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Training, Education and Mentorship program

The CanHepC Training, Education and Mentorship program is one of the founding pillars of our network and has been a major success in accelerating the development of critically needed capacity in hepaitis C virus research.

CanHepC is building on the achievements of the National CIHR Research training program in Hepatitis C (NCRTP-HepC), established in 2003, to train the next generation of researchers in all areas related to hepatitis C virus in Canada using a multidisciplinary approach. Since 2003, a total of 144 trainees and 97 summer students have benefited from the program and their success is recognized worldwide. Some of them became leaders in the field and have now come full circle as independent investigators and co-applicants of this network (C. Colpitts, J. Grebely, S. MacParland, S. Sagan, M. Abdel Hakeem and S. Saeed).  

 

The CanHepC Training, Education and Mentoring program includes:

To foster the development of a new generation of highly skilled researchers, CanHepC offers trainee fellowships at key career transition points: summer students, graduate students, postdoctoral and clinical fellows. We expect to train 20 summer students, 8 graduate students, 5 postdoctoral and clinical fellows over the next 5 years in addition to the 20+ graduate trainees currently enrolled in the program. New trainees are recruited annually through an open competition. To qualify for a CanHepC fellowship, trainees have to work on a project relevant to the network's research themes and be supervised by one or more of the network's researchers with academic appointments (mentors). Interdisciplinary supervision is encouraged. The program also supports the development of community-based researchers.

Each year, trainees present annual progress reports, research posters, and oral talks at the Canadian Symposium on Hepatitis C Virus (CSHCV) and the Canadian Liver Meeting (CLM), which are evaluated by the program's mentors. At the network’s Annual Meeting CanHepC mentors and trainees have the opportunity to engage which each other to develop collaborations. The meeting includes dedicated trainee time with an invited guest speaker of the CSHCV/CLM which in the past years has included world renowned hepatitis C researchers, representatives from the community sector and people with living/lived experience of hepatitis C. Trainees also present their feedback on the training program as a way to continuously improve and inform the program’s development. We also partner with the Canadian Association for HIV Research (CAHR) in a series of periodic workshops aimed at career development in the field of infectious and liver diseases throughout Canada. 

The structured curriculum is delivered throughout the year via web-based conferences. It includes an online course “MCB 6355 – Transdisciplinary Studies in Hepatitis C/ Étude transdisciplinaire de l’hépatite C” offered at the Université de Montréal every other year and webcast to other participating universities, a webinar series accessible to the public that covers key issues in the field on alternate years, and an online journal club. 

For more details please visit the curriculum page.

To promote research collaboration and global visibility, travel awards are offered to trainees to do an elective in a different research setting/environment or to attend an international meeting. The CanHepC & TRR179 Student Exchange Program (Dr. Ralf Bartenschlager, TRR179 director) between Germany and Canada promotes training exchange between laboratories in these 2 countries. The CanHepC & Australian Internship Exchange Program (Dr. Jason Grebely from Kirby Institute and Dr. Margaret Hellard, from Burnet Institute) is offering an opportunity for an exchange for one CanHepC trainee and one trainee from Australia (either the Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales or the Burnet Institute). Trainees are encouraged to participate in knowledge exchange efforts of the network with the community and people with living/lived experience of hepatitis C, and community members are invited to share their knowledge and offer training to new investigators through participation in network activities and seminars. Every year, trainees are required to visit liver clinics and community-based organisations as part of their term. Finally, the trainees participate in the World Hepatitis Day event on July 28 every year to raise awareness on hepatitis C and global elimination efforts. These efforts are led by the trainee representatives which are elected every year.  

CanHepC Fellowships

Annually, CanHepC extends fellowships to provide transdisciplinary training and stipend support to both Canadian and foreign individuals involved in hepatitis C research, who are university graduates at various stages of their academic and professional careers. This program and the stipends it provides are meant to further trainees' knowledge and understanding of hepatitis C.

Please carefully read the criteria for each type of applicants below before you apply. If you have any questions please contact Kerryn van Rooyen (kerryn.vanrooyen@uhn.ca).

Apply now

Requirements:

  • PhD students and post-doctoral trainees must be able to commit two years (minimum) to the program. They should not be beyond their third year of training on September 1st, 2024
  • MSc and PhD trainees must be a full-time student for their duration in the program.
  • Must be registered or must have the intent to register in a recognized graduate program the same year where the application has been accepted by the research training program.
  • Must be supervised or co-supervised by a CanHepC mentor:
    • Each mentor can only have 2 trainees in the program at any time. Communicate with your proposed mentor to make sure they have the space for you. Under exceptional conditions, a third trainee could be accepted under co-supervision.
    • A mentor is a PI who is a co-applicant on the CanHepC CIHR funded grant and holds an academic appointment that allows him/her to accept and supervise trainees. Please consult the Directory on the Member’s page to know who the CanHepC mentors are.
  • Trainees admitted into the program are expected to take part in a variety of activities. See the Training Curriculum page.

  • Please read the Award Guide before you apply.

How to apply

Applications for trainee fellowships MUST be made online via the apply button below. You will be ask to complete the online form providing all the necessary information and to upload a certain number of documents (see the list below). Please note ONLY PDF documents can be uploaded, please convert your documents in pdf beforehand.

  1. Application form - to complete online via the apply button below
  2. Letter from the mentor - pdf to upload
  3. Two (2) reference forms and letters of support - pdfs to upload
  4. Canadian Common CV - CIHR format pdf to upload
  5. University Transcripts (not required for Postdocs) - pdfs to upload
  6. Proof of enrolment at University (not required for Postdocs) - pdf to upload
  7. Supervisor CCV - pdf to upload
  8. Foreign trainees must submit documentation indicating permission to study and perform research within Canada prior to the award start date (September 1st) - pdfs to upload
Apply now

CanHepC in collaboration with the German TRR179 Network are offering internship exchange opportunities.

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CanHepC and the German TRR179 Network are offering the opportunity for one CanHepC trainee and one student from the German TRR179 Hepatitis Network to do a 2-6 months internship with one the of PIs affiliated to the other network. The TRR179 network is a collaborative research center funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) consisting of 18 interdisciplinary research projects on three different partner sites in Germany (Heidelberg, Freiburg and Munich). The overall aim of the TRR179 is to identify the decisive virological and immunological mechanisms determining the outcome of hepatitis virus infection. For further information see HERE.

 

For the complete list of CanHepC PIs able to mentor please refer to the CanHepC website member’s page. You can download the complete list of TRR179 PIs HERE. Please note that you are responsible for making contact with your host PI and liaising with them regarding your application.

Important dates

  • Applications can be submitted on a first-come first-served basis

Requirements

Who can apply?

  • Doctoral students (Ph.D. and MD) funded by either CanHepC or TRR179
  • Postdoctoral students funded by either CanHepC or TRR17
  • MSc students of the affiliated PIs

What can be funded?

  • Research topic of the applicant must be linked to the respective research focus of PhD/postdoctoral project
  • Ideally, new methods, experimental setups, scientific experience will be gained by the exchange and transferred to the respective networks.

Duration of funding: 2 to 6 months

Value: CanHepC applicants will receive max. $7500 CAD and TRR179 students max. €5.000 EUR. These amounts will cover the following expenses (please note receipts need to be kept for reimbursement):

  • Travel allowance
  • Accommodation
  • Other costs like e.g. visa costs, health insurance etc.

How to apply

The application must be made online via the apply button below. You will be asked to complete the online form providing all the necessary information (project title, objectives, qualifications, etc.) and to upload a certain number of documents (see the list below). Please note ONLY PDF documents can be uploaded, please convert your documents into pdf beforehand.

  1. Project description - 2-page description of the project/new techniques &/or methods you wish to accomplish/gain during your internship including any preliminary work, aims & added value to both networks
  2. CV of the applicant
  3. Motivation letter of the applicant
  4. Support letter from of the host PI including a description of the facilities and resources that will be available to the intern

Apply now

CanHepC in collaboration with the Australian Network internship exchange opportunities.

Apply now

We are pleased to announce that the Canadian Network on Hepatitis C (CanHepC), the Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales and the Burnet Institute are partnering together to offer a new internship exchange program.

The program offers the opportunity for a student trainee part of CanHepC’s Training, Education and Mentorship program and a student trainee with the Australian Kirby Institute or the Burnet Institute the chance to do a 2-6 months internship exchange with one of the Principal Investigators (PIs) affiliated to the other network/institute.

About CanHepC, the Kirby Institute and the Burnet Institute

CanHepC is a collaborative and transdisciplinary hepatitis C research and training network that brings together over a 100 members including independent researchers, student trainees, knowledge users and partners. CanHepC receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). Our overarching goal is to advance the understanding and management of hepatitis C at all stages of the cascade of care and inform the hepatitis C elimination agenda. Our aim is to build research capacity, enable innovative and interdisciplinary research, and promote the uptake of knowledge to inform practice and policy. CanHepC provides an important platform for research collaboration and infrastructure support to strengthen the development of cohorts, data linkage platforms, biobanks and implementation research programs that advance our goals.

The Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales is a research institute dedicated to infectious disease research (including hepatitis C) in Australia. Conducting world-leading infectious disease research, the Kirby Institute has ~300 staff across 15 programs with high quality infrastructure, human resources, and communications support. The institute boasts a wide range of expertise in biomedical sciences, clinical sciences, epidemiology, biostatistics, population health, and health services, facilitating interdisciplinary knowledge exchange, collaboration, and mentoring. In partnership with affected communities and policy makers, the Institute performs epidemiological studies and clinical trials to improve disease prevention, optimize treatment delivery, and build capacity to achieve disease elimination, with major global impacts on practice and policy.

The Burnet Institute is an Australian-based medical research institute and an accredited international non-government organization (NGO) comprising over 500 staff members. Working with affected communities, government, health services and other NGO’s and research organizations a major program of the Burnet’s work is the elimination of hepatitis C as a global health threat.  A multidisciplinary approach is taken to this work including vaccine discovery, diagnostic development, clinical trials, implementation science, surveillance, modelling, network analysis, co-design, qualitative research, policy development and health promotion.

Together they are offering the opportunity for one CanHepC trainee and one trainee from Australia (either the Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales or the Burnet Institute) to do a 2-6-month internship with one of the PIs affiliated with the other network/institute.

Who can apply?

  • Masters (MA, MSc), doctoral (PhD and MD) and postdoctoral students funded by either CanHepC, the Kirby Institute, or the Burnet Institute and being supervised by one of their PIs.

Please note that you are responsible for making contact with your host PI and liaising with them regarding your application:

  • For the complete list of CanHepC PIs/mentors, visit CanHepC’s website.
  • For the complete list of Kirby Institute and Burnet Institute PIs, visit the Kirby Institute or Burnet Institute websites.

What can be funded?

  • The research focus of the internship must be aligned with the overall research focus of the applicant’s Masters, PhD, or postdoctoral project.
  • Ideally, new methods, experimental setups, scientific experience will be gained by the exchange and transferred to the respective networks.

Duration of the internship exchange:

  • 2 to 6 months 

Funding:

CanHepC, Kirby Institute or Burnet Institute applicants will receive a maximum of $7500 CAD for the entire duration of their internship (50% of the amount will be covered by CanHepC and the other 50% by the receiving/sending PI at the Kirby Institute or Burnet Institute).

This amount will cover the following expenses (please note receipts need to be kept for reimbursement):

  • Travel allowance
  • Accommodation
  • Other costs like e.g. visa, health insurance, etc.

Application dates:

  • Applications can be submitted on a first-come basis.
  • The exchange program will accept at least ONE trainee from each partner site per year.

How to apply:

Application must be made using this application form . You will be requested to provide all the necessary information (project title, objectives, qualifications, etc.) and to attach a certain number of documents (see the list below).

  • Project description (2-page description of the project/new techniques &/or methods you wish to accomplish/gain during your internship including any preliminary work, aims and added value to both networks)
  • CV of the applicant
  • Motivation letter of the applicant
  • Support letter from of the host PI including description of the facilities and resources that will be available to the applicant

Selection procedure:

  • Applications will be reviewed by a committee composed of 2 members of the Kirby Institute or Burnet Institute and 2 members of CanHepC.

For any further information or if you have any specific questions, please contact:

Apply now

CanHepC
Contact us

Postal address
University Health Network
Toronto General Hospital

200 Elizabeth Street, 9EB-240

Toronto (ON) M5G 2C4

CanHepC's administrative office is situated on the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples. Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the Credit. 

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