SSHRC Mobilizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) Scholarship Initiative

The Mobilizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) program of the Department of National Defence (DND) is committed to fostering the next generation of security and defence scholars in the Canadian academic community and to encouraging a strong Canadian knowledge base in contemporary defence and security issues. To this end, the MINDS program has partnered with SSHRC to deliver the MINDS Scholarship Initiative.

This initiative offers research training awards and supplements to master’s and doctoral students and to postdoctoral researchers in the social sciences and humanities whose work is related to one or more of the MINDS Policy Challenges and/or Canada’s defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged.

Research areas

For details on the research areas relevant to the MINDS Scholarship Initiative, applicants should consult:

• the MINDS Policy Challenges, which represent key issue areas where DND and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) could benefit from external expertise to challenge or complement their thinking; and
• Canada’s defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged.

Examples of research areas that could be considered for funding under this initiative include, but are not limited to, the following: recruitment and retention; diversity in the CAF; hybrid warfare; defence and security cooperation; cyber and space domains; emerging technologies; geopolitics; international defence relations; peacekeeping and peace support operations; Arctic security; and the defence and security implications of climate change.

Critical research perspectives, which may challenge or invite a reformulation of the policy themes and terms outlined in the MINDS Policy Challenges and Canada’s defence policy, are welcome.

The MINDS program is committed to reflecting key Government of Canada priorities in the work it delivers, ensuring the incorporation of Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+). GBA+ requires the incorporation of diverse viewpoints. This means that deliberate efforts should be made to mitigate unintended bias related to intersecting identity factors (including, but not limited to, age, gender, ethnicity, race, disability, religion and geographic region). Applying a GBA+ lens to research ensures the issue is considered from multiple perspectives, supporting more inclusive research questions and results.

Value and duration

There are four streams of funding under this initiative:

• MINDS Master’s Scholarships for Indigenous Students: $17,500 for 12 months, in addition to the value of the Canada Graduate Scholarships—Master’s (CGS M) award;
• MINDS Initiative Doctoral Awards: $35,000 per year for a maximum of 36 months;
• MINDS Initiative Postdoctoral Fellowships: $45,000 per year for 12 or 24 months; and
• MINDS Scholarship Initiative Supplements: $10,000 for 12 months, in addition to the value of the CGS M award, the SSHRC Doctoral Award, which can be a Canada Graduate Scholarships—Doctoral (CGS D) award or a SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship, or the SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellowship.