Undergraduate

Dean's Summer Research Projects

Open to all first and second-year undergraduate medical students, the Dean’s Summer Research Projects program acts to facilitate exposure to scientific research, fostering skills that will be crucial throughout our students’ careers as medical professionals. The initiative is intended to ignite a passion for research, promoting an understanding of the vital role research plays in health care today.

Current round of project proposal submission has closed. The next round of Dean’s Projects submissions will begin October 2024 for 2025 Summer Research Projects.

 

Application Process:

  1. An annual call for proposals is sent out to all faculty in the fall. Faculty will fill in the 1-page proposal form below and develop a potential summer project and submit it to the OVDR.
  2. Proposals will be adjudicated, and the OVDR will award projects for the 2024 Summer Research Project program based on the quality of proposals and funding available.
  3. The OVDR will post awarded 2024 project proposals on the dean’s projects google drive for students to review in early January. Available projects have been released to 1st and 2nd year undergraduate medical students and can be found on the Dean’s Project Google Drive.
  4. Interested students may contact faculty with awarded proposals to express their interest in working with them.
  5. Faculty and students who have agreed to work together return a student-supervisor agreement to our office, and we will remove the matched proposal from google drive.

Please contact our office with any inquiries.

Biomedical Summer Research Projects

The Biomedical Summer Research Projects initiative facilitates the research training of undergraduate students enrolled in the following programs: Biomedical Foundations, Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Cellular, Physiological, and Pharmacological Sciences, Interdisciplinary Biomedical Science, and Biomedical Neuroscience.

We are currently accepting applications until February 28, 2024.

Biomedical Summer Research Projects are a maximum of 16 weeks in length and run over the summer months (May-August) exclusively. Students and supervisors with similar research interests are encouraged to contact each other and begin the application process. In an effort to help students and supervisors connect, supervisors are encouraged to submit research project proposals to biomed.projects@usask.ca. The proposal, which can come from any area of biomedical research, will be posted on Google Drive for students to view. The OVDR will update the list on a regular basis with projects that have been submitted and/or filled. In order to do this, we ask that supervisors let us know when they are no longer seeking students for the project proposed. Please note that supervisors are also free to contact students they would like to work with.

Note: For detailed information including project selection criteria, require approvals, timelines, and more please refer to the appropriate guidelines below.

If you have any questions or are interested in adjudicating for this initiative, please contact Keleigh Garcea at biomed.projects@usask.ca.

MD Year-Round Volunteer Research Opportunity

The Office of the Vice Dean Research (OVDR) is issuing an official call for project proposals from College of Medicine faculty who are seeking MD Research Volunteers for research projects. This call is in response to feedback from U of S medical students stating their desire to increase the ability to participate in active research projects throughout the year. The OVDR aims to foster connections for MD research projects as a way to encourage more students to become passionate about research. Active research experience is invaluable because of the increasingly vital role research plays in today's health care, therefore student engagement in this field is critical.

A list of available projects can be found on Google Drive.

Project proposal forms can be sent in by faculty to deans.projects@usask.ca

As volunteer participation in research activities during the academic year may impact your academic progress, you are required to receive confirmation that you are a student in good academic standing in the Undergraduate MD Program. 

Supplemental Publication Funding

We pleased to announce applications for the 2023-24 fiscal year are now being accepted!

The OVDR would like to reinforce the CoM's commitment to trainee research by amending the terms of reference for our Supplemental Publication Funding initiative to open it to students (undergraduate and graduate), post-doctoral fellows, and resident applicants.

This initiative encourages the dissemination of research activities conducted by CoM trainees either independently or collaboratively with CoM faculty. Eligible students may apply once per fiscal year (May 1-April 30), and funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please note that only invoices dated within the current fiscal year (May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024) are eligible for funding.

2024 Interdisciplinary Summer Research Program

This annual undergraduate research program provides summer students with valuable research experience and encourages them to continue on to graduate studies. Student co-supervision must include a faculty member from at least two of the following colleges: Medicine, Pharmacy and Nutrition, Nursing, and Kinesiology, for the duration of the award period. 

Students and supervisors with similar research interests are encouraged to contact each other to begin the application process. 

We are currently accepting applications for the 2024 Summer Projects until February 28, 2024.

All undergraduate students enrolled in these colleges are eligible to apply. Students must have a minimum average of 80% in their previous two terms to be competitive. Co-supervisors must be eligible to hold research funds for the duration of the award period.

For details regarding the program, please see attached guidelines, application form, and evaluation rubric.

Please contact us with any questions or comments.  

MD Summer Research Experience

Please email deans.projects@usask.ca for more information!

Letters of Excellence

Letters of Excellence acknowledge those students that demonstrated outstanding performance and commitment to their research projects. Students must be nominated by their supervisors to be considered for this honour. 

At the end of the term of the research project, supervisors will be sent a call for nominations. They will then be required to write a short letter of recommendation which should address some of the following key areas:

  • Commitment to learning
  • Keen interest in the topic
  • Work ethic
  • Quality of work
  • Student contribution to the research

Once the nomination is received by the OVDR, it will be reviewed and if deemed successful, a Letter of Excellence will be written by the Vice Dean Research commending the student's demonstration of strengths and work ethic. 

Note: Only a select few letters will be written.

This virtual showcase is intended to exhibit the outstanding work undertaken by our students, and to recognize their significant contributions to the research endeavors at the College of Medicine. Project posters and abstracts will be available for viewing until October 31st. The 2023 live poster presentations took place on October 18th, 2023.

Faculty

College of Medicine Research Award - Open Call

The Office of the Vice-Dean Research (OVDR) in the College of Medicine is excited to announce the 2023 College of Medicine Research Awards (CoMRAD). The CoMRAD provides seed funding (up to $30,000) for novel pilot and/or feasibility studies that will facilitate future applications to provincial, national, and global funding opportunities. Funding takes place January - December 2024.   

The next round of CoMRAD will begin April 2024.

CoMRAD-SCPOR Data and Data Support Opportunity

There is an opportunity for patient-oriented research CoMRAD proposals to receive support from data and data services through the Saskatchewan Centre for Patient-Oriented Research (SCPOR) in partnership with the Health Research Data Platform – Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK). If a project requires data and data services support, the Principal Investigator must follow the process outlined below prior to submitting their full application to ensure support is available.

Applicants conducting patient-oriented research who are interested in access to data in the Health Research Data Platform-Saskatchewan (HRDP-SK) to address their research question should complete the Stage 1 – Feasibility & Resource Check Form. If assistance is needed, a consultation may be scheduled by contacting hrdp-sk@hqc.sk.ca. The team will be provided with a Confirmation of Feasibility and Resources Letter if their request is approved. This document must be uploaded to Supplementary materials and included your application submission to SHRF.

For more information about the HRDP-SK please visit the HRDP-SK website or contact hrdp-sk@hqc.sk.ca.

Please contact com.rad@usask.ca with any questions.

Please note: CoMRAD projects are for one year only, and the faculty's academic appointment must continue through the end of the full granting period in order to be eligible. Applicants are responsible for the submission of all necessary documents. Failure to do so will result in disqualification from the CoMRAD competition. In 2022, we are resuming the Office of the Vice Dean Research's regular College of Medicine Research Award (CoMRAD) program call, in which we are no longer supporting one final year of post-COVID initiatives, guidelines, and requirements which were contained in previous CoMRAD packages specific for post-COVID measures.

College of Medicine Bridge Funding

Aimed at supporting College of Medicine (CoM) faculty in achievements of research excellence and encouraging application for Tri-Agency funding, this competitive initiative is available to all faculty with a primary academic appointment in the CoM that will continue through the full granting period. 

Bridge Funding can be obtained for CIHR Project Grants; up to $50,000 CAD over 2 years.

To Apply: Within 3 weeks of final notification of the Tri-Agency results, applicants must submit a copy of the Tri-Agency notice of award (notice of decision document) and the reviewer's comments, plus a budget justification, as a single PDF document via email.

Note: Paper applications will not be accepted. CoMBRIDGE notifications of decision will be sent via email. 

Please contact our office with any questions or comments.

The OVDR recognizes that faculty members may need to take a leave (parental, personal, medical, etc.) during their career. Unfortunately, in the context of today’s competitive academic environment, taking a leave has the potential to negatively impact research productivity, and in turn impact a researcher’s career.

Researchers should not have to worry about exchanging their career trajectories to attend to personal, real-life responsibilities. It is intended that this grant will provide support to minimize the impact of an extended leave period on research activities.

Applicants may request up to $10,000 for a duration of up to one year.

Please contact our office with any inquiries.

The College of Medicine Supplemental Publication Funding program now only supports publications that are copublished with graduate and undergraduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and residents. (See Publication Funding details under undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate sections below).

Please see OVPR Internal Funding Programs for information about available Publications Funding for faculty.

Conference Funding

The OVDR is proud to offer a conference funding opportunity open to all faculty members with a primary academic appointment in the College of Medicine. This initiative is intended to support faculty, clusters, groups, and departments who are interested in organizing conferences, seminars, symposiums, workshops, or webinars in order to aid in the advancement of knowledge and scientific discovery.

Note: This opportunity will be offered from May 1, 2023, forward as an ongoing call. We will not be backdating any virtual conference costs with invoices prior to May 1, 2023.

Please contact our office with any inquiries.

Graduate

College of Medicine Graduate Student Awards

The CoMGRAD Scholarship Program supports research with the College of Medicine through awards to students who have demonstrated academic and research excellence. The guiding principles of this program include:

  1. Maximizing the use of CoM funding to support as many worthy students as possible
  2. Encourage and reward the pursuit of competitive external funding by both students and supervisors.

Detailed information can be found by accessing Graduate Studies Funding Opportunities page.

College of Medicine Travel Award (CoMTA)

Masters and Doctoral Graduate Students and Post Doctoral Fellows in the College of Medicine are encouraged to participate in national and international scientific conferences and workshops, particularly those events which are specifically related to their area of research. The College believes that participation in such events is an important element in the training of biomedical and health researchers. The Conference Travel Fund has been established to assist individuals with costs incurred to attend Scientific Meetings.

College of Medicine Masters and Post-Doctoral Fellows may submit an application in order to receive up to $1500.00 travel assistance one time per program. Doctoral students may submit two applications to receive up to $1500.00 travel assistance twice per program. Students who transfer from the MSc to the PhD are eligible for one award while a MSc student and two while a PhD student.

Detailed information can be found by accessing Graduate Studies Funding Opportunities page.

Supplemental Publication Funding

We pleased to announce applications for the 2023-24 fiscal year are now being accepted!

The OVDR would like to reinforce the CoM's commitment to trainee research by amending the terms of reference for our Supplemental Publication Funding initiative to open it to students (undergraduate and graduate), post-doctoral fellows, and resident applicants.

This initiative encourages the dissemination of research activities conducted by CoM trainees either independently or collaboratively with CoM faculty. Eligible students may apply once per fiscal year (May 1-April 30), and funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please note that only invoices dated within the current fiscal year (May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024) are eligible for funding.

The College of Medicine (CoM) offers a number of funding opportunities for graduate students. Graduate students may receive funding from a stipend, an award, or a combination of sources. The CoM encourages graduate students to apply for all internal and external funding for which they are eligible.

Please access the Graduate Studies Funding Opportunities page for details about funding opportunities for graduate students.

Post Graduate and Residents

Postdoctoral Fellows

Postdoctoral Fellows (PDFs) are valuable members of the university; they contribute immensely to the vitality of the research environment. In general, PDFs come to the university in order to:

  • gain additional research experience and expertise
  • develop the skills and knowledge necessary to become independent investigators themselves
  • engage in research projects that provide the challenge necessary for intellectual growth rather than provision of technical support

Currently, the only funding initiative for PDFs offered by the OVDR is the supplemental publication funding.

However, there are external agencies that provide PDF funding support.

For details, please access the PDF website.

Supplemental Publication Funding

We pleased to announce applications for the 2023-24 fiscal year are now being accepted!

The OVDR would like to reinforce the CoM's commitment to trainee research by amending the terms of reference for our Supplemental Publication Funding initiative to open it to students (undergraduate and graduate), post-doctoral fellows, and resident applicants.

This initiative encourages the dissemination of research activities conducted by CoM trainees either independently or collaboratively with CoM faculty. Eligible students may apply once per fiscal year (May 1-April 30), and funding will be allocated on a first-come, first-serve basis. Please note that only invoices dated within the current fiscal year (May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024) are eligible for funding.

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