Research Support Fund

What is the Research Support Fund (RSF) and what does it cover?

The Research Support Fund (RSF) is a Government of Canada program, awarded annually that assists eligible Canadian postsecondary institutions with the hidden (indirect) costs of managing research funded by the three federal research granting agencies (Tri-Council):

- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR);
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC);
- Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Indirect costs may include salaries of staff dedicated to research administration and support; training for health and safety; maintenance of libraries, laboratories and office space (including custodial services, internet access and furnishings), as well as the development of research infrastructures, such as research policies and research ethics boards.

The annual RSF grant amount is based on the funding that the institution鈥檚 researchers receive from the three federal research granting agencies (CIHR, NSERC, and SSHRC). Institutions must apply annually in order to receive RSF funding.

Institutions have flexibility in deciding how to use their grant, provided that it is used for the payment of current indirect expenditures in the following five categories:

For more information on the program, please visit the .

Impact of Federal Investment in Research Support at Dawson

The support from the RSF allows 蘑菇视频 to deliver excellent research administration to our research community and provides support for facilities and resources.

A significant portion of RSF grant funds are used to o铿€set the salaries of the Research Office staff who provide pre-award and post-award support for researchers. The Research Office plays a central role in identifying and advertising funding opportunities, helps researchers write strong grant applications, ensures compliant post-award administration, and provides the tools needed to manage research funds. This includes an allotment used towards professional development activities in research administration. The RSF also provides support in other ongoing indirect costs, such as library resources, administrative functions, facilities upkeep, and building maintenance.

The College has been able to make strategic decisions that support long-term improvement to the research ecosystem. This allows us to attract and retain talented faculty researchers, develop extensive partnerships and collaborations and support student involvement in research across the college.

Affiliated Organizations

– Centre de recherche pour l鈥檌nclusion scolaire et professionnelle des 茅tudiants en situation de handicap is a CCTT, centre coll茅gial de transfert de technologie. CRISPESH is affiliated with 蘑菇视频 and C茅gep du Vieux Montr茅al and contributes to the inclusion of people with disabilities in Quebec.

Public Disclosure of Funds 2026-2027

For 2026-2027, 蘑菇视频 was awarded a notional amount of $64,979 by the Research Support Fund. This will be used in the Management and Administration expenditure category, towards salary offsets for the research support staff and professional development activities in research administration.

Public Disclosure of Funds 2025-2026

In 2025鈥�2026 蘑菇视频 was awarded $53,107.00 from the Research Support Fund (RSF). Consistent with the College鈥檚 strategic priorities, the full allocation was invested in the Management and Administration expenditure category, Research Facilities expenditure category, and Research Resources expenditure category.

Salary Support ($40,870.00): RSF funds offset Research Office salaries to maintain essential research administration services, including funding support, approvals, compliance, post-award oversight, and reporting.
Professional Development ($1781.07): RSF funds supported memberships and professional development for Research Office staff to maintain current knowledge of research administration, funding, and compliance practices, including those offered by the Canadian Association of Research Administrators (CARA) and the Association pour la recherche au coll茅gial (ARC).
Research resources ($141.45): RSF funds supported the purchase of computer materials for the Research Office, to support the basic operational capacity needed to manage research files, funding documentation, communications, and reporting.
Research Facilities ($8237.00): RSF funds supported College space and library resources that contribute to the development, administration, and dissemination of research activity.
Committed but unspent ($2077.48)

2025-2026 Dawson Investment Narrative

Public Disclosure of Funds 2024-2025

For 2024-2025, 蘑菇视频 was awarded $36,730 by the Research Support Fund. This was used in the Management and Administration expenditure category, towards salary offsets for the research support staff and professional development activities in research administration.

The staff play a central role in identifying and advertising funding opportunities, ensuring grant applications are complete and admissible, tracking institutional and REB approval, ensuring compliant post-award administration and internal benchmarking, policy development, and report writing.

Salary offset absorbed 32,730$. A portion of the RSF funds awarded ($1,138.62) was used for professional development activities for the Research Officer and Research Administration Technician. These include membership fees and participation in various research administration and professional development events offered by the Canadian Association for Research Administrators (CARA) and the Association pour la recherche au collegial (ARC). The remainder of the RSF funds awarded ($2,861.38) was allocated to support attendance at the CARA national conference.

2024-2025_Dawson Investment Narrative