Who is eligible for the Strategic Training Program in Tobacco Use in Special Populations

Applicants must:

be conducting tobacco research and demonstrate a commitment to tobacco control research
have at least one STPTUSP Mentor working with them as supervisor or committee member (see Mentoring Team)
confirm that they and their home department is not currently accepting and will not accept during the training award period any grant or anything of value from any tobacco manufacturer, distributor, or other tobacco-related company
not be a TUSP Principal Applicant, co-Principal Applicant or co-Investigator

For Students and Fellows

For Investigators

hold a health professional degree or a PhD degree (or the equivalent), must have shown promise of attaining competence as an independent investigator, and must not be registered for a higher degree during the tenure of the award
hold an academic appointment in faculties of Canadian universities or affiliated institutions
hold, or will hold, an appointment as an independent investigator to be eligible to apply for an award. Applicants still in training at the time of application must hold an appointment as an independent investigator at the time of taking up the award. Institutional support of a pending appointment as well as a commitment of a minimum of at least 75% protected research time for the duration of the award, should be stated in the letter from the Dean of Faculty or Research Director which accompanies the application
use the award for an academic research project with a focus on tobacco control

For New Investigators

have held a full time research appointment (e.g., faculty appointment providing eligibility to apply for grants and/or supervise trainees), for a period of less than 60 months before the competition deadline. Time spent in research appointments in a non-academic setting (e.g., industry, government) count towards the 60 month limit if the applicant has been actively engaged in research, as demonstrated by the applicant's publication record, and the applicant was not considered to be in training (e.g., as a student, or postdoctoral fellow)
have submitted a grant proposal in tobacco research by the end of the first year of funding

For Established Investigators

have held a full time research appointment (e.g., faculty appointment providing eligibility to apply for grants and/or supervise trainees), for a period of at least five years before the competition deadline. Time spent in research appointments in a non-academic setting (e.g., industry, government) count towards the 5 year minimum if the applicant has been actively engaged in research, as demonstrated by the applicant's publication record, and the applicant was not considered to be in training (e.g., as a student, or postdoctoral fellow)
have submitted a grant proposal in tobacco research to a national funding agency in Canada and/or the US by the end of the first year of funding
Mid-career academic clinicians with a focus on tobacco wishing to train as researchers are eligible for this award

Terms and conditions

Awards provide one year of funding. Competitive renewal is possible, subject to availability of funds. Maximum duration of funding for graduate students and fellows is 2 years and for investigators is 3 years
Awardees are strongly encouraged to apply for external awards (e.g. from CIHR, Heart and Stroke Foundation, National Cancer Institute of Canada) to secure funding beyond the initial year

For Students and Fellows

Awards will be at CIHR annual rates
All awardees will be required to take a full-semester core course - Tobacco and Health: from Cells to Society to provide a solid knowledge base in Tobacco Control. For more information about this course please go to http://www.otru.org/graduate_course.html
MD Research Fellows will be required to enrol in an appropriate Masters and/or PhD program to acquire research skills under the supervision of mentors
An awardee is permitted to hold additional awards provided that their total annual value does not exceed 50% of the TUSP stipend. If a trainee is successful in obtaining additional funding, it is expected that the awardee will accept the external offer and free up training program funds for other potential applicants. In certain circumstances, awards may be combined to total the above amounts
An awardee may, with the approval of the supervisor(s), earn additional amounts from other sources, including research grants. For example, they may engage in and accept remuneration for limited departmental activities that contribute to their development as independent researchers. Awardees may instruct for a maximum of 200 hours per year, provided that this does not interfere with their research training progress