Competition

* Unless explicitly noted, all times indicated for deadlines are for the appropriate NL timezone (NST or NDT)

A Global Fellowship Program to Promote Research on Child and Youth Development

The Jacobs CIFAR Research Fellowship Program is a globally competitive fellowship program for early and mid-career researchers whose work is dedicated to improving the learning and development of children and youth worldwide. The relevant disciplines include, but are not limited to, education sciences, psychology, economics, sociology, behavioral science, computer science, pedagogy, linguistics, neurosciences, and science of learning.

Particularly encouraged to apply are scholars who seek to combine multiple levels of analysis and engage in interdisciplinary work. A special focus lies on work to understand and embrace variability in learning; promote the generation, transfer, and practical application of evidence on human learning and development or increase the capacity to scale up effective education policies and practices.

CIFAR and the Jacobs Foundation are especially interested in the following questions, which are aligned with our research agenda:

• How do variations in individuals and contextual factors influence learning and development and learning outcomes?

• How can we design for learner variability at scale to enable all children to reach their potential as learners and in life?

• How can we produce interventions that reduce growing inequalities in children’s learning and overcome disparities in the impacts of digital technologies?

• How can we address the role of data to help learners and teachers make informed decisions about their learning and teaching?

To find out more about the Jacobs Foundation Strategy 2030 and research agenda, please visit the Jacobs Foundation website.

Fellowships are awarded to highly talented and innovative early and mid-career researchers who have received their PhD within the past 10 years. Funding from Jacobs Foundation Research Fellowships is awarded directly to the fellow’s institution and may be used by the fellow over a three-year period to cover a portion of the fellow’s salary and for any purpose in support of the fellow’s research, such as assistants’ salaries, equipment, technical assistance, professional travel, or trainee support.

The ideal fellow does not only have a great research idea but also a significant potential as a researcher to contribute as part of interdisciplinary teams within and beyond the network of the Jacobs Foundation. The application should include the broader ideas of the applicant as well as the research priorities during the Fellowship period.

In addition to the external funding agency’s submission procedures, this opportunity must also be submitted for Departmental, HSS Faculty, and Research Initiatives and Services (RIS) institutional reviews and approvals via Memorial's Researcher Portal (RP). In order to facilitate the HSS Faculty’s administrative review, please ensure "Heather C. O'Brien (Grants Facilitator)" and “Matthew Milner (Grants Facilitator)” are added as "Team Members" on your RP file. 

In accordance with University-wide approval protocols, all tabs of the RP file must be completed, the completed application must be uploaded to the “Attachments” tab, all supporting documentation including support for cash and in-kind commitments and/or letters of support must also be uploaded, and “Submit” must be pressed prior to the HSS internal deadline listed below. HSS cannot guarantee completion of an administrative review for application files that are incomplete and/or are submitted after the HSS deadline. For more detailed submission instructions and information, please consult the HSS Research Support Services website.

If you plan to apply to this competition or other research funding opportunities (as either PI or CI), e-mail an HSS Grants Facilitator, Heather C. O’Brien (HSSResearchAdmin@mun.ca or 864-8603) or Matthew Milner (HSSResearchGrants@mun.ca or 864-8050), to notify the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of your intent to apply. E-mailing the intent to apply as early as possible will help to facilitate an efficient review. A Grants Facilitator can answer any questions you may have about internal or external submission procedures and may also be able to help with proposal development.