James McGill Professor (JMP) and William Dawson Scholar (WDS) awards recognize outstanding researchers across McGill University. These awards generally track the criteria and objectives of the Canada Re-search Chair (CRC) program’s Tier 1 and Tier 2 chairs, respectively. The terms and conditions of the JMP and WDS awards are however distinct from those of the CRC program.
The Distinguished James McGill Professor (DJMP) award recognizes late-career researchers who have achieved outstanding research accomplishments over two terms as either a CRC Tier 1 or a JMP.
William Dawson Scholars:
- The WDS award recognizes emerging scholars who are nationally recognized as exceptional researchers and innovators in their discipline and who have demonstrated potential to develop into a researcher of world-class calibre.
- Eligible candidates must have a tenure-track or tenured appointment at McGill, at the assistant or associate rank.
- The WDS award is reserved for scholars who earned their PhD or highest degree no more than 10 years before nomination. Nevertheless, a researcher who is more than 10 years post-highest degree may be considered for a WDS award if they experienced career interruptions due, for example, to maternity or parental leave, extended disability leave, clinical training, or family care responsibilities.
- Term is 5 years, renewable once upon performance review.
James McGill Professors:
- The JMP award recognizes established scholars who have distinguished themselves as outstanding, innovative researchers and international leaders in their field.
- Eligible candidates must be tenured full professors at McGill.
- Term is 7 years, renewable once upon performance review.
Distinguished James McGill Professors:
- The DJMP award recognizes late-career scholars who have distinguished themselves as outstanding, innovative researchers and international leaders in their field over the course of two consecutive terms as either a CRC Tier 1 or a JMP.
- Eligible candidates must be tenured full professors at McGill.
- The award is granted until retirement date, at which point the awardee shall be eligible for the designation Emeritus James McGill Professor.
Nomination Process
Step 1: Faculty-Level
WDS & JMP awards
Deans, Associate Deans (Research), Department Chairs, and Directors are encouraged to identify and nominate excellent researchers in their Faculties and Departments for vacant WDS, JMP, or DJMP awards. In so doing, Faculties are urged to be mindful of equity considerations and to ensuring McGill’s cohort of award holders is diverse by soliciting applications from individuals in under-represented groups, including women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, ethnic minorities, racialized persons/visible minorities, and persons of minority sexual orientation or gender identity (LGBTT2SQ persons). Potential candidates should be encouraged to fill out the Employment Equity Survey and informed that this survey data is kept confidential.
Faculty decisions about nominations should be:
(a) based on the candidate’s record of achievement; and
(b) made pursuant to a review by a Faculty-level committee composed of at least three members including the Faculty Dean (or delegate) and Associate Dean (Research). The membership of the committee should be diverse, and include at least one woman.
Once a Faculty has identified its nominee(s), it will submit a nomination package for each nominee that includes:
- the nominee’s curriculum vitae;
- a letter of presentation from the nominee summarizing research and highly qualified personnel (HQP) training accomplishments, and a description of intended future research and its potential impact (2 pages, maximum); and,
- a letter of support jointly submitted by the nominee’s Dean and Department Chair/Director (1 page, maximum).
DJMP awards
Where a Faculty intends to nominate a professor for a DJMP award, it will submit a nomination package that includes:
- the nominee’s curriculum vitae; and
- a letter of support jointly submitted by the nominee’s Dean and Department Chair/Director (1 page, maximum) stating the candidate’s sustained scholarship of world-class caliber and international lead-ership, similar to that of a CRC Tier 1 Chairholder.
Nominations are due no later than 1 February of every year and should be emailed to: anne-marie.du-rocher [at] mcgill.ca
Step 2: University Standing Internal Review Committee
Nominations and applications for renewal are assessed by the Standing Internal Review Committee (SIRC) with expertise in the nominee’s field (i.e., CIHR, NSERC, SSHRC). This is the same committee that reviews CRC nominations in the current academic term. The SIRC will make a recommendation to the Provost & Vice-Principal (Academic) who shall consider this recommendation to reach a final decision about granting or renewing an award.
Criteria for evaluation include:
- the nominee’s record of research dissemination and impact;
- HQP training record; and
- promise for sustained success and growth as a top-tier researcher in the nominee’s discipline.
For JMP nominations, the SIRC will assess whether a nominee is recognized as an outstanding, innovative researcher and international leader in their field.
For WDS nominations, the SIRC will assess whether the nominee is nationally recognized as an exceptional researcher and innovator in their discipline, having demonstrated potential to develop into a researcher of world-class calibre.
The SIRC will assess applications where candidates have had leaves causing career interruptions, account-ing for the candidate’s career stage. Safeguards will be in place to ensure this information is considered equitably and treated confidentially.
Award decisions will be communicated to nominees and their Department Chair/Director and Dean in early April of each year.
For more, see: Internal Awards: Distinguished James McGill Professors, James McGill Professors, and William Dawson Scholars