Research-Creation Support for New Academics (CCZ) 2021-2022

1. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The Research-Creation Support for New Academics program has the following objectives:

• Foster a new generation of academic researcher-creators within Québec universities and contribute to their visibility and recognition on national and international levels;
• Promote the integration of new researcher-creators into institutional research and training missions, research-creation networks and relevant practice settings, on national and international levels;
• Encourage new academics to establish a diversity of collaborative ties with peers from different disciplines and professional artists within and outside Québec, to stimulate the development of original avenues of research-creation;
• Facilitate the transmission, presentation and dissemination of the experimentation and results of research-creation projects of all types to students, peers and the general public.

The Fonds uses the term research-creation to designate any research process or approach that fosters creation and aims at producing new easthetic, theoretical, methodological, epistemological or technical knowledge. All these processes and approaches must include, to varying degrees (depending on the practices and temporalities specific to each project):

1) Creative or artistic activities (conception, experimentation, technology, prototype, etc.)

AND

2) The problematization of these activities (critical and theoretical analysis of the creative process, conceptualisation, etc.).

As there can be no research-creation without give and take between the work of art and the creation process by which it exists, the Fonds goes by the principle that the creative or artistic activities and their problematization must be carried out by the same person.

For the purposes of the Fonds, a research-creation approach is based on:

• A sustained creative or artistic practice;
• The problematization of this creative or artistic practice;
• The transmission, presentation and dissemination of the experimentation and/or results of research-creation projects of all types to students, peers and the general public.

Specifically, the research-creation activities carried out under this program must contribute to:

• The development of productions or works resulting from a creative or artistic practice, provided that they offer an element of renewal or innovation in terms of approach, process, technology, materials, form of presentation or experimentation, repertory or interpretative style. These productions must lend themselves to problematization leading to the development of new aesthetic, theoretical, methodological, epistemological or technical knowledge;
• The training of research-creation students;
• Greater recognition of individuals working on research-creation within their institutions and in national and international artistic and cultural environments and communities;
• The enrichment of the cultural heritage of Québec, Canada and/or the international community.

For the purposes of this program, performance in the context of a theatrical, choreographic or musical presentation is considered to be creation provided that it is innovative and gives rise to a problematization.

The following do not qualify for this program:

• Performance for the purpose of the interpretation or analysis of artistic works or productions;
• The development of productions resulting from an artistic or creative practice that are not accompanied by problematization leading to the development of new aesthetic, theoretical, methodological, epistemological or technical knowledge.

In light of these objectives, universities are encouraged to support the application by releasing the applicant from at least 25% of his/her teaching duties.

In keeping with its Knowledge Mobilization Strategy, the Fonds encourage funding recipients to carry out such activities (sharing, valorization, dissemination, etc.) for the general public, whenever such activities are relevant in the context of their research.

In accordance with the Fonds de recherche du Québec open access policy for the dissemination of research, all funding recipients must agree to provide open access to their scientific publications no later than 12 months after publication. To learn more about the FRQ’s requirements on this subject, please visit our page on open science.

Finally, the Fonds de recherche du Québec wish to contribute to supporting a research ecosystem based on equity, diversity and inclusion. Measures have been put in place to strengthen the integration of these principles. Funding recipients are also encouraged to consider them in the context of their research activities. For more information, please visit our website.

2. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

This program is intended for creators and artists working as university research professors who are able to present both a portfolio of productions resulting from a creative or artistic practice and a body of theoretical or scientific contributions.

Applicants must, on June 1, 2021, have the status of University Researcher (CGR, Definitions – Status and Roles), be recognized for their work in research-creation, meet all eligibility requirements set out in the CGR and have held a full-time regular professorial position at a university in Québec, elsewhere in Canada or abroad for less than 5 years on the competition closing date.

An applicant who does not hold a position at a university on the competition closing date is still eligible if he or she expects to hold a full-time regular tenure-track professorial position at a Québec university no later than June 1, 2021, notwithstanding Section 2.1 of the CGR. Successful applicants will have to provide proof of appointment issued by the competent authorities.

Applicants who have interrupted or delayed their career for parental leave, major family obligations or serious health reasons may be granted an eligibility period extension. In the case of parental leave, the eligibility period may be extended for up to one year per parental leave. In the case of major family obligations or a career interruption due to serious health reasons, the Fonds will determine the extension to be granted based on the supporting documents provided by the applicant.

Applicants who suspend or postpone their studies for reasons related to a disability may also be granted an eligibility period extension. The Fonds will determine the extension period based on the supporting documents provided. This exemption is in accordance with the Act to secure handicapped persons in the exercise of their rights with a view to achieving social, school and workplace integration (CQLR c. E-20.1).

In all cases, the managing institution must attest that the researcher will be in its employment for the duration of the grant.

The following are not eligible:

• Individuals who have applied for this program three times (in a previous or current version);
• Individuals who have applied to another research start-up program of one of Québec’s three Fonds de recherche;
• Individuals who are (or have been) already funded through a research start-up program of one of Québec’s three Fonds de recherche.

3. APPLICATION PROCESS

As indicated in Section 3 of the CGR, applicants attest that the information provided is accurate and complete and agree to respect the rules and principles set out in the Fonds de recherche du Québec Policy for the responsible Conduct of Research. Applicants authorize their institution to transmit any personal information in accordance with this policy, if applicable.

A complete application package consists of:

• The application form, available in the E-portfolio;
• Required electronic attachments to the form;
• A creation portfolio, uploaded to the FRQSC’s cloud.

The application form and all required documents must be transmitted before the competition deadline, which is 4:00 p.m. on September 24th, 2020.

3.1 Forms

The forms associated with this competition will be available on FRQnet at least one month before the competition deadline.

Before completing a grant application, the applicant must create a user account on the Fonds website, if this has not already been done. Individuals who already have a personal identification number (PIN) have direct access to a FRQnet account and must update their profile in the E-portfolio (see Premier accès à votre profil video).

It is the applicant’s sole responsibility to choose the right application form, the right funding program and the right Fonds for their application. In the event of an error in any of these respects, the Fonds will not transfer the application and the application will be deemed ineligible, either when assessed for eligibility or by the evaluation committee.

As indicated in the CGR (Section 3.6), the forms may be completed in English or French. However, the title and project summary must imperatively be in French. These may be used by the Fonds for promotional and dissemination purposes.

Pages in excess of the number permitted in each section of the application will be removed from the application before submission for evaluation.

The Fonds recommends using the presentation standards set out in the Detailed Contributions file to format the research project description, bibliography and justification of planned expenditures.

Applicants may include links to web pages as bibliographic references, where relevant. These web addresses may also be listed in the bibliography. However, the application must not be based in whole or in part on online content available to members of the evaluation committee.

The following forms and documents are required:

• THE “RESEARCH-CREATION SUPPORT FOR NEW ACADEMICS” (CCZ) FORM;
• THE CANADIAN COMMON CV and its “DETAILED CONTRIBUTIONS” attachment. The Common Canadian CV and Detailed Contributions attachment file are available in the Toolbox section on the program web page or directly in the “Activity details” box in the E-portfolio. The Common Canadian CV – “Société et culture” version – must be updated within 12 months prior to the competition deadline. The Detailed Contributions file must be completed in due form and attached to the application in the appropriate section of the E-portfolio. To ensure that the attachment is properly transmitted to the Fonds, you must save it in PDF format under “Canadian Common CV” in the E-portfolio.

Only the official “Research-Creation Support for New Academics” form, the FRQSC version of the Common Canadian CV with its Detailed Contributions attachment, and the other required documents will be accepted.

3.2 Required documents

All required documents to be submitted with the application form must be grouped and scanned (PDF file) into a single document for each of the appropriate sections in the “Activity details” box.

Important note: PDF documents must not be read protected or have special double tab configuration.

The following documents must be transmitted from the ”Other documents” section:

1. A letter from the appropriate university authorities attesting that the applicant holds or will hold a full-time tenure-track professorial position by June 1, 2021. The letter must specify the hiring date and position held, as well as employment start and end dates for any full-time tenure-track professorial positions previously held at other universities, if applicable. In case of doubt as to the nature and duration of previous positions, the Fonds reserves the right to contact the appropriate authorities to obtain further information. If a request is made for an eligibility period extension, official documents justifying the parental, family or sick leave, or confirming the disability.
2. If the submitted project is dependent on a partnership, a letter demonstrating the existence of said partnership must be included.
3. If the full realization of the submitted project is dependent on participation in an event, a detailed letter of invitation or agreement with the organization concerned must be included.
4. If applicable, proof of registration or invitation to participate in a workshop, lecture, colloquium, meeting, biennial arts festival, festival, symposium or any other event of this type.

THE APPLICANT MUST NOT FORGET TO TRANSMIT THE APPLICATION AFTER COMPLETING AND VALIDATING IT.

ATTENTION: At this stage of the application process, the Fonds requires the approval of the managing institution. It is the applicant’s responsibility to find out the internal deadline for submitting applications set by his or her managing institution and to ensure that the application is transmitted to the Fonds before the competition deadline.

At any time, applicants may verify the transmission status of their application in the “My forms” section of their E-portfolio:

• The form will be flagged “Transmis à l’établissement” (Transmitted to the institution) once the applicant has transmitted the application to the managing institution;
• The form will be flagged “Transmis au Fonds” (Transmitted to the Fonds) once the managing institution has transmitted the application to the Fonds.

3.3. Creation portfolio (required)

A portfolio is required, illustrating the applicant’s creative achievements. Each item in the portfolio must be related to the proposed project.

IMPORTANT: The compressed digital creation portfolio (ZIP file) must be identified as follows:

LAST NAME OF APPLICANT_APPLICATION NUMBER.

It must be uploaded before the competition deadline to the FRQSC’s cloud:

https://cloud.frq.gouv.qc.ca/u/d/ff2ae2584d3f44f99eae/

The digital file must be smaller than 9.8 GB.

The creation portfolio must be transmitted in digital form, with all its component documents assembled into a single compressed file (ZIP file). It must include a brief description of the items presented (one-page PDF document), establishing the relationship between each item and the submitted project. This document must allow easy identification of the different items making up the creation portfolio. The creation portfolio may include files of various formats: PDF, MPEG, PNG, MP3, MP4, MOV, etc. A press kit may also be included (PDF document). It is not recommended to only provide links to one or more websites. The inclusion of internet references should be considered an exception.

The person evaluating the application should not need to spend more than twenty minutes reading and assessing the creation portfolio.

Applicants are requested to send their accompanying documents only once, in their final version. In case of duplicate transmission resulting from a manipulation error, the most recent version will be considered for the evaluation.

The Fonds will issue an acknowledgement of receipt within 5 business days after the transmission of the digital file to the FRQSC’s cloud. It is the applicant’s responsibility to verify and follow up if necessary, before the competition deadline. No documents will be accepted after this date.

If the portfolio cannot be transmitted in digital form, the applicant must notify the program officer and mail all documents being submitted for evaluation in triplicate to the following address:

Programme Soutien à la recherche-création pour la relève professorale
Fonds de recherche du Québec – Société et culture
140, Grande Allée Est, bureau 470
Québec (Québec) G1R 5M8

The Fonds will keep the submitted documents for a period of 90 days from the date on the letter announcing the results of the evaluation. After this time, unless otherwise requested, they will be disposed of.

The Canada Post postmark or the dated stamp of a messenger service will be considered proof of submission before the deadline of September 24, 2020.

Any missing documents will render the application ineligible.

The FRQSC reserves the right to verify the authenticity of all documents and information provided with the institutions concerned.

All applications received by the Fonds are assessed for eligibility. A notice will be sent via email no later than December following the competition deadline, informing the applicant of the status of his/her application and, where applicable, its transmission to the evaluation committee.

Applicants whose application package is deemed incomplete or invalid will be notified by email that their application has not been transmitted to the evaluation committee.

An incomplete application that does not contain the information necessary to establish eligibility or which cannot be evaluated will be deemed invalid by the Fonds. Any documents that are not required will not be submitted to the evaluation committee. Applicants will not be notified of any information or documents missing from the application and no reminder will be made.

Any documents received after the competition deadline of 4 p.m. on September 24, 2020 will not be considered and applications cannot be updated after this deadline.

4. APPLICATION ASSESSMENT

As indicated in Section 4 of the CGR the Fonds receives applications for financial assistance, checks their eligibility and submits them for evaluation by multidisciplinary committees whose members may be from Québec, elsewhere in Canada or abroad, and are known for their expertise in the artistic disciplines and practices concerned. The committee may call on outside experts if necessary.

Research-creation project descriptions must be written in such a way as to be easily understandable in a multidisciplinary context. The role of the evaluation committees and the conditions governing funding decisions are specified in the CGR, Sections 4.4 and 4.5).

Evaluation criteria, indicators and weighting

Evaluation committees use the FRQSC Scores and Ratings Grid.

An overall score of 70% is required for the application to be recommended for funding. In addition, a score of 70% is required for the Research-creation project criterion.

Applicants are advised to attach equal importance to both the evaluation criteria and their associated indicators.

Funding applications are evaluated according to the following criteria, indicators and weighting:

Research-creation project – 50 points 

• Originality and impact on the development or renewal of the field, based on the state of knowledge (15 points)
• Problematization of the creative or artistic practice, and appropriateness of the methodology for the stated objectives (15 points)
• Feasibility of the time frame (10 points)
• Relevance of the planned dissemination activities (10 points)

Expertise – 30 points 

• Quality of research-creation achievements and activities, peer recognition and renown (networking activities, scholarships, communications, student supervision*, exhibitions, organization of conferences or similar events, performances, publications, individual or group works, meetings, residencies or exchanges, shows, grants, symposia, etc.) (20 points)
• Relevance of achievements, research-creation activities, experience and training to the project (10 points)

*  Depending on the potential for supervision offered by the institution.

Research-creation training – 10 points 

• Educational value of the activities offered to students ** and diversity of the tasks and responsibilities planned for that purpose during the project (workshops, symposia, concerts, conferences, exchanges, radio broadcasts, exhibitions, festivals, rencontres, shows, etc.) (10 points)

** Beyond what is normally provided by their study program.

Budget – 10 points 

• Appropriateness and consistency of the budget with regard to the submitted research-creation project and planned student training.

5. FUNDING AND CONDITIONS

The results are announced in accordance with the conditions described in Section 5 of the CGR.

Any significant changes made to the initial application during the funding period must be reported in the FRQnet E-portfolio and an email must be sent to the program officer, justifying the changes (CGR, Section 6.5).

The funding recipient is also required to approve the annual financial reports produced by his or her managing institution within three months after the end of the Fonds fiscal year (March 31), i.e. by June 30 (CGR, Sections 6.2 and 7.1). In addition, the recipient must complete and transmit a final report, available in the E-portfolio, within 12 months after the end date of the grant (CGR, Section 7.2). If a final research report is not submitted within the prescribed time, the funding recipient is not eligible to receive new funding from any of the three Fonds de recherche du Québec.

The funding recipient must update his or her file in the E-portfolio before the end of March each year, indicating any significant changes.

Lastly, if at the end of the grant period, the funding recipient wishes to claim the right to obtain an additional year to spend the remaining balance of the grant, as set out in Article 6.10 of the CGR, he/she is invited to complete the section provided for that purpose in the financial report due in June following the end date of the grant period.

6. DESCRIPTION AND NATURE OF FUNDING

The financial support is an operating grant of up to $15,000/year and includes expenditures for the equipment necessary to carry out the proposed research.

The grant must be used to cover current expenses directly related to the production and dissemination of the results of the research-creation project.

All expenses listed in the CGR are eligible with the following exceptions:

• Professional fees for consultation or expert advice;
• The cost of purchasing books and reference documents exceeding $800 per year;
• Expenses arising from the promotion or marketing of artistic works;
• Self-publishing costs.

Indirect costs of research (known by the French acronym FIR) (see Section 8.2 of the CGR) are transferred to the managing institution by the FRQSC. They are funded in addition to the amount of $15,000 awarded for the research-creation project.

7. DURATION OF FUNDING

Grants are awarded annually for the period from April 1 to March 31 for up to three years and are not renewable.

8. EFFECTIVE DATE

These rules apply to the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

​Version updated on the website July 9, 2020.