The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, through grants, fellowships and scholarships, promotes and supports research and research training in natural sciences and engineering to develop talent, generate discoveries, and support innovation in pursuit of economic and social outcomes for Canadians.

NSERC’s core responsibility contributes to the “Prosperity” domain of the Quality of Life Framework for Canada and, more specifically, to “Investment in in-house research and development,” “Productivity,” “Future Outlook,” and “Child, student and adult skills” (impact on students and trainees) through all of the activities mentioned in the core responsibility description.

This section presents details on the department’s indicators, the actual results from the three most recently reported fiscal years, the targets and target dates approved in 2025–26 for funding natural science and engineering research and training. Details are presented by departmental result.

The following section describes the planned results for funding natural science and engineering research and training in 2025–26.

Departmental Result: Canada's natural sciences and engineering research is internationally competitive.

To support natural sciences and engineering research in Canada, NSERC will continue to strengthen the country’s research foundation through various Discovery Research Funding Opportunities. This $539 million dollar programming will support thousands of NSE researchers in Canada. NSERC acknowledges the changing landscape of research and is committed to working with the research community to increase equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility (EDIA) through the support it provides.

NSERC will also continue to promote interdisciplinary research, foster Indigenous research leadership and self-determination, support open science, and meet the diverse needs of Canada’s research ecosystem.

NSERC will continue to partner with global research funding agencies, while also helping Canadian researchers build international connections through its Alliance and Discovery Research programming, which supports a wide range of projects in natural sciences and engineering.

NSERC also aims to safeguard the integrity of Canada’s research ecosystem from activities that undermine its foundational principles of openness, transparency, merit, academic freedom, and reciprocity, by implementing policies and measures aligned with the Tri-agency guidance on research security. NSERC will continue to promote research security in a global context, in close collaboration with federal partners and the broader research community, to support a strong, globally competitive research and innovation system in Canada where the outcomes of Canada’s research and development are realized by those that conduct it and for the benefit of Canadians.

NSERC celebrates remarkable achievements in Canadian research with a range of prizes, from innovative discoveries by early-stage academic researchers to lifetime accomplishments.

Departmental Result: Canada has a pool of diverse and highly skilled people in the natural sciences and engineering.

NSERC recognizes its crucial role in attracting and retaining diverse talent within the Canadian research ecosystem. To support researchers at all career stages, NSERC will continue to promote scientific culture, encourage open science practices, and support high-quality training and opportunities for impactful careers across Canada’s economy.

NSERC will pursue ongoing collaboration with the CIHR and SSHRC to harmonize and streamline funding opportunities for Canadian students and postdoctoral researchers. This collaboration will implement new funding announced in Budget 2024, including the actions captured in the Tri-agency Research Training Strategy.

NSERC will continue to develop initiatives and policies to promote EDIA and to address barriers and biases experienced by underrepresented groups including women, visible minorities, Indigenous peoples and persons with disabilities. Entering its third year, the Black Scholars initiative will strengthen the research capacity of Black researchers and contribute to making Canada’s research culture more equitable, diverse and inclusive. The Indigenous Scholars Awards and Supplements Pilot Initiative, will provide dedicated funding to meritorious Indigenous students to the Canada Graduate Scholarships — Master’s program.

Departmental Result: Canada's natural sciences and engineering research knowledge is used.

NSERC recognizes the importance of research partnerships as a driver to accelerate the application of research results. In 2025–26, NSERC will focus on delivering societal, economic, and environmental benefits for Canada by promoting strategic collaborations and supporting the dissemination of research findings through its Alliance programming.

In 2025–26, NSERC intends to foster partnerships and collaborate with various stakeholders, including domestic and international public, private and not-for-profit organizations, to enhance research impact and benefits for Canada.

NSERC is committed to strengthening relationships with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit by fostering meaningful engagement and collaboration. This includes supporting Indigenous research, researchers and trainees through implementing the Budget 2024 measures on Indigenous research support. NSERC’s approach will be guided by the Indigenous Research Capacity Strategic Plan, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Inuit Nunangat Policy.

In 2025–26, the tri-agency College and Community Innovation (CCI) program will be in the final year of its $108.6M infusion from Budget 2023, which was to help more Canadian businesses access the expertise and research and development facilities they need. The CCI program will continue to invest these funds in applied research activities to generate benefits to Canada, while developing plans beyond the end of this term funding. The CCI program will also implement an updated governance framework, which encourages closer collaboration between NSERC, CIHR, and SSHRC as well as with Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), Health Canada (HC) and the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).

The new Lab to Market (LTM) grants will benefit from the same governance framework as the CCI program. In 2025–26, NSERC will continue to engage with recipients and to encourage collaboration between them as they work to establish their operations and develop a national ecosystem to nurture commercialization and social innovation capabilities within the academic community.

Table 4 provides a summary of the planned spending and full-time equivalents required to achieve results.

Complete financial and human resources information for NSERC’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.

Funding natural sciences and engineering research and training is supported by the following programs:

• Discovery Research
• Research Partnerships
• Research Training and Talent Development

Additional information related to this program inventory is available on the Results page on GC InfoBase.

Internal services are the services that are provided within a department so that it can meet its corporate obligations and deliver its programs. There are 10 categories of internal services:

• management and oversight services
• communications services
• legal services
• human resources management services
• financial management services
• information management services
• information technology services
• real property management services
• materiel management services
• acquisition management services

This section presents details on how the department plans to achieve results and meet targets for internal services.

In 2025–26 NSERC will continue to prioritize the well-being, inclusion and productivity of its staff, the modernization of work tools and harmonization of processes within the granting agencies. Other areas of focus for 2025–26 will ensure that NSERC centers all efforts on its mandate and on producing results for Canadians.

Following the Budget 2024 announcement to modernize Canada's federal research support system, including the establishment of a new capstone research funding organization, the granting agencies will continue to address gaps in tri-agency coordination to maximize the impact of federal research support across Canada.

Budget 2024 provides $26.9 million over five years, starting in 2024–25, with $26.6 million in remaining amortization and $6.6 million ongoing, to the three granting agencies to establish an improved and harmonized grant management system. Using out-of-box functionalities and a user centric approach, the Tri-agency grants management solution (TGMS) will support modern, secure and user-friendly program delivery to better support the research community, while also advancing the accessibility commitment of the agencies. NSERC will continue to support and manage existing legacy systems until the transition to TGMS is completed.

In 2025–26, NSERC will continue the digital transformation of the Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) office with the implementation of tools such as SharePoint, the ATIP Online Management Tool, and a new ATIP software. Also, NSERC plans to transition its current website to a new content management framework, while also shifting the hosting platform from on-premises to a cloud-based environment, all without disrupting business operations. This migration aims to leverage new capabilities to enhance the website's functionality, user experience, maintainability and to achieve alignment with Government of Canada security policies and accessibility standards.

In 2025–26, NSERC will remain committed to increasing the participation of Indigenous businesses in federal procurement, in alignment with the Directive on the Management of Procurement. NSERC will provide training for procurement personnel, develop a guide for internal stakeholders to optimize Indigenous business involvement, and actively promote the Indigenous Business Directory as a resource for assessing Indigenous business capacity. 

NSERC will also strengthen relationships with key federal departments such as Treasury Board Secretariat, Shared Services Canada and Public Services and Procurement Canada to solidify policy alignment, compliance and the evidence available for decision-making. These collaborations will contribute to outcomes such as improved cyber security and alignment to workplace standards.

Guided by its People Strategy and action plan, NSERC is committed to cultivating a diverse workforce that can act with agility while sustaining a modern, healthy, and inclusive workplace. This commitment will enable the organization to anticipate change, adapt, and evolve. Priority areas include building a workforce for future success; promoting a safe, respectful, and healthy work environment for all; fostering accessibility, diversity, bilingualism, and inclusiveness; and modernizing policies and operations to support an agile, resilient, and responsive workforce.

Table 5 Planned resources to achieve results for internal services this year

Table 5 provides a summary of the planned spending and full-time equivalents required to achieve results.

Complete financial and human resources information for NSERC’s program inventory is available on GC InfoBase.

Table 7 presents how much money NSERC’s spent over the past three years to carry out its core responsibilities and for internal services. Amounts for the current fiscal year are forecasted based on spending to date.

Table 8 presents how much money NSERC’s plans to spend over the next three years to carry out its core responsibilities and for internal services.

Graph 1 summarizes the department's approved voted and statutory funding from 2022–23 to 2027–28

Fiscal year	Total	Voted	Statutory
2022–23	$1,383,929,641	$1,377,447,326	$6,482,315
2023–24	$1,385,703,811	$1,378,542,087	$7,161,724
2024–25	$1,480,174,131	$1,471,625,129	$8,549,002
2025–26	$1,506,621,011	$1,497,360,195	$9,260,816
2026–27	$1,527,111,900	$1,518,069,105	$9,042,795
2027–28	$1,563,505,197	$1,555,036,149	$8,469,048

Analysis of statutory and voted funding over a six-year period

Significant investments were announced in Budget 2024, for the Increase to Scholarship and Fellowship award values and for the Increase to core research grants.

A slight decrease is expected in 2026-27, mostly due to the ending of the temporary increase in College and Community Innovation funding from Budget 2023.

For further information on NSERC’s departmental appropriations, consult the 2025–26 Main Estimates.

Table 9 summarizes the expenses and revenues which net to the cost of operations before government funding and transfers for 2024–25 to 2025–26. The forecast and planned amounts in this statement of operations were prepared on an accrual basis. The forecast and planned amounts presented in other sections of the Departmental Plan were prepared on an expenditure basis. Amounts may therefore differ.

Table 10 shows a summary of human resources, in full-time equivalents, for NSERC’s core responsibilities and for its internal services for the previous three fiscal years. Human resources for the current fiscal year are forecasted based on year to date.

Table 11 shows information on human resources, in full-time equivalents, for each of NSERC’s core responsibilities and for its internal services planned for the next three years.