strength of project proposal and alignment with the goals of the Centre
• feasibility
• academic track record of applicant and supervisor

If you have any questions about this competition or your application, please contact Ellie Adler, Research Program Manager at ellie.adler@sickkids.ca. ellie.adler@sickkids.ca.