Provost's Postdoctoral Fellowship Program - Dalla Lana School of Public Health

The Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is available to engage eight Indigenous and/or Black postdoctoral researchers across the University of Toronto. The Dalla Lana School of Public Health (DLSPH) has been invited to nominate the top three candidates in each PPFP self-identification category. As such, the Office of Research is running an internal competition in advance of the School of Graduate Studies’ April 1 deadline. If you are interested in applying for this competition through the DLSPH, you must identify a DLSPH-appointed faculty member as your supervisor.

Value and Duration

The value of the award is $80,000/year for 2 years:

$70,000 for salary (in alignment with the Tri-Agency postdoctoral funding practices) and
$10,000 contributing towards the employer costs.*

The remaining employer costs must be paid by the supervisor using existing research funding held at DLSPH at the time of application. Additionally, successful postdoctoral fellows will also receive a start-up stipend fund of $5,000 per year (as taxable income), funded by the faculty supervisor. For 2026-2027, this would mean supervisors will contribute a total of $7,775.

*Employer costs in 2026-2027 include the Standard Benefit Rate (SBR) payable at a rate of 10.50% and the PDF Levy, payable at a rate of 7.75%

Employment as a Provost Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto is covered by the terms of the CUPE Unit 5 Collective Agreement. Supervisors are responsible for any additional employer costs that may be applicable as a result of future Collective Agreements.

Nominee Eligibility

The award is open to Indigenous and/or Black researchers, both domestic and international candidates. Nominees must:

Demonstrate academic excellence and high potential for success in their chosen fields,
identify as Indigenous to Turtle Island and/or Black Indigenous and/or Black researchers only. The terms and conditions for award holders will align with any University processes and policies around Indigenous identity substantiation,
have obtained a doctoral degree, at the time the fellowship commences and normally within the last five years from the start of the fellowship, and
not have held a Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellowship previously.

DLSPH Supervisor Eligibility

DLSPH faculty supervisors can either be campus-based or status-only. However, DLSPH will prioritize applications from supervisors who:

are full-time faculty members and whose primary employer is UofT,
are early career faculty,
are the Primary grant holder (PI) on an eligible active Tri-agency grant (see list of eligible grants) held at DLSPH at the time of application (March 2, 2026)
support doctoral students with funds other than UTF funding.

Supervisors may not nominate more than one candidate in this competition and will be expected to serve on the review committee in a subsequent year.

How to Apply

1. Complete this short form to indicate your intent to apply with the name of the prospective applicant and supervisor by 4:00 pm on Wednesday, February 18.

SUBMIT NOI

2. Complete applications saved as a single PDF should be submitted via this submission form by 4:00 pm on Monday, March 2.

A complete package includes:

A supervisor statement from the faculty advisor/mentor (max two pages)
Research proposal from the nominee (max two pages, plus up to two additional pages for references/citations);
Training statement from the nominee (max 1 page).
Nominee’s C.V. (no page restriction);
A short personal biography written by the nominee (max 1/3 page), which may be used on the SGS Postdoctoral Fellows website or other communications, should they be successfully selected as a Provost’s Postdoctoral Fellow; and
A brief statement indicating the synergy between the applicant’s research proposal and:
- the research goals of the supervisor – 1 paragraph,
- the DLSPH academic plan – 1 paragraph and
- the mission of the University – 1 paragraph.

It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure completeness of their submission as it will be adjudicated as submitted. If your proposal is selected to move forward in the competition, the DLSPH Office of Research will develop the required nomination letter from the graduate unit Chair that will be part of the final submission to the School of Graduate Studies, due April 1, 2026.

SUBMIT FULL APPLICATION

FAQ

What should the research proposal include?

The independent research proposal should clearly articulate how the proposed work represents a significant departure from or advancement beyond the candidate’s doctoral research. The proposal should also outline the anticipated long-term impact of the research, including how it contributes to the field and aligns with U of T’s strategic research priorities.

What should the training statement include?

The statement should describe:

the applicant’s professional, academic, and extracurricular experiences/achievements and how it will contribute to their training success (1/2 page); and
how the training they expect to acquire will contribute to their productivity and to the research goals they hope to achieve. Indicate why the applicant has decided upon the proposed training location and what they expect to learn from the training experience (1/2 page).

What should the supervisor statement include?

The statement should:

describe the complementarity between the research interests/background of the supervisor and nominee, how the proposed research complements the supervisor’s ongoing projects and/or new research directions, and the anticipated mutual benefits;
reveal information specific to the field of study (e.g., benchmarks of excellence, publication norms/standards/practices, impact factor of research contributions) that would otherwise not be known outside the discipline;
provide details regarding the applicant’s proposed research environment, clearly stating the supervisor’s and department’s commitment. Examples of commitment include (but are not limited to) mentorship, opportunities for collaboration, dissemination, and/or knowledge translation, resources (e.g., funding, facilities, personnel) that will be available to support the nominee as they carry out their proposed research; and
illustrate the supervisor’s commitment to the applicant’s academic and professional trajectory, clearly indicating the resources and/or mentoring activities that are available through the training environment to support career development.

What are the evaluation criteria?

The internal DLSPH review committee will use the selection criteria listed on the SGS website to adjudicate applications.