Prepared by: The Conference Board of Canada
Feel free to download the PDF document.
Prism Research Awards Opportunity
Prism’s Research Awards (PRAs) application process for 2023-2024 is now open. The deadline to submit your complete application is March 10, 2023. Awardees will have from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024 to complete their project.
Summary
The purpose of the PRAs is to identify and support emerging researchers with interest in furthering knowledge on social and emotional skills (SES) and the future of work.
The Conference Board of Canada (CBoC), on behalf of the Future Skills Centre (FSC), has generated substantial insights on SES and the future of work. CBoC will continue to conduct research in this area and fund up to three Prism Research Awards (PRAs) for emerging scholars in our 2023-2024 fiscal year.
About the Awards
Canadian employers continue to emphasize the growing importance of SES (e.g., communication, problem-solving, cultural competence) for success on the job. Rapid digitalization of our world continuously offers new opportunities and tools in the workplace. Yet, understandings of how these workplace shifts impact the skills Canadian workers need remain murky—especially when it comes to SES.
Through the PRAs, we are looking to fund research on SES and the future of work to better understand these skills and how we can support Canadians to teach, learn, evaluate, and communicate them.
Successful candidates will be awarded $15,000 CAD in compensation to complete a one-year research project. Applications can include up to $3,000 CAD in additional research expenses as needed.
Who Can Apply
• Students who are enrolled in or who have completed a master’s or PhD program from a recognized university within the last two years
• Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada
Research Proposal Evaluation Criteria
• Relevance of the proposal to FSC’s and Prism’s mandate
• Clarity and quality of the proposal
• Clarity and appropriateness in addressing the ethical considerations of the proposed research
• Applicant’s demonstrated capacity to conduct the proposed program of research including academic qualifications and related experience
• Applicant’s demonstrated capacity to complete a one-year study on time
• Applicant’s demonstrated capacity to write impact-driven outputs to Canada leaders in a concise and compelling way
About Prism
Prism is Canada’s first and only SES knowledge hub. Presented by CBoC, on behalf of FSC, Prism is a central resource that provides Canadians with:
• Research: Cutting edge insights on SES
• Knowledge Mobilization: Tools, learning and evaluation resources, and easy-to-consume information sources
• Network: Information on other groups and partners that are working on SES
Application Questions
General Instructions
Please address all the following questions and submit your answers to Heather McIntosh (mcintosh@conferenceboard.ca) with subject line: Prism Research Awards Application. Incomplete or late applications will not be considered.
Applications should be submitted in a Word or PDF document.
Application Questions
- Description (40 words max)
Give a one-sentence overview of your idea and the value it will provide to your intended
stakeholders.
- Nature of the research (375 words max)
Describe the overview of the proposed research project.
- Importance (350 words max)
Describe the value of this research, as in—what is the gap in current knowledge that this
project will respond to.
- Impact and target audience (150 words max)
Who will this work impact most? Who will be most interested in it? How will this work
influence them?
- Risks
Outline up to three risks you foresee in the questions, methods, timeline, and dissemination
plan.
- Research questions (250 words max)
Format as bulleted list.
- Methods (850 words max)
Describe methods and approaches to execute study. Use bullets where possible.
- Does your study involve human participants? If yes, what are the ethics implications of this and how will you tackle them?
- Workplan. Use chart below.
- Output plan
Describe the outputs you will create through your research. We are not looking for
academic-style reports, but simple, clear, and impact-driven reports that will be insightful to
Canadian leaders.