Office for the Faculty of Education Research: Initiatives, Networking, and Grants (OFFERING)

Every proposal submitted by researchers as an applicant or co-applicant, regardless of funding, must go through OSR even when the applicant can apply directly to the sponsor.

To determine the deadlines for your funding opportunity first check the McGill R+I Funding Opportunities Database. For the Faculty of Education’s internal deadlines apply the rules as described in the diagram below to the information on the database.

If the opportunity is not listed, email info.osr [at] mcgill.ca a hyperlink to the funding opportunity and they will connect you to the Grants Officer assigned for this information.

Below is a diagram of the general rules around deadlines although the official deadlines should be confirmed as soon as possible:

Note: For large or international funding opportunities these deadlines might increase by 2-4 weeks.

The updated McGill Signing Authority policy (May 2021) now requires that a duly-signed OSR checklist be submitted to OSR before the submission of a Letter/Notice of Intent where there is funding at the LOI/NOI stage.

Items on the OSR checklist that will require additional time to the above timeline

If you need to disclose a conflict of interest, please notify offering.education [at] mcgill.ca (OFFERING) early on in the development of your proposal. Please see McGill’s Academic Personnel Office’s Conflict of Interest Reporting and Recognizing Conflicts for more information and timeline.

If you are requesting faculty salary support, requesting course release(s), and/or identifying that additional space or renovations are needed to conduct this project, be sure to speak to your Chair early on in the development of your proposal as the decisions may greatly impact your proposal.

For popular funding opportunities, OSR Grants Officers may have additional resources, such as OSR internal application guidelines or presentations from recent information sessions. Please contact the Grants Officer connected to your specific funding opportunity to inquire.

In addition, academics are encouraged to take advantage of the OSR lending library of successful tri-agency and FRQ grant applications. Requests for a list of available applications must come from academic staff members only and can be emailed to OSR. Here is a list of OSR contacts.

It’s important to read the program guidelines carefully as information is normally updated every year. Common mistakes include, not setting up the application in the format recommended in the grant guidelines, failing to familiarize yourself with evaluation criteria and thus not including important information to ensure easy and positive review by evaluators.

If applicable, use any online forms or templates provided by the sponsor.

NOTE: For some opportunities, OSR may have templates of required documents for applicants. Please notify offering.education [at] mcgill.ca (OFFERING) if you are considering applying for an opportunity and OFFERING will check with OSR.

OFFERING provides optional, limited reviews 5 business days before the OSR optional review deadline that focuses on the following:

• Are the expenses in the budget eligible;
  • Information on recommended rates and the calculation of indirect costs can be found on McGill Research and Innovation's Budgets webpage.

• Does the application adhere to the program guidelines;
• Does the application address the evaluation criteria;
• Are there typos, spelling errors, or grammatical errors;
• Is the information clearly articulated and consistently addressed throughout.

Please allow time to address any identified concerns prior to an OSR review.

Cash and in-kind contributions: Table of Commitments (ToC)

For some funding opportunities, cash and/or in-kind contributions from partners, sponsoring organizations, and/or the host institution is mandatory. This can also be referred to as matching funds. These are more commonly found with SSHRC funding opportunities (i.e. SSHRC Connection Grant, Partnerships Grant, Partnership Engage Grant and Partnership Development Grant) and are subject to the SSHRC Guidelines for Cash and In-Kind Contributions.

Mandatory cash and in-kind contributions from the Department and Faculty must be detailed in a Table of Commitments (ToC) and emailed to OFFERING by the ToC deadline.

1. Download the Faculty of Education’s ToC template and complete it to the best of your ability with as much detail as possible. Do not obtain signatures.
2. Email it to Finance.educ [at] mcgill.ca by the internal deadline.
3. Finance will review the ToC for eligibility and return a finalized PDF to you to include with the OSR checklist for Chair review/signature. 
4. OFFERING’s Cash and In-kind Contributions interactive PDF provides examples of eligible contributions per the SSHRC guidelines and describes when a ToC is required and the process around it.

Every proposal submitted by researchers as an applicant or co-applicant, regardless of funding, requires a completed OSR checklist prior to the submission of the proposal to the sponsor.

Using the latest version of the OSR checklist, complete the form and electronically sign it before emailing it to your Chair for signature. Please be considerate of your department’s timeline for signatures.

• If the application includes a Table of Commitments, include the Finance approved PDF with the OSR checklist for Chair review/signature.
• If you have Faculty-approved salary support, course release and/or additional space/renovations, include proof of the approval (e.g. course release approval form, email from Chair and Finance) with the OSR checklist.
• For information on creating a Digital ID (digital signature) in Adobe please see this webpage. Do not lock the PDF after signing. Email OFFERING if you experience technical issues when completing or signing an OSR checklist.

Email the Chair-signed OSR checklist along with a copy of the application (drafts are accepted) and any supporting documents to OFFERING.

• OFFERING will obtain ADR signature and forward this documentation to OSR, copying the applicant.
• If providing a draft application, you must provide a copy of the final submission to OSR for their records soon after the sponsor deadline.

Items on the OSR checklist that will require additional time to the above timeline

If you need to disclose a conflict of interest, please notify offering.education [at] mcgill.ca (OFFERING) early on in the development of your proposal. Please see McGill’s Academic Personnel Office’s Conflict of Interest Reporting and Recognizing Conflicts for more information and timeline.

If you are requesting faculty salary support, requesting course release(s), and/or identifying that additional space or renovations are needed to conduct this project, be sure to speak to your Chair early on in the development of your proposal as the decisions may greatly impact your proposal.

If you have any questions please consult OFFERING’s FAQs or email offering.education [at] mcgill.ca (OFFERING's Research Administrator).