Nominators are responsible for preparing the required documentation, which must follow NSERC’s general presentation guidelines. Documents that do not meet the presentation standards may be rejected or be at a disadvantage compared to those that meet the standards.

Nominations must be submitted electronically through NSERC’s ICSP Secure Submission Site. All parts of the nomination package must be combined into a single Portable Document Format (PDF) file. Note that hyperlinked material will not be considered as part of the review process. Only documents requested by NSERC will be made available to the selection committee.

For renominations, nominators are asked to submit a complete and updated nomination package. The list of suggested reviewers should also be updated to include new individuals.

Nominations must be submitted before 8:00 pm (ET) on the deadline date. Late nominations will not be accepted. Once submitted, nominations cannot be updated.

In January, nominees will receive a system-generated email from NSERC with instructions to complete a self-identification questionnaire. This data provides information on the diversity of the population applying for and receiving NSERC awards. This information increases NSERC’s capacity to monitor its progress on increasing equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in its programs, to recognize and remove barriers and to design new measures to achieve greater EDI in the research enterprise. Although completing the questionnaire is required, if you do not want to self-identify, you have the option to choose “I prefer not to answer” for each question. Self-identification data are not seen or used by NSERC peer reviewers.

NSERC is acting on the evidence that achieving a more equitable, diverse and inclusive Canadian research enterprise is essential to creating the excellent, innovative and impactful research necessary to advance knowledge and understanding, and to respond to local, national and global challenges. This principle informs the commitments described in the Tri-agency Statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. NSERC strongly encourages nominators and university officials to address barriers to equity, diversity and inclusion in their nomination processes.

Because the Brockhouse Canada Prize is interdisciplinary, nominators should consult NSERC’s guidelines for the preparation and review of applications in interdisciplinary research when preparing the nomination package. The nomination material should also be written for non-specialists, as nominations are reviewed by a multidisciplinary selection committee.

The nomination package must include:

1. A letter of nomination signed by one or more nominators. The letter must be no more than four pages if written in English and five pages if written in French. It must include a title describing the team’s research achievements.

   Structure your letter using the following points as headings:

   • Describe the team’s contributions to research, highlighting their significance, novelty and impact.
     • Contributions may include advancing knowledge, using existing knowledge to develop novel solutions to practical problems, transferring knowledge, communicating research to non-specialist audiences and engaging in public outreach activities. See NSERC’s guidelines on the assessment of contributions to research, training and mentoring for more examples.
   • Describe contributions to the training and mentoring of HQP in a collaborative, interdisciplinary setting, emphasizing the extent, impact and importance of these contributions. Also describe the co-supervision provided by team members, and explain how equity, diversity and inclusion were considered in training and mentoring of HQP.
     • Note: The achievements must have been made jointly by the members of the nominated team and not realized before joining the team, or as individual researchers separate from the team’s activities.
   • Explain the interdisciplinary and collaborative nature of the team and its achievements, including the complementarity of the team members’ expertise. The interdisciplinary nature of the team must be clearly defined, particularly in cases where it may not be immediately obvious—if the interdisciplinary nature of a team is not evident, the nomination may be ruled ineligible.
2. The team’s five most important joint contributions. Provide bibliographic information where relevant (maximum one page if written in English and 1.5 pages if written in French).
3. The names, organizational affiliations and email addresses of six researchers who could be contacted by NSERC to conduct an impartial review of the nomination.
   • Reviewers must not be in conflict of interest (see Conflict of Interest and Confidentiality Policy of the federal research funding organizations).
   • NSERC strongly recommends that nominators suggest a cross-section of reviewers with expertise in the nominees’ area of research, such as:
     • Canadian or international researchers from established to early-career stages
     • individuals from underrepresented groups, including women
     • researchers in academic and non-academic settings
   • Nominees must not contact suggested external reviewers in advance.
   • NSERC reserves the right to select all or none of the suggested reviewers.
4. A brief letter from the team identifying one of the members as the spokesperson. This individual must be eligible to hold NSERC grant funds and will serve as the contact person for NSERC for matters related to the outcome of the competition (see NSERC’s eligibility requirements for faculty to apply for or hold grant funds). The letter must also include the name, title, affiliation and email address of each team member.
5. Identification of any eligible leaves of absence (optional, maximum one page if written in English and 1.5 pages if written in French), in line with the Interruptions in research, training and mentoring section in NSERC’s guidelines on the assessment of contributions to research, training and mentoring. For medical leave, it is not necessary to describe the illness or treatment, but rather its impact on your research activity. Please:
   • provide the duration of the interruption
   • describe its impact on research activity
6. A terms and conditions form for nominees filled out and signed by each nominee (do not use the encrypted digital signature function).
7. A terms and conditions form for nominators filled out and signed by each nominator (do not use the encrypted digital signature function).