Marcelle-Gauvreau Engineering Research Chairs Program

The objective of the Marcelle-Gauvreau Engineering Research Chairs Program is to elevate the careers of talented researchers by focusing not only on their research contributions but also on their determination and proven resiliency, both in their personal and professional lives.

With a budget envelope of $5 million spread out over 5 years, the Program will award a total of ten Engineering Research Chairs to researchers who meet these criteria, including five to be awarded to applicants from outside of ÉTS.

ÉTS hopes to further diversify its faculty through this Program. Studies have shown that women possess many of the character traits required to meet the established criteria. The Program will also promote equity by providing new perspectives for individuals who may have taken the road less travelled, sometimes fraught with difficulties.

Available funding

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Eligibility criteria

Internal applications: Hold the title of Professor at ÉTS (Assistant, Associate or Full)

External: Eligibility criteria for each position to be filled will be determined in spring 2021.

Submission of applications

Common Canadian CV, NSERC format
Most significant research contributions (2 pages)
Research program (5 pages)
- Objectives
- Methodology
- Budget
- Projected impact
Statement establishing that the applicant has demonstrated exceptional determination and resiliency when faced with adversity in their career and/or personal life (3 pages)

The file can be submitted in French or in English.

Evaluation criteria

Excellence in research based on San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA) criteria – 30%

Merit of the proposed research program – 30%
Determination and resiliency – 40%

Selection Committee

Files will be evaluated by a diversified Committee comprising the following:
- Dean of Research
- Two members of the ÉTS professorial community;
- Two external experts in social science.

Deadline

Internal applications: Application files must be sent to decanat.recherche@etsmtl.ca by 5:00 p.m. on October 30.

External applications: Spring 2021 (exact date to be determined).

About Marcelle Gauvreau

Marcelle Gauvreau was one of the pioneers of the scientific age and the first woman to earn a Master of Science degree in French in Canada, specializing in marine algae of the Saint Lawrence River and estuary. Her research took her to the Magdalen Islands, the Gaspé, Saguenay, the Charlevoix region, Minganie, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. Her thesis was supervised by Jules Brunel. Marcelle Gauvreau travelled extensively to the United States and Europe to broaden her horizons, and was among the first women to present her research findings to the Association canadienne-française pour l’avancement des sciences (ACFAS – French-Canadian association for the advancement of science).

Why focusing on resilience and determination?

Angela Lee Duckworth, Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania

Angela Lee Duckworth is Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, where she studies grit and self-control. She is the founder and CEO of Character Lab, a not-for-profit whose mission is to advance the science and practice of character development.

The professor believes that there is much potential in individuals who have that combination of passion and perseverance that she calls grit. When she looks at people who accomplish great things in the world, who change history for the better, invariably they really do have this combination of commitment to what they're doing, a kind of unwavering self-assurance, even when everyone around them says, “What are you doing? It's crazy, it's impossible.”

Professor Duckworth thinks that this passion and perseverance are something which we should be able to find at every stratum in society, within every culture. The criteria for perseverance, resilience and determination that will now be recognized by the ÉTS as part of the Marcelle-Gauvreau Research Chairs program will increase diversity, inclusion and equity within its faculty team.