Information Letter on the Primary Mentor Role (REDI 2025)

Thank you for your interest in serving as the Primary Mentor to an applicant for the CIHR Research Excellence, Diversity and Independence (REDI) Early Career Transition Award program. To help with your decision in becoming a Primary Mentor, this letter provides information on the REDI program and the role of the Primary Mentor during the application phase and Phase 1 of the award.

As a transition award, the overarching goal of this program is to promote research independence and increase the number of trainees, such as post-doctoral researchers, clinicians and research associates, from underrepresented groups that become research faculty members in Canadian academic, health system, and research institutions.

REDI 2025 will support applicants through two distinct streams:

  • Stream A for trainees who self-identify as Black (any gender), racialized women or racialized gender-diverse people.
  • Stream B for trainees who self-identify as First Nations, Inuit, Métis (any gender).

The first launch of the REDI Awards (2022) supported 43 trainees, and 2 years into the program over 45% have either transitioned to their independent researcher position (11) or are moving towards a transition (9). The 2025 funding opportunity is the second launch of the program, and CIHR plans to relaunch this program in future years with each round of awards open to specific underrepresented groups.

Program Design Overview

This award has two phases across a maximum of 6 years to increase independence and support the transition of successful applicants to independent research careers.

  • Phase 1 (mentored): includes a $20,000/year research allowance, a $70,000/year stipend, mentorship, and career development.
  • Phase 2 (independent): includes at least $120,000/year from CIHR in research allowance and salary support, along with faculty mentorship. The CIHR contribution is matched at least 1:1 by the Phase 2 host institution.

This award is intended to foster the development of independent research scientists who would benefit from tailored, mentored career development in Phase 1 before transitioning to Phase 2 to establish and sustain an independent research program in Canada. It is not intended to extend time in the postdoctoral lab during the faculty job search or cover a research associate's salary for 2–3 years.

Who Can be a Primary Mentor?

Given that the goal of REDI is to support the transition of trainees to an independent research faculty position, the Primary Mentor must be an independent researcher with an academic appointment who can guide the applicant in developing the skills, research independence, and academic credentials needed to secure a faculty role. The Primary Mentor must be either the applicant's current supervisor or a principal investigator who will function as the applicant's Mentor for their Phase 1 REDI project (e.g. the principal investigator to whom a research associate reports, or a clinician with an academic research appointment who will function as a clinical fellow's Primary Mentor for their research in Phase 1).

As part of the mentorship team, the Primary Mentor may collaborate with up to five additional mentors named by the applicant to support the applicants research, professional, and career development. These mentors do not need to hold academic appointments and may include Elders, Knowledge Keepers and community leaders. Additional mentors may bring valuable perspectives from clinical, community-based, policy, or lived experience settings.

CIHR acknowledges that mentorship provided by Elders, Knowledge Keepers, and other community-based or non-academic members may follow approaches rooted in lived experience, relational practices, or oral traditions. These mentorship models are deeply valued and respected within REDI and may differ from Western academic norms while offering equally meaningful and impactful guidance.

While the Primary Mentor is responsible for the core academic and research development of the applicant, REDI encourages a mentorship team approach tailored to the applicant's unique goals and needs.

Guidance on Overlap between CIHR REDI Award Application and the Primary Mentor's Research Program

The research proposed in the REDI application should be based on the applicant’s original ideas and/or hypotheses. Research proposed for Phase 1 can be within the overall scope of the Primary Mentor's research grants; however, the applicant should propose a scientific research question that is distinct from the Primary Mentor's pending or active research grants, which demonstrates independence.

Role of the Primary Mentor

The Primary Mentor is the applicant’s consistent advocate and advisor. Their role in the Application Phase includes:

  • Helping the applicant prepare their application.
  • Working with the applicant to identify how their proposed research will be distinguished from the Primary Mentor’s research program, such that the applicant achieves research independence and can transition to an independent research position within their proposed timeline. This includes identifying which components of the proposed research, and resources/reagents/protocols (as appropriate), the applicant can use in their independent research program after they transition to a research faculty position.
  • Discussing authorship for publications that will result from the applicant’s research funded by the CIHR REDI Award (e.g., having the applicant listed as the sole or co-corresponding author on these publications.)
  • Providing a strong Letter of Support for the applicant (maximum 2 pages in English, 2.5 pages in French), that includes:
    • A description of your area(s) of expertise, research qualifications (if applicable), experience mentoring trainees (especially to independent positions), and proposed role in the mentorship of the applicant.
    • Your training plan for the applicant
    • Funding you will provide to support the applicant during Phase 1 of REDI (if applicable)
    • If applicable, a clear description of how the applicant will distinguish their research program from your work during Phase 2, including which aspects of the Phase 1 project they will bring with them as part of their independent research and a statement that you will not compete with them on this project.
    • An overall assessment of the applicant, including their research performance and/or clinical training, and their potential to transition to an independent research position within the timeline proposed in their REDI application.
    • Statements that you are committed to:
      • Supporting the execution of the Research Proposal, Mentorship and Career Development Plans, as appropriate to your role in Phase 1.
      • Recognizing the importance of reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, bias awareness, anti-racism, anti-ableism, and gender equity, among other principles in increasing the effectiveness of your mentorship role.
      • Aiming to apply the principles of culturally responsive mentorship and Indigenous mentorship best practices (refer to Indspire’s Decolonizing and Indigenizing Mentorship [ PDF (481 KB) - external link ]) in your mentorship approach (see the Additional Resources in the Additional Information section of the funding opportunity).
      • Contributing to a joint assessment with the applicant that will be part of the Transition Report (see details, below).

Should the applicant be successful in the competition, the role of the Primary Mentor in Phase 1 of the CIHR REDI Award will include:

  • Ensuring the successful applicant:
    • Has appropriate research space and/or resources to conduct the research proposed for Phase 1, including access to equipment, facilities, infrastructure, and community-based environments as relevant to the research context.
    • Can participate in training courses and conferences, as appropriate, to further their career development, build their network, and prepare them for launching their independent research career.
    • Can use the data from their Phase 1 research for their future grant applications.
    • Takes advantage of peer review resources and programs through the College of Reviewers Reviewer Pathway, if possible
    • Can benefit from the tailored mentorship and career development plans in their REDI application. This includes supporting their transition to an independent research position by guiding them during their faculty job search and negotiations.
  • Contributing to a joint assessment by the applicant and Primary Mentor that will be part of the Transition Report. This will include the applicant’s assessment of their progress and the achievement of major milestones, and the Primary Mentor’ assessment of their contributions to the applicant’s career development, and alignment of achievements with the Mentorship and Career Development Plans. If the Primary Mentor is not the research supervisor, the most appropriate research Mentor must support the completion of the joint assessment.

The funding opportunity and its FAQ page may also be helpful.

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