Funding FAQs

Below are a few answers to frequently asked questions about the Research and Scholarly Activity Fund (RSAF) at Douglas College:

What is the RSAF?

The Research and Scholarly Activity Fund awards up to $3000 per fiscal year to encourage and support College employees who wish to pursue research and/or scholarly activities. While aligning with the initiatives outlined in the Douglas College Strategic Plan, activities may include, but are not limited to: building upon, or undertaking, projects of original research or scholarship; initiating, maintaining, or updating an individual research portfolio; engaging Douglas College students in research and scholarship; employing Douglas College students as research assistants; initiating collaborative research or scholarship; disseminating research or scholarship to other scholarly communities, enhancing Douglas College's international reputation; and building infrastructure pertaining to research and scholarship.

Can I apply?

If you are regular faculty at Douglas College you can apply for an RSAF award. Employees other than regular faculty need the permission of their Dean or relevant supervisor.

How often can I apply?

You can apply as often as you like. However, funding is limited to $3000 per individual per fiscal year ending March 31. If you have already received an award, you must close that account, and submit a final report, before applying for another award.

Are RSAF Awards transferrable?

No. Awarded funding must be used only for expenses outlined in the application budget. You cannot use funds for items not listed in the original application budget.

Top

Is the RSAF the same as Common Professional Development Funding (ED Leave)?

No. The funding pools come from different places and one has nothing to do with the other. However, should you receive or apply for PD funding, you are encouraged to apply for RSA funding as well to augment or enrich your research opportunities while on PD leave. However, remember that RSA funding is earmarked for research and scholarly activity, which does not necessarily align with accreditation, educational, or pedagogical initiatives.

Hiring a Student: How to Hire Student Assistants to Help With Research

Job Descriptions
Determine the role you expect the student to undertake in your research and scholarly activity project. Student research assistants cannot duplicate work usually done by BCGEU members. If you are unsure whether this is the case with your intended duties, you may want to consult the list of approved duties for Student Research Assistants. If you have something other than the duties on the list in mind, please discuss the matter with the Coordinator, Research and Innovation Office (x5818).

Budgeting
It is your responsibility to see that the costs associated with your research project remain within the dollar amount of your award. Cost overruns caused by student assistants' wages (or any other item) will not be reimbursed by the College.

Student Research Assistants (SRAs) must be paid at the rates set for Student Assistant II. Their employment is covered under a Letter of Understanding in the BCGEU collective agreement. You'll note that the base salary is now $10.87 per hour. The addition of 4% holiday pay and a small amount in benefit cost brings the total costs to $11.77. Please budget for the RSA at $12/hr to leave a small margin if needed. In your application to the Research and Scholarly Activity Fund, please make the duties they are expected to carry out clear.

There are no minimum hours that they are required to work. However, Research Assistants cannot work more than 7 hours a day (or overtime rates as per Collective Agreement will apply) and no more than 15 hours per week. Please also be aware that if students are scheduled to work on statutory holidays, they are entitled to 2X or 2 ½X for all hours worked plus a day off in lieu of the holiday.

Hiring
The procedure is not a complicated one. Identify a student who you wish to do the work and make her or him an offer of employment. However, you need to check that the students you may wish to employ are enrolled in at least one 3-credit course at Douglas College or at another public post secondary institution. If the student is not a Douglas College student, he or she will need to provide proof of enrolment to Human Resources and Student Employment. If you are not sure about the enrolment status of the student, please check with Colleen Romano (6039) before proceeding with the hiring.

If you are hiring a student who is between semesters and does not meet the criterion of enrolment in a course, please inform Samantha Saldanha in Human Resources. It is easy to apply for a variance.

Once the student you wish to work with has agreed to do so, take the following steps:

Step 1 - Fill in a P40 form, available from Samantha Saldanha or Laura Sandve. Note that the cost code for the Research and Scholarly Activity Fund is 2015.

Step 2 - Send the completed form to Samantha Saldanha with a cc to Colleen Romano (Student Employment Services) and to the Coordinator, Research and Innovation Office.

Step 3 - Inform the student that he or she must attend a short orientation by Human Resources before beginning work. Ask the student to contact Linda Chow (local 5440) on the New West campus or Tania Dong or Wendy Davies (local 6325) for a session at David Lam. At the orientation session, the student will need to bring a void cheque (for direct deposit payments) and provide a SIN. If the student has previously worked as a student assistant, this step is unnecessary.

Step 4 - When the orientation session has been completed, Human Resources will contact you and let you know that the student(s) can begin work.

Step 5 - If the student will require additional printing privileges because of duties related to your project, please fill out the appropriate CEIT form.

Step 6 - Email the Coordinator, Research and Innovation Office to report that the process has been completed and the student has begun the work.

Step 7 - As the work gets underway, please sign and submit the student assistant's time sheets to the Payroll Department.

Who adjudicates the RSAF application?

The RSAF Adjudication Committee (RSAFAC) adjudicates the Research and Scholarly Activity Fund. The committee is made up of one elected representative from each Faculty within the Academic Division at the College. Each member ranks applications and then a consensus is reached amongst the committee for funded applications. Applications are ranked according to their responses to the criteria for the award; those applications with the highest rankings usually receive funding as permitted by budgetary restraints. A minimum total score of 135 is usually required for a Standard Award and a minimum total score of 220 is required to be considered for a Sectional Time Release Award. The RSAF adjudication rubric is here.

Where can I find an application form?

You can find a current application form here.

When are the application deadlines?

There are currently three annual calls for funding competitions, with deadlines for submission on or about Oct. 15, Feb. 15, and May 15.

Can I apply for an award retroactively?

No. You must apply your award to upcoming initiatives, conferences, or research. You may not apply for retroactive funding for activities already undertaken. If the proposed activity takes place before the deadline for applications, the application is considered retroactive.

How long can I hold an award?

You have one calendar year from the date you accept the award to use the award. In the event of some extenuating circumstances, an extension may be granted at the discretion of the RSA Coordinator. Requests for an extension must be made to the Coordinator, Research and Innovation Office at least three months prior to the final report deadline.

Are there limits to the cost of airline travel?

Flight costs must not exceed the following:

$1100 - within Canada
$1500 - International (US and Europe)
$2200 - International (Asia, Australia, Africa)

Are there any conditions attached to the funding?

Only that you fill out a final report after the completion of the project for which you received funding. The final report form can be found here.

Who has won the award before?

A list of former project winners is here.

Top

Adjudication Rubric:

Generally, and as the RSAF budget allows, projects for Standard RSAF Awards with a total adjudication score of 135 are funded. Projects that receive a score lower than 135 are usually turned down. Applicants are welcome to re-apply with updated and revised proposals. Unfunded projects seeking assistance may contact the Research and Scholarly Activity Coordinator for consultation about areas in the original proposal that need improvement. However, consultation with the RSA Coordinator does not guarantee future success. RSAFAC Adjudication forms can be found here. An application receives a score ranging from 1-5 on each criterion to a total of 30 per adjudicator. These scores are then tabulated to arrive at a final standing out of 180. Each major criterion for the RSAF is assessed under the following rubric, notwithstanding the idiosyncrasies of the individuals on the adjudication committee:

0) Incomplete, blank, redundant, qualification(s) of applicant(s) to embark on the activity is in question.

1) Complete, but unsubstantive, unclear, or avoiding the criteria outlined in the applicable section; no tangible connection to discipline, College activities, or tactical plan.

2) Language opaque or unclear; activity's connection to criteria tenuous and unclear; relevance to disciplinary area unclear; does not align with general College tactical directions; proposed activity is well outside the disciplinary area of the applicant(s).

3) Adequate, but use of jargon confuses clarity; application is wordy; timelines or budgetary requests seem unrealistic (or fudged), vague connection to tactical priorities of the College or the discipline; applicant(s) are proposing an activity that does not reflect any previous disciplinary or professional experience; goals and outcomes are unclear, tangential.

4) Application is direct and clear with minimal jargon; proposed activity is well thought out and has clear timelines and budgetary requests; proposed activity responds to College tactical plan and criteria; prior work in the field / discipline aligns well with the proposed activity; realistic goals and tangible outcomes.

5) Clear timelines, outcomes, connections between activity, funding criteria, and College tactual plan; language of application proposal clear and understood by all; conception of proposed activity reflects readiness to engage with research, scholarship, or scholarly community in a way that will enhance College environment (I.e.: classroom, infrastructure, culture); clear connection between developmental stages of the proposed activity and the developmental stages of College tactical priorities; criteria are responded to clearly and precisely without verbiage; disciplinary specialty and professional work aligns with the proposed activity and suggests ongoing development and deployment beyond the scope of the award.

RSAF Applications for a Sectional Time Release require a total adjudication score above 220 to be considered. The adjudication process is similar to the Standard RSAF Awards with the exception of an additional criterion dealing with time release expectations that brings the total possible score up to 270. The general rubric above still applies to the additional criterion. The fund can only release faculty from one section of their total teaching load. Sectional Time Releases cost the Fund $12,500 per award, a major portion or the total RSAF budget. Therefore, Sectional Time Release awards are only given to projects that both suit the parameters of the award and propose reasonable outcomes. Sectional Time Release awards are best suited to grant-writing projects, research proposal writing projects, article or book completion projects, etc. Rarely is a Sectional Time Release award given to undertake a large research project or begin a substantive individual research portfolio. Those interested in applying for release time are advised to consult with the Coordinator, Research and Innovation Office before applying and to consult the chair of the Common Professional Development Fund, adjudicated annually in October, to see if it might be the more appropriate venue for funding.

Should you have any further questions, please contact us at: rsa@douglascollege.ca

Top

Useful Links:

The RSAF Terms of Reference

The RSAFAC Terms of Reference

Download a .pdf file of this page.

For general inquiries and support, please email: rsa@douglascollege.ca