The Research & Innovation Office has moved our funding application files onto a SharePoint site, which can be accessed by Acadia faculty at this link. The SharePoint site hosts supporting documents for each of our internal funding competitions, along with our research policies.

Steps to download and submit your 25.55 application:

1. Go to the Research SharePoint site.

2. Review the URF 25.55 guidelines.

3. Read the Research Proposal and Budget Justification documents.

4. Download a copy of the 2026 URF 25.55 application.

5. Complete the application according to the instructions.

6. Ensure you have an updated CV.

7. Ensure you have your application and any accompanying documents prepared.

8. Open the Microsoft Forms Application Portal link here.

9. Submit your application prior to the deadline.  

Deadlines (Biannual)

February 1st and October 15th, each year - OPEN

Objectives

Acadia University established a research fund to support faculty research, and contributes $175,000 for each year of the 17th Collective Agreement towards two open competitions (Fall and Winter). The funds (awards up to $7,000) are administered through the Research and Innovation Office. This Research Fund is available only to current members of the bargaining unit and to Faculty appointees to the Board of Governors.

Funding Priorities (2026-2027)

The following areas are the priorities for 2026-2027, as determined by the URF Adjudication Committee, and are equal in priority ranking.

In cases where applications receive the same total score, the Adjudication Committee will take the following unranked priorities into account to determine funding allocations:  

• Research that will result in future grant applications (seed funding). Applicants must identify potential future grants in application.
• First time applicants
• Applicants with less secured external funding
• Applicants with proposed research activities independent of other ongoing research projects

Eligible direct costs of research (in no particular order)

• Travel for research collection purposes (recognizing disciplinary variation)
• Purchase of necessary equipment, materials, consumables and/or services for conducting and incentivizing research (evidence of purchase price or quotations needed)
• Student engagement in faculty member research (e.g. hiring a student research assistant)
• Community engagement in faculty member research (e.g. data collection in a community organization)
• Research user engagement (e.g. meetings with end users to help identify needs and potential research impacts)

Eligible knowledge dissemination and mobilization activities within and beyond academia (in no particular order)

• Research presentation by the faculty applicant at professional conferences/meetings (proof of conference presentation acceptance is required to release funds)
  • Virtual conference attendance and reasonable related expenses are supported
  • Publications associated with conference attendance  
• Organizing and hosting a research workshop, symposium or conference
• Knowledge mobilization targeted at appropriate research users outside of academia
• The creation of research outputs in non-traditional media, such as videos and podcasts, translation of research into other languages, and community-based meetings
• Publication costs as they relate to research accepted for publication in legitimate publication venues (i.e., not predatory journals)
• Book publication subvention fees, indexing

Ineligible expenses

• Conference attendance without presentation
• Expenses that are largely educational in nature (e.g., course tuition, attendance at professional development workshops, purchase or maintenance of teaching equipment / technology)
• Student attendance at conferences
• Teaching release or salary substitution
• Research-related professional memberships (e.g., learned societies, professional associations, journal subscriptions)

Application formatting requirements

• The application sections should be well-written, with attention paid to the instructions
• Applications should be written for a broad audience
• Clearly state the impacts of both the research and the award on the applicant's field, career, and, their ability to secure future funding

Applications not following the guidelines will not be considered by the Adjudication Committee

• This includes incomplete, incorrect, and/or late applications

Key Points:

• Under the terms of the 17th Collective Agreement, applicants can elect to apply for one- or two-year awards, for a maximum amount of $7,000. [NOTE: Unless you are certain that your project will require a full two years, it may be best to apply for a one-year award. If it becomes apparent that you will require extra time, you can automatically extend your one-year award for an extra year, as per Article 25.55(d). This avoids the situation of receiving a two-year award, finishing early, and then not being able to apply again until the 2-year term has ended.]
• Applicants eligible to apply for external funding cannot receive funding from this source for more than three consecutive years, unless a research funding application has been submitted to an external granting organization within that three-year period.
• Requests for 25.55 funding must be accompanied by a one-page report on the activities and outcomes of previous 25.55 funding, if applicable, unless a report has already been submitted to the Office of Research and Innovation.
• The evaluation criteria utilized by the Adjudication Committee can be found on the SharePoint site.
• It is important that you justify (not just describe) the budget clearly. Remember, if you are requesting travel funds to present a paper, please include a letter of acceptance and an abstract of the paper being presented.
• PLEASE NOTE: Article 25.55(g) states, "Applications must also include an updated curriculum vitae of the applicant." Please upload your current CV within the online application form.
• The deadlines for submission each year are October 15 and February 1 (adjusted to the following Monday if dates fall on the weekend). Decisions will be announced by November 15 and February 28 respectively.
• If you have any questions, please contact the Research Office at researchoffice@acadiau.ca

TIP: Please remember that there may be no one on the Adjudication Committee who shares your expertise or even your disciplinary background. Write for clarity and understanding throughout your application.

Hiring Student Researchers

Please visit our Hiring Students page for pay rates and more information.