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Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

UTSC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

Award Overview

  • Notice of Intent deadline: October 18, 2024 (5PM) via
  • Application deadline:  November 8, 2024 (5PM)
  • Value and Duration: (NEW) $59,000 to be allocated towards the postdoc's salary and benefits per year for two years. Partially funded fellowships are available.
  • Required Legal Status:  Domestic or International postdoctoral scholars
  • Results: mid-February 
  • Fellowship start date: between May 1, 2025 and January 12, 2026

 

Purpose

The °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú (UTSC) Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (UTSC PFP) is designed to provide outstanding recent doctoral students advanced training in their field of study. These scholarships are not discipline-specific but rather can be held in any department or research unit across °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú. New recruits are encouraged to apply.

Postdoc scholars must secure sponsorship of a supervisor(s) from the professoriate at °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú. UTSC supervisor(s) must nominate their prospective postdoc following the timeline and processes outlined below.

Eligibility to Apply

1. Applicants must have recently (normally within three years) been awarded a PhD or equivalent degree. Any special circumstances, including sick or parental leave, will be taken into consideration. 

2. Applicants must not hold a tenure-track or tenured faculty position, nor can they be on leave from such a position.

3. Applicants can be citizens of any country, and from any university. Successful international candidates must meet all Canadian immigration requirements.

4. Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents must have completed all of the requirements for their doctoral degree no later than six months after the start date of the Fellowship. International applicants must have completed all of the requirements for their doctoral degree before the start date of the Scholarship.

Note: Completion does not mean convocation, but rather the completion of all the requirements necessary to receive their doctorate.

5. The University of Toronto is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from racialized persons / persons of colour, women, Indigenous / Aboriginal People of North America, persons with disabilities, LGBTQ persons, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas.

Value and Duration

(NEW) Each award will provide the Postdoctoral Supervisor with either $59,000 (full) or $29,500 (partial) to be allocated toward the postdoc’s salary and benefits for two years. This fellowship is intended to supplement the postdoc’s salary and benefits, which can be sourced from various internal or external funding. The actual salary of a UTSC Postdoctoral Scholar will be determined by the faculty supervisor in accordance with departmental norms and the CUPE 3902 Collective Agreement.

While °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú Postdoctoral Scholars may not concurrently hold another postdoctoral fellowship, Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent resident applicants are strongly encouraged to apply for the appropriate NSERC, SSHRC, or CIHR postdoctoral fellowship in addition to applying for a °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú Postdoctoral Fellowship.

Application Process

Submit a notice of intent by October 18, 2024 (5PM) via .

Upload the requested documentation as one file using the following naming convention: ApplicantLastNameFirstName_UTSCPFP2024-25 by November 8, 2024 (5 PM), to the . Please ensure you are logged in using your U of T email and password for access. The dropbox is a secure SharePoint folder allowing the Graduate and Postdoc unit to streamline award collection. Each applicant will only be able to view their uploaded documents, not those of any other applicants.

Given the competitive nature of the program, faculty can only nominate ONE UTSC Postdoctoral Scholar application each year. Incomplete applications or late submissions will not be considered.

Decisions will be made in mid-February, and successful applicants will have two weeks from the time the decisions are announced to accept or decline the scholarship.

Application Components

UTSC Postdoctoral Fellowship Program application package checklist:

Upload the requested documentation as one file using the following naming convention: ApplicantLastNameFirstName_UTSCPFP2024-25 by November 8, 2024 (5 PM) to the . Please ensure you are logged in using your U of T email and password for access. The dropbox is a secure SharePoint folder allowing the Graduate and Postdoc unit to streamline award collection. Each applicant will only be able to view their uploaded documents, not those of any other applicants.

Note to applicant:

Postdoctoral scholar should collaborate with their potential supervisor for the application for this award and are responsible for submitting their CV and a completed Nominee information form to them. Applicants must also meet the award eligibility criteria.

Notes to supervisors:

Supervisor(s) must have a tenure-track or tenured (primary) appointment at °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú.

The primary research site for the Postdoctoral Scholar is on the UTSC campus.

Fully funded fellowships or a combination of fully and partially funded scholars awarded will normally be dedicated to applicants from each of the disciplines including the physical and life sciences, social sciences and humanities disciplines.

The nominating supervisor should indicate on the Nomination Form if the nominee is to be considered for a fully funded fellowship, a partially funded fellowship, or indicate a willingness to accept either. Partially funded fellowships require supervisors and/or units to contribute half the stipend ($29,500) plus benefits per year. Supervisor and/or unit contributions to a partially funded fellowship must be paid from an account held at UTSC, as the primary research site for the Postdoctoral Fellows is on the UTSC campus.

Nomination letter of support - Please comment in clear, non-specialist language suitable for an interdisciplinary audience on the nominee's research potential, the quality of the proposed research environment and resources available to the applicant, and how the fellowship will advance the nominee’s career development.

Nominee information Form - The form must be signed by the Chair or Director of the supervisor’s unit. Co-supervision requires signatures of the Chairs and/or Directors from the units of all supervisors.

Statement of Research Intent - Should describe the proposed research project the postdoc scholar will engage on in clear, non-specialist language suitable for an interdisciplinary audience, highlighting the importance and impact of the research and how it fits into their academic/professional goals. Reference lists or bibliographies are not necessary for the proposal.

Any questions regarding the UTSC Postdoctoral Fellowship program should be directed to the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, UTSC (postdoc-awards@utsc.utoronto.ca).

 

Selection Criteria

Applicants will be assessed based upon the following criteria:

1. Excellence of the applicant:

  • Experience of the applicant relative to career stage and discipline
  • Quality, quantity and significance of past research activity and published output relative to career stage
  • The ability of the fellowship to advance the applicant’s career development

2. Quality of the proposed research project:

  • Significance and expected contributions to research
  • Appropriateness and feasibility of the approach

3. Environment for the Research

  • Suitability/sufficiency of the research environment and available resources at UTSC

 

Other Important Information

1. Please consult the information regarding 

2. Employment as a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of Toronto is governed by the terms of the . As such, the °ÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¿ª½±½Ó¿Ú Postdoctoral Fellowships are posted in accordance with the CUPE Unit 5 Collective Agreement.

 

Competition Results

Results of the competition will be made available in mid-February. Successful applicants will have two weeks from the time the decisions are announced to accept or decline the fellowship.  

 

Post-Award Details

Acknowledgment: The UTSC affiliation of researchers and “support from the Office of the Vice-Principal Academic & Dean should be acknowledged in any research outputs arising from this award.

 

Contact & Resources

For information regarding the selection process, please contact postdoc-awards@utsc.utoronto.ca.