As announced in October 2024 by the Presidents of the federal research granting councils, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) are gradually transitioning from the Canadian Common CV (CCV) to a new narrative-style tri-agency CV for their funding opportunities. NSERC is pleased to share that the tri-agency CV will be implemented in the 2027 Discovery Horizons and the 2027 Arthur B. McDonald Fellowships competitions.

The tri-agency CV replaces the CCV, which has long been a source of concern for applicants due to usability challenges, the burden of multiple templates and its focus on traditional research outputs. The tri-agency CV has been developed through extensive consultations with the research community and reflects a more inclusive, flexible, and user-friendly approach. In line with tri-agency commitment to implement the Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), it allows applicants to highlight a wide range of research contributions and impacts, including policy influence, public engagement, leadership, and mentorship, alongside conventional outputs such as publications.

NSERC joins many other funders worldwide, including the US National Institutes of Health and UK Research and Innovation, which have adopted narrative-style CVs. To prepare for this transition, NSERC has been successfully piloting a narrative‑style CV in the Discovery Horizons program for the past four competitions.

The adoption of the new tri‑agency CV complements the broader modernization efforts underway as we continue work towards implementing the tri‑agency grants management solution (TGMS). When implemented, TGMS will improve  the user experience for applicants, administrators, and reviewers as they navigate and participate in funding opportunities across the tri-agencies.

Other NSERC funding opportunities will be using the tri-agency CV as they are onboarded onto TGMS. This phased approach reflects NSERC’s decision to prioritize a smooth, well‑supported experience for applicants and reviewers, while allowing time to test resources. NSERC will announce the timing of funding opportunities onboarding to TGMS with as much advance notice as possible.

NSERC encourages the research community to view the resources on its tri-agency CV landing page (including a tri-agency CV webinar recording) to learn more and to contact TCV-CVTO@nserc-crsng.gc.ca should there be any questions.