Canadian Mathematical Society
Edmonton, AB
June, 2011
Anne-Marie Thompson, Director
Madeleine Bastien, Team Leader
Physical and Mathematical Sciences
Research Grants
Outline
 2011 Discovery Grants Competition Results
 NSERC News
 Questions & Discussions
2011 Discovery Grants Competition
General 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
2011 Discovery Grants Competition
General 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
4
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)
- Rudolph Beran (U.C. Davis)
- Octavian Cornea (Montréal)
- Alan Dow (UNC, Charlotte)
- Hermann Eberl (Guelph)
- Nantel Bergeron (York)
- Benoit Collins (Ottawa)
- Richard Cook (Waterloo)
- Robert McCann (Toronto)
- Alexander Melnikov (Alberta)
- Duncan Murdoch (UWO)
- 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 (%)
457
245
$5.5M
54
$22.5k
Applicants
who held a
grant
1,858
1,377
$48.3M
74
$35.0k
Applicant not
previously
holding a
grant1
1,167
380
$10.7M
33
$28.1k
Early-Career
Researchers
Average
Grant
Established
Researchers
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 (%)
Average
Grant
28
(41)
19
(30)
$216k
($432k)
68
(73)
$11.4k
($14.4k)
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)
Early-Career
Researchers
Established
Researchers
1. Includes returning unfunded applicants and experienced researchers submitting a first application.
2011 Discovery Grants Competition –
Mathematics and Statistics
Established Researchers
Early-career
Researchers
Renewals
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 Stats
2011
Mathematics
25%
Statistics
% of applications
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
Quality Bin
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
2010 Discovery Grants Competition –
Mathematics and Statistics
Bin distribution - Comparison between Math and Stats
2010
Mathematics
25%
Statistics
% of applications
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
Quality Bin
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
2011 Discovery Grants Competition –
Mathematics and Statistics
Funded ER
Unsuccessful ER
Grant Value
25%
Funded ECR
Unsuccessful ECR
$100
$90
$80
$70
15%
$60
$50
10%
$40
$30
5%
$20
$10
0%
$A-C
D
E
F
G
H
I
Quality Bin
J
K
L
M
N-P
Grant Value ($1000)
Fraction of Applications
20%
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 Supplements
2011 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 & Instruments
2011 Competition Results
Research Tools & Instruments
ECR
ER
Number of Applications
1
7
Number of Awards
0
5
Funding Rate
0%
25%
Total budget
$0
$120,776
Reminder: The budget of the RTI program comes mostly from year-end funds
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 fouryear 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
[email protected]
Madeleine
Bastien
Team
Leader
[email protected]
Patricia
Rouillard
Program
Officer
[email protected]
Judie Foster
Program
Officer
Gilles Plouffes
Program
Assistant
[email protected]
[email protected]
Questions and Discussion