CAHR Travel Awards for Professional Development

Background

With a membership of more than 2,000 researchers and others interested in HIV research, the Canadian Association for HIV Research (CAHR) is the leading organization of HIV/AIDS researchers in Canada. As an integral element of its mandate, CAHR works to “promote excellence in HIV research” and “promote education and the development of new researchers”. The CAHR Travel Awards Program has been designed to align with these elements of CAHR’s mission by offering support for professional development opportunities.

Travel Awards

The CAHR Travel Awards for Professional Development have been designed to offer support for the next generation of HIV researchers seeking to: build their skills; take advantage of professional development opportunities; attend Canadian and international conferences where professional development opportunities can be clearly demonstrated; undertake field work to advance their research endeavours; and participate in lab/research program exchange opportunities. These awards are available across CAHR’s four tracks (basic, clinical, social sciences, epidemiology and public health) as well as community-based research.

Funding

CAHR will invest $100,000 annually for this funding opportunity, with the potential to support a minimum of 40 travel awards each worth up to $2,500 CAD. A maximum of 8 awards per year will be offered to early career researchers (ECRs).

Allowable Costs

The following expenditures are eligible for funding:

  1. transportation
  2. lodging
  3. registration fees / course fees

In all cases, funding will be provided directly to the awardee upon the conclusion of the supported activity. Awardees are responsible for submitting proof of travel (boarding passes, hotel invoices, registration/course fees) to CAHR in order to process payments.

Important Dates

Four intakes will occur each year:

  • March 1st
  • June 1st
  • September 1st
  • December 1st

Please note that applications:

  • must be submitted at least four (4) weeks in advance of the proposed activity to allow adequate time for peer review
  • must not be submitted sooner than six (6) months ahead of the proposed activity
  • will not be reviewed until the end of each intake period

Eligibility

Applicants must be:

  • Canadian citizens, or a permanent residents of Canada, or those living in Canada while enrolled at a Canadian academic institution
  • Aspiring HIV researchers at the M.Sc., Ph.D. or Post-Doctoral Fellow level enrolled full-time at a Canadian University OR an early career researcher (ECR) that is within five years of the date of their first independent research-related appointment at a Canadian University OR a person living with HIV/AIDS and/or those working or volunteering at a community based organization who are involved in HIV research
  • NOTE: Applicants must not have held a Travel Award for Professional Development in the previous year for the same activity. Applicants are however allowed to apply for Travel Award for Professional Development the following year to participate in a different event

How to Apply

A complete application must include:

  • A maximum two-page letter, using no more than 1000 words, that:
    • Describes how the applicant meets the eligibility criteria
    • Summarizes the applicant’s relevant experience/training in HIV research
    • Describes how the applicant intends to utilize the requested funding
    • Outlines the tangible benefits from receiving financial support and/or expresses how receiving the award will support their professional development in HIV research (please note that the presentation of a conference abstract alone is not considered professional development)
    • States whether or not the applicant has received funding from another source to support the same activities. Note: Funding from other sources is allowed to support the total cost of the proposed activity, however the applicant must clearly demonstrate that two or more funding sources will not be used to cover the same expense. 
  • The applicant’s CV/resume
  • A budget (one page maximum) that clearly demonstrates how all funds will be utilized and, where applicable, the allocation of other sources of funding. Funding from other sources cannot overlap / duplicate funds requested in this application. For example, if your event costs $10,000 to attend – you can apply to CAHR for $2500 and another group to cover the other portion. You must show how funds from each group will be used, and you cannot ask for more than $10,000 total.
  • A letter of support from the applicant’s academic supervisor OR from a community leader for community-based applications (Note: for exchange opportunities, a letter of support is also required from the host supervisor)
  • Proof of registration or acceptance to the conference/activity for which the applicant is seeking funds (if applicable).
  • Proof of Canadian citizenship or a permanent residency of Canada
Apply now

Official Languages

CAHR encourages applicants to submit proposals in the Official Language of their choice and commits to ensuring high-quality review of applications submitted in either Official Language.

Conditions of Funding

Successful candidates must:

  • Accept their award within five (5) working days of the date of offer or the award will be cancelled and offered to the next fundable applicant
  • Grant funding from other sources may be added to the funding received through this award as long as the total amount of funding secured from all sources does not exceed 100% of the costs. If applicable, applicants must confirm this in the application.  

Note: Funding is non-renewable. Individuals may only hold one award for the same activity per every two calendar years.

Review Process

CAHR will assemble an independent review committee comprised of peers to adjudicate the applications. Proposals from eligible applicants will be judged solely utilizing the evaluation criteria noted below.

Evaluation Criteria

The priority areas for adjudication are:

  • Demonstration that the applicant has the requisite training/background/expertise as appropriate for the subject matter of the funding requested
  • Clarity and alignment of the proposed activities and scope with the professional development objectives of the funding opportunity
  • Demonstration that the applicant can show tangible benefits as an outcome of receiving support
  • Appropriateness of the budget and justification for amount requested

Note: Please be sure to highlight any external peer reviewed activity (such as acceptance of an abstract or successfully competing for acceptance into a course, etc.) as it will be viewed favourably in the review process.

** CAHR is committed to ensuring equity of opportunity for persons who are: racialized persons / persons of colour, women, Indigenous / Aboriginal People of North America, persons with disabilities, LGBTQ persons, early career investigators and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas. Applicants are encouraged to self-identify if they are members of one of these equity deserving groups.

Funding Decision

Upon completion of peer review, CAHR will be provided with application ratings and a funding recommendation. This information will be used for funding decision-making purposes and will remain confidential.  Applications will be funded as far as the budget will allow per each quarterly funding cycle.  Applications that receive a rating below 3.5 will not be recommended for funding (rating scale is 0-5).

Evaluation/Communications

  • Successful applicants must submit a final report within 30 days of the completion of their activity to detail the outcomes and impacts of the funding.  Failure to do so will render the grantee ineligible for future CAHR support. 
  • Award recipients must acknowledge CAHR financial support in any report/presentation/ knowledge translation activity related to the event.

Results

December 2025
  • Cara Follows, University of Manitoba, Field Work and Community Outreach (Nairobi, Kenya)
  • Julie Lajoie, University of Manitoba, Workshop and Community Outreach (Nairobi, Kenya)
  • Aniqa Shahid, Simon Fraser University, CAHR 2025 New Researcher Workshop (Winnipeg)
  • Amanda Yonkman, Simon Fraser University, Field Work (Prince George)

Contact Information

Please contact trainingandawards@cahr-acrv.ca for more information.