Success rates down as NSERC announces results of overhauled DGP competition

The first official execution of changes to the competition process for the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council's (NSERC) flagship Discovery Grants Program (DGP) has produced a higher average of support for a smaller number of researchers in what officials describe as "a greater dynamic of funding among researchers".

The 2009 DGP competition yielded a 63.5% success rate, down from 71% the previous year. The amount of funding allocated was $349.4 million (including a separate sub-atomic physics envelope and accelerator grants) — an amount officials are quick to note is slightly more ($2.8 million) than for the 2008 DGP competition.

The 2009 competition marks the introduction of several changes stemming from a multi-year analysis of the DGP by NSERC and two external review panels. It includes a two-step process whereby scientific merit is assessed before determining funding levels. But perhaps the most significant change is the adoption of the Conference Model of peer review.

When fully implemented next year, the Conference Model will reduce the number of discipline-based review committees from 28 grant selection committees to 10 or 12 conference review panels. These panels can be readily configured into highly targeted review bodies containing the requisite expertise for complex, emerging areas of research that are often multidisciplinary.

The competition also implemented a six-point rating scale to assess three merit-based criteria: excellence of the researchers, merit of the proposal and training of highly qualified personnel. Applicants with similar scores were then placed into so-called bins before moving forward to be assigned a funding level for each bin, which ranged from exceptional to insufficient.

The new system is intended to preserve continuity of funding for NSERC's most productive researchers, allow for a more rapid ramp-up of funding for those with "superior accomplishments and research plans" and lessen the reliance on a researcher's history of research grants.

"The Discovery Grants Program is now better positioned to support research. The rating system allows us to be confident that strong research is supported," says Isabelle Blain, NSERC's VP research grants and scholarships. "This is one part of the ongoing path for NSERC to achieve organizational excellence, grow in our ability to be ahead of the curve, contributing to Canada's mission."

Curiously, the number of applications made for the DGP competition dropped in 2009 by 5.7% from 3,405 last year to 3,210. That includes a steep 11.7% decline in first-time applicants from 721 to 637.

Early-career researchers received an average grant size of $24,417 and achieved a 58.5% success rate. Established researchers received an average of $35,282 for a 64.5% success rate. For those who previously held a grant, the average success rate increased to $36,942 and 78.6% respectively. For established researchers who were previously unsuccessful under the DGP, the average grant size was $25,784 and the success rate was only 33.2%

Not surprisingly, fewer applications translated into slightly higher average grants sizes, which rose 13.1% from $29,818 to $33,713. When sub atomic physics grants are factored in, the average grant size increased 23.4% from $31,142 to $38,416.

Blain says it's unclear why fewer researchers applied for the 2009 competition but speculated that it may be because universities are slowing their hiring in response to the growing economic crisis.

The changes to the DGP program, while perhaps welcomed in terms of ensuring an efficient and equitable system for adjudicating modern grant proposals, do nothing to reverse the decline in the DGP's success rate which stood at 80% in 2002 and now hovers just above 63%. The only way to increase success rates is to increase the overall pot of DGP funding.

"We did not receive funds in order to do this," says Blain. "I would love for the program to be able to grow."

The mathematics community has been especially critical of the successful applicants under the new DGP competition process. In the 2009 competition, success rates plummeted from 77% in 2008 to 64% in 2009.

"The main issue is that the overall budget is simply inadequate to support high quality mathematics research in Canada, especially given the calibre of new entries to the system over the past decade," wrote the Mathematics Committee for Liaison with NSERC. "The mathematics community must urge the Government to follow (its infrastructure funding initiative) up with a crucially needed investment in Canadian research via NSERC and the other federal granting agencies."

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