Adjudication Criteria

External reviewers for internship proposals receive the following questions to guide their assessment of the proposal:

1. Does the proposed project qualify as research in its discipline? Please comment on the potential to make new contributions to the current state-of-the-art/body of knowledge, or to solve an existing problem using novel techniques.
2. Are the proposed objectives well-defined and reasonable? Please comment on their appropriateness to address the research problems or questions.
3. Is the methodology well-defined, sufficiently detailed and appropriate to achieve the objectives? Please comment.
4. Is the work plan feasible? Please comment based on the proposed timeline and available resources.
5. Does the internship represent an appropriate learning and development opportunity for the intern(s)? Please comment considering the degree level of the intern(s) and the proposed activities in both academic and non-academic environments.
6. If you have any further comments and suggestions for the applicants, please provide them here.
7. Confidential comments for Mitacs:
8. Will the research work potentially have adverse effects on the environment? Do you recommend that an additional environmental impact review be conducted?

In addition to reviewing the technical merit of the project, Mitacs proposals are also assessed to ensure:

1. Alignment with the intent of the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships and the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (see: Mitacs Research Security Plan) and that proposals for research collaborations, especially those involving intellectual property (IP) development and/or assignments to non-academic host organizations (see: Mitacs Intellectual Property Policy) demonstrate adequate benefits to Canada to qualify for Mitacs funding (see: Mitacs Research Security Plan).
2. Actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest among project participants are recognized, disclosed, and appropriately managed (see: Mitacs’s Conflict of Interest Policy for Program Participants).
3. Indigenous research projects meet the expectations set forth in Mitacs’s Indigenous Research Policy.

Proposals for large and long-term projects may sometimes involve significant technical or scientific uncertainties, complex project management plans, or highly structured intern recruitment, supervision, and training plans. In these situations, Mitacs reserves the right to hold a review meeting between applicants and reviewers to support the assessment of such proposals before arriving at a final funding decision. The need for such a review meeting will be determined as part of the review process, and applicants will be notified as soon as possible if a review meeting needs to be scheduled.

Mitacs Globalink Research applications will undergo review by an interdisciplinary team. Proposals will be adjudicated based on the following criteria:

1.    Quality of the research proposal
2.    Benefits to industry, society, and Canada
3.    Opportunities and benefits to the intern(s)

In addition to reviewing the technical merit of the project, Mitacs proposals are also assessed to ensure:

1. Alignment with the intent of the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships and the Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (see: Mitacs Research Security Plan) and that proposals for research collaborations, especially those involving intellectual property (IP) development and/or assignments to non-academic host organizations (see: Mitacs Intellectual Property Policy) demonstrate adequate benefits to Canada to qualify for Mitacs funding (see: Mitacs Research Security Plan).
2. Actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest among project participants are recognized, disclosed, and appropriately managed (see: Mitacs’s Conflict of Interest Policy for Program Participants).
3. Indigenous research projects meet the expectations set forth in Mitacs’s Indigenous Research Policy.

External referees for internship proposals receive the following questions to guide their assessment of the proposal:

1. Mitacs Accelerate International supports research-based internships. Does the proposed project qualify as research in its discipline?
2. Is the project appropriate for the academic degree level of the intern?
3. Are the objectives clear?
4. Is the methodology appropriate to achieve the objectives?
5. Is the timeline realistic?
6. Other comments and suggestions for the applicants. For example, is there prior work that should be considered by the researchers?
7. Confidential comments for Mitacs:
8. Will the research work potentially have adverse effects on the environment? Do you recommend that an additional environmental impact review be conducted.

In addition, Mitacs will review proposals to ensure that projects demonstrate sufficient benefits to Canada. Benefits will be considered under categories such as:

• training of Canadian citizens and permanent residents
• bringing talent to Canada
• creating new research relationships
• growing research activities in Canada
• foreign investment in Canada
• creating IP held in Canada (joint or full ownership by Canadian organizations, allowance for Canadian industry to commercially exploit the IP)
• creating markets for existing Canadian IP

A project does not need to demonstrate benefits under every category – a weakness in one category can be compensated by strengths in others.  However, projects that demonstrate little or no benefits across all categories will not be approved by Mitacs.

Applicants wishing to appeal the decision of the Mitacs Research and Innovation Council (MRIC) on their internship application may send a letter of appeal to the MRIC Chair (Mitacs Chief Research Officer and Scientific Director) by email to mrc-chair(at)mitacs.ca. Appeals must be received within 60 days of the notice of decision and must include the original signed proposal.