Canadian Mathematical Society Edmonton, AB June, 2011 Anne-Marie Thompson, Director

Canadian Mathematical Society Edmonton, AB

June, 2011

Anne-Marie Thompson, DirectorMadeleine Bastien, Team Leader

Physical and Mathematical SciencesResearch Grants

Outline

2011 Discovery Grants Competition Results

NSERC News

Questions & Discussions

2011 Discovery Grants CompetitionGeneral Context

Second year of implementation of Conference model, as recommended by the Grant Selection Committee Structure Review

– 12 Evaluation Groups of which Mathematics & Statistics is one

– Flexible composition of Sections to ensure comprehensive review of applications

– Members from different Evaluation Groups joined various Sections to review applications covering topics that cross the traditional boundaries between disciplines

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2011 Discovery Grants CompetitionGeneral Context

Two-stage review process as recommended by the International Review of the Discovery Grants Program

Process separates the merit assessment from the funding recommendation

Evaluation Groups do not make direct funding recommendations for any individual application

Executive Committee makes final funding recommendation to NSERC which balances bin values and success rates, within available budget

Merit assessment of applications decoupled from the previous grant held by applicants

Mathematics and Statistics Evaluation Group Membership (2011)

- Group Chair: Gail Ivanoff (Ottawa)

- Section Chairs: - Matthias Neufang (Carleton)

- David Stephens (McGill)

- John Stockie (SFU)

- Michael Bennett (UBC) - Benoit Collins (Ottawa)

- Rudolph Beran (U.C. Davis) - Richard Cook (Waterloo)

- Octavian Cornea (Montréal) - Robert McCann (Toronto)

- Alan Dow (UNC, Charlotte) - Alexander Melnikov (Alberta)

- Hermann Eberl (Guelph) - Duncan Murdoch (UWO)

- Nantel Bergeron (York) - Lia Bronsard (McMaster)

Mathematics and Statistics Evaluation Group Membership (2011)

- Holger Teismann (Acadia) - Peter Song (U. Michigan)

- Frederi Viens (Purdue) - Olivier Collin (UQAM)

- Liqun Wang (Manitoba) - Xiao Zhao (MUN)

- Christopher Godsil (Waterloo) - Alejandro Murua (Montréal)

- Eyal Goren (McGill) - Sheldon Lin (Toronto)

- Julie Zhou (Victoria) - Thomas Brustle (Bishop’s)

- Alexandra Shlapentokh (East Carolina U.)

Overall Statistics – 2011 DG Competition

Number of Applications

No. of Awards

Amount Awarded

Success rate (%)

AverageGrant

Early-Career Researchers 457 245 $5.5M 54 $22.5k

Established Researchers

Applicants who held a

grant1,858 1,377 $48.3M 74 $35.0k

Applicant not previously holding a

grant1

1,167 380 $10.7M 33 $28.1k

1. Includes returning unfunded applicants and experienced researchers submitting a first application.

Mathematics & Statistics Competition Results for 2011 (2010)

No. of Applications

No. of Awards

Amount Awarded

Success rate (%)

AverageGrant

Early-Career Researchers

28(41)

19(30)

$216k($432k)

68(73)

$11.4k($14.4k)

Established Researchers

Applicants who held a

grant

165(192)

130(134)

$2,383k($2,880k)

79(70)

$18.3k($21.5k)

Applicant not

previously holding a

grant1

78(57)

30(16)

$408k($226k)

38(28)

$13.6k($14.1k)

1. Includes returning unfunded applicants and experienced researchers submitting a first application.

2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics

Established ResearchersEarly-career ResearchersRenewals Others

Statistics 79% 32% 57%

Pure & Applied Mathematics

79% 43% 79%

2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics

Multiple calibration sessions leading up to competition

Differences in interpretation in merit indicators between Mathematics and Statistics Sections– Example includes assessment of training plan

– Distinguishing between Insufficient vs Moderate vs Strong

– Still thinking about expected outcome

Difference in distribution between Sections

Led to separation of budgets

Desire to fund up to Quality Bin J (SSS) for both Math and Statistics; peak is at J

2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics

Bin distribution - Comparison between Math and Stats2011

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Mathematics Statistics

2010 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics

Bin distribution - Comparison between Math and Stats2010

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2011 Discovery Grants Competition –Mathematics and Statistics

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Funded ER Funded ECR

Unsuccessful ER Unsuccessful ECR

Grant Value

Options Considered Challenge was number of applications in Bins A-D (13) and in

Bin J (48 Established Researchers)

Same levels as 2010– Bin H for Established Researchers (ERs) with Success Rate (SR)

under 40%

Moderate reductions in bin levels– Bin I for ERs with SR under 50%

Considered Split Budgets– Minor adjustments to levels for Stats to fund to Bin J for ERs (15)– Moderate adjustments in Math still resulted in funding to Bin I

Recommendation was to maintain SR and therefore reduce amounts for 66 applicants in Bins D-I to allow for funding of Bin J (33)

For Next Year Clarifying HQP instructions and other points in Peer

Review Manual Working with NSERC-Math&Stats Liaison Committee

to identify new members Rotating Section Chairs during competition & daily

meetings of the Group and Section Chairs Scheduling of reviews between Sections early in

competition week Members observing deliberations of other Sections Focus on calibration – cases used, tools

Discovery Accelerator Supplements2011 Competition

Provide timely resources to outstanding researchers who:

– have a well-established research program

– who demonstrate strong potential to become international leaders in their respective area of research

$120,000 over three years

8 supplements awarded in Mathematics and Statistics

Research Tools & Instruments2011 Competition Results

Reminder: The budget of the RTI program comes mostly from year-end funds

Research Tools & Instruments ECR ER

Number of Applications 1 7

Number of Awards 0 5

Funding Rate 0% 25%

Total budget $0 $120,776

Other Information from NSERC

Canadian Council of Academies Assessment

Performance Indicators and best practices in the NSE – Qualitative and quantitative indicators and metrics relevant to

budget allocation– International best practices in the construction, methodological

review, and use of indicators for research evaluation and budget allocation

– Key considerations and principles for the appropriate use and balance / weighting of performance indicators / metrics for budget allocation

Timeline – report in late spring 2012

NSERC Frontiers Initiative includes two elements:

– Discovery Frontiers, focused on discovery research– Innovation Frontiers, focused on research

partnerships with industry

All funded projects will include an international partnership component that taps into global expertise

Discovery Frontiers’ first call for proposals (2010): Northern Earth System Research - $4 million over a four-year period

Work is ongoing to identify potential new themes for next fall.

Communication Tools for the Discovery Grants Program

New ways to communicate program information and details about the peer review process to prospective applicants

Two videos have been finalized and are now available in the Professors section of NSERC’s Web site– Tips on applying for an NSERC Discovery Grant

– Demystifying the review process for NSERC Discovery Grants

Description of HQP Training in Discovery Grant Applications

New! Additional page added to the section “Proposal” of Form 101 – to be used to address the criterion “Contributions to the training of Highly Qualified Personnel”

Applicants are asked to describe their plans for the training of HQP in that page

Instructions on how to complete Form 101 are being updated (available on NSERC’s Web site as of August 5, 2011) – important that applicants consult instructions before preparing their proposals

Budget Description in Discovery Grant Applications

New! A maximum of two (2) pages can be used for the section “Budget Justification” in which applicants provide the explanation and justification for the budget items identified in the “Proposed Expenditures” page

Instructions on how to complete Form 101 will be updated in this respect as well - important that applicants consult instructions before preparing their proposals

NSERC-Mathematics and Statistics Liaison Committee Members

Richard Cook (University of Waterloo)

Walter Craig (McMaster University)

Rachel Kuske (University of British Columbia)

Anthony Lau (University of Alberta)

Louis-Paul Rivest (Université Laval)

John Stockie (Simon Fraser University)

To contact us…

Anne-Marie Thompson

Director anne-marie.thompson@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Madeleine

BastienTeam

Leadermadeleine.bastien@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Patricia Rouillard

Program Officer

patricia.rouillard@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Judie FosterProgram Officer

judie.foster@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Gilles PlouffesProgram Assistant

gilles.plouffes@nserc-crsng.gc.ca

Questions and Discussion