The Canadian Common CV (CCV) allows you to maintain CV data in a single, centralized Canadian repository. It can be used to apply to a growing number of funding organizations across Canada, including the Tri-Agencies and the Canada Foundation for Innovation.

The vision and objectives for the CCV are to:

• streamline procedures and lighten the load on the research community when applying for funding, on the principle that CV data is entered once and can be readily utilized in a manner that suits the requirements of any subscribing funding organization (each will have its own template sharing certain common fields);
• facilitate the collection of a common data set required by agencies; and
• create a public repository which will showcase Canadian researcher expertise.

Not currently. NSERC phased in the CCV starting with Discovery Grants, Research Tools and Instruments and all the program elements for the Subatomic Physics Grants suite.

We will advise you well in advance of other programs migrating to the CCV. In the meantime, applicants to other programs will continue to use the NSERC Personal Data Form (Form 100).

NSERC’s Research Portal and the CCV are two separate systems, each with its own portal, which NSERC is adopting concurrently. The Research Portal is based on a proven software platform configured to NSERC’s needs, and is administered in-house.

The CCV is a web-based application that provides a single, common approach to gathering CV information required by a network of federal, provincial and not-for-profit research funding organizations, and which facilitates application by users to participating agencies, including NSERC.

We encourage you to allow ample time to review the Instructions and begin entering your data in the NSERC CCV as it can be time consuming to populate the fields the first time. As indicated in the Instructions, focus on entering your activities and contributions over the last six years.

There are many fields in the generic CCV that other participating agencies collect, but that NSERC does not. You will save time by focusing on the NSERC template, which only includes the fields required by NSERC.

The CCV will lighten the load on the research community in the long term. Once data is entered, only updating is required, and it can be re-used for future applications to NSERC and/or other participating organizations.

The NSERC CCV is based on the generic CCV template. It closely reflects the elements found in the NSERC Personal Data Form (Form 100). However, not all fields in the NSERC Personal Data Form could be included in the NSERC CCV.

• Significant Contributions: To ensure peer reviewers have all the required information to assess excellence (e.g., most significant contributions to research, clarification on contributions to the training of highly-qualified personnel, and details on these contributions), you will have the opportunity to elaborate on these elements within the program application form.

Contact us if you cannot recover your CCV password. Our business hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (EST).

Mandatory fields are marked with an asterisk. Follow the step-by-step Instructions for completing the NSERC CCV.

You can also select the “Question Mark (?)” icon next to a section heading within the NSERC CCV to view detailed requirements, or refer to the Specific Instructions from NSERC pdf document located on the “Funding CV – List of Sections” page.

No. For data integrity reasons, the NSERC CCV requires that all information, including publications, be entered directly rather than as an attached PDF. This simplifies future corrections and updating of publications, as information is identifiable, searchable and usable in a structured database. Entering information directly using separate fields will:

• enable you to easily repurpose your data;
• enable the use of data across organizations using the CCV;
• allow you to make changes to single fields as required, as opposed to an entire document;
• facilitate uniform sorting of data for peer reviewers and NSERC staff; and
• allow improved reporting and impact assessment.

We recognize the CCV research codes are somewhat minimal to describe the natural sciences and engineering fields. Select those that best fit your expertise and use the research specialization keywords to further augment your profile. This information is not used for the selection of the selection committee.

The emphasis will be on the NSERC research subject codes and area of application codes selected in your program application through the Research Portal.

If you have feedback or suggestions on the CCV research codes, send an e-mail to webapp@nserc-crsng.gc.ca. Your input will help us ensure the values are representative of NSERC’s community.

As indicated in the Instructions, NSERC requires your contributions over the last six years. You must manually select and de-select the records to be included in your NSERC CCV.

Do not attempt to modify the .xml file once it has been saved to your computer. Any changes at this stage may result in data corruption and/or difficulty uploading the file to your application.

Follow the step-by-step Instructions for completing the NSERC CCV and uploading it to your application via the Research Portal.

You can preview both your NSERC CCV and program application via the Research Portal. While your data may be reorganized to serve specific needs (e.g., peer reviewers), this step confirms exactly what information you are submitting to NSERC.

Follow the step-by-step Instructions for completing the NSERC CCV and uploading it to your application via the Research Portal.

Once your application is verified in the Research Portal, you will have the option to submit. Your uploaded NSERC CCV will automatically be transmitted along with your application.

A list of your created applications is available within the “Applicant” tab within the Research Portal. The status will indicate the progress for each application.

The status of your co-applicant(s)’ progress with the NSERC CCV is available in the “application overview” section within the Research Portal.

As indicated in the Instructions, go to the "History" tab after submitting your NSERC CCV to download a PDF or .xml copy.

After submitting your NSERC CCV, go to the "History" tab to obtain a PDF copy without the “draft” watermark.

Yes. If you have already prepared a CCV for another organization, simply log in to your account and select the NSERC template. Your existing data will populate the NSERC CCV, but should still be reviewed carefully since mandatory fields vary from one funding organization’s template to another.

No. NSERC would have pursued this option if it had been feasible. Due to significant differences in data models, migration of data from Form 100 (unstructured) to the NSERC CCV (very structured) would result in data integrity issues.

Yes. Currently, the CCV has an interface with PubMed.

We are working to expand on this functionality by linking to other citation tools and databases. Send your suggestions to webapp@nserc-crsng.gc.ca if there is a particular source you would be interested in using together with the NSERC CCV.

The CCV is continuously improving based on feedback received from the research community. Scheduled upgrades to the CCV will be communicated on a regular basis.

If an upgrade is expected to affect information already entered in the system, a data conversion strategy is put in place to minimize the impact on users.

In rare cases where data needs to be re-entered in the CCV, you will be contacted directly regarding the impact and next steps for updating your information.

Follow the step-by-step Instructions for completing the NSERC CCV. Your institution’s research administrator(s) can also provide useful tips.

Contact us for support. Our business hours are Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (EST).

Your feedback on the NSERC CCV is important to us. Share your comments and suggestions by sending an e-mail to webapp@nserc-crsng.gc.ca.