Postdoctoral

Postdoctoral

To join the BRAIN CREATE Neurotechnologies Training Program, postdoctoral scholars must be supervised by a full member of the HBI. The research project must involve the development of neurotechnologies and have the potential commercial spinoff. Please review the BRAIN CREATE Postdoctoral Fellowship Terms of Reference below for full eligibility requirements and the BRAIN CREATE Program Requirements for more information about the program.

Fellowships provided by BRAIN CREATE must be matched by the recipient’s supervisor. BRAIN CREATE also offers trainees access to travel support to pursue neurotechnologies. While BRAIN CREATE-funded trainees will be prioritized if program elements are oversubscribed, financial support is not a prerequisite for trainee or PI involvement in BRAIN CREATE.

Members of the HBI have active and productive research laboratories, enabling opportunities for postdoctoral training. Prospective postdoctoral fellows with defined areas of interest should identify a potential supervisor, and contact them directly to see if they have an open postdoctoral position. The University of Calgary's Careers website also lists several opportunities for postdoctoral fellows.

Please don't hesitate to contact braincreate@ucalgary.ca if you have any other questions or need guidance on how to get started.

Postdoctoral Office

The University of Calgary's Postdoctoral Office provides advice to postdoctoral scholars, including on onboarding, information on appointment times, pay and taxation, and vacation and maternity leave policies.

Postdocs at UCalgary

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Postdoc guidelines

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Applying and recruiting

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BRAIN CREATE Postdoctoral Fellowship Terms of Reference

Eligibility: Postdoctoral scholars (PDS) must have completed their doctoral degree within the last five years to be eligible for a BRAIN CREATE fellowship. Parental leave is not counted as part of the five-year period. Funding cannot be allocated to a PDS remaining in the laboratory where they received their PhD. The research project must involve the development of neurotechnologies and have the potential for commercialization in the short or long term. Neurotechnologies are broadly defined and include methods, devices, molecules, and drugs to monitor and/or augment brain and key physiological functions. Key physiological functions may include cardiorespiratory control, cerebrovascular regulation, autonomic control, attention, learning, and sleep. The primary supervisor must be a full member of the HBI. Funding prioritizes projects involving a BRAIN CREATE team member. The number of trainees funded by HBI and/or BRAIN CREATE for an individual PI is capped at three, but some flexibility is permitted at the discretion of the HBI Education and BRAIN CREATE Directors. Summer students do not count towards this maximum. Application must normally be made prior to, or within nine months of, onboarding.

Value of BRAIN CREATE award:

$25,000/year

Required supervisor contribution:

$25,000/year

Supervisor portion may come from a supervisor’s operating grant, chair, and/or startup funds

Minimum guaranteed salary:

$50,000/year

Duration:    

Two years

Subject to annual renewal

Terms: Each PDS will receive a minimum annual stipend of $50,000 per year plus extended health and dental benefits. The BRAIN CREATE fellowship is $25,000/year with the host laboratory committing at least an additional $25,000/year confirmed in a letter of support by the supervisor. If the applicant holds or gains additional funding from internal or external sources, BRAIN CREATE will match the supervisor’s contribution 1:1 up to the original value of the BRAIN CREATE award, with some restrictions.1

The fellowship is subject to Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Employment Insurance (EI) deductions, and income tax as per the regulations of the Government of Canada. Mandatory employer paid expenses include extended health and dental benefits, CPP, EI, WCB, and the employer compliance fee for international PDSs. These account for an additional 25% (approximately) and are the responsibility of the supervisor.

The purpose of this fellowship is to recruit PDSs working on neurotechnologies who will be highly competitive for internal and external awards on the basis of their academic performance and research program. Thus, PDSs holding this fellowship are expected to apply for internal and external awards or grants for which they are eligible, including those from provincial or national agencies. PDSs who are successful in obtaining other funding must immediately inform BRAIN CREATE administration (braincreate@ucalgary.ca) and the HBI Operations Coordinator (hbi.education@ucalgary.ca) to enable readjustment of BRAIN CREATE funding.1

PDSs must be able to commit to the BRAIN CREATE Program Requirements.

BRAIN CREATE fellowships are renewed each year. Renewal is contingent upon: 1) annual review of progress, including participation in activities as outlined in the BRAIN CREATE Program Requirements; 2) evidence of applications for internal or external scholarships; and 3) supervisor acknowledgement of satisfactory progress under the terms of the fellowship.

  

Citizenship: Unrestricted

Where tenable: Recipients must be onboarded at the University of Calgary and reside in Calgary for at least 9 months/year.

Application deadline: March 15, 2023*

Award commencement date: September 1, 2023*

*future award availability TBD, contact braincreate@ucalgary.ca for more information

How to apply: Candidates must complete the application process outlined at https://hbi.ucalgary.ca/education/funding-support/postdoctoral.
  

Questions about the BRAIN CREATE fellowship can be directed to hbi.education@ucalgary.ca. Questions about the BRAIN CREATE program can be directed to braincreate@ucalgary.ca.

  

1 The BRAIN CREATE award program is based on a 1:1 fellowship (award) to stipend (supervisor) funding match ratio, not to exceed the maximum value of BRAIN CREATE award. If the postdoctoral scholar holds or gains additional funding from internal or external sources, BRAIN CREATE funding will be adjusted to match the supervisor’s contribution 1:1 up to the maximum annual fellowship amount of $25,000/year, to a maximum salary of $60,000/year. Funding in excess of this amount may be provided at the supervisor’s discretion. When the tenure of the external award is less than that of the fellowship, at the end of the external award’s tenure, the BRAIN CREATE fellowship will be reinstated and paid out to the end of the original tenure date.