NSERC Discovery Grants (Individual)
Funds Canadian university researchers with long term operational support in science and engineering.
NSERC Discovery Grants sit under the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and provide long-term operating support for individual faculty members at Canadian universities. The program backs ongoing basic and applied research in the natural sciences and engineering, so it is a core funding line for academic researchers rather than a startup-facing scheme. Awards run for up to five years and are reviewed annually after a mandatory notice of intent step. The eligible applicant must be a university faculty member, and the program is not open directly to for-profit companies or standalone research organizations. Reviewers look for researcher strength, proposal quality, and contribution to training highly qualified personnel. The best fit is a university lab with an established research trajectory and a clear operating plan for the next several years. Applicants do best when the proposal shows continuity, a credible research question, and a training environment that can support students and postdoctoral researchers. It is a steady academic grant rather than a one-time project prize.
No upcoming rounds verified. Cadence: Annual.