Program representation statistics


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Overview: Number of chairs allocated in the program

Total chairs allocated in the program 2,285
Total regular allocations (filled and vacant) 2,148
Total special allocations (filled and vacant) 137
Total participating postsecondary institutions 78

For more information on how the program allocates Canada Research Chairs to each institution, visit Method of Allocating Chairs.

Filled Canada Research Chair positions

The data provided in the tables are as of March 2024 (data are updated twice a year, after the results of a nomination cycle are made public).Footnote 1 Footnote 2

Table 1: Total active chairholders and international recruitment
Total filled Canada Research Chair positions 2,010
Tier 1 chairholders 758 (37.7%)
Tier 2 chairholders 1,252 (62.3%)
Total active chairholders recruited from outside of Canada 123 (6.1%)

Representation in the program

All researchers who participate in the program are required to meet its excellence requirements. Excellence is assessed in a rigorous two-step process: 1) at the recruitment stage by the institution; and 2) through the peer review process once they are nominated for the program. Only individuals who pass this assessment process are awarded a Canada Research Chair.

The program requires all participating institutions to set and meet equity targets in recognition of the persistent systemic barriers faced by researchers who are women, gender equity-seeking groups, racialized individuals, persons with disabilities and Indigenous Peoples in accessing the program, despite their demonstrated research excellence, which have led to their historical underrepresentation.

Table 2: Current representation and December 2029 equity targets
  Current representation, %
March 2024
December 2029 equity targets, %

Women and gender equity-seeking groups

48.6%

47.8% women

0.7% gender equity-seeking groups

50.9%
Racialized individuals 29.4% 22.0%
Persons with disabilities 7.8% 7.5%
Indigenous Peoples 4.1% 4.9%

Intersectionality in the program

As a best practice, the program collects self-identification data from all nominees and chairholders to monitor the program’s representation using an “intersectional” approach. A term coined by law professor Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989, “intersectionality” is an approach to better understand and address the multiple barriers and often increased disadvantages that individuals with intersecting social identities, such as race, gender, sexuality and class, can face in accessing services or programs. Using an intersectional approach to developing policies and programs helps to better identify and address these systemic barriers.

Further information on the program’s self-identification form can be found in the program’s FAQs.

Confidentiality:

To protect the privacy of chairholders, numbers less than five and associated percentages have been omitted in the tables below, in alignment with the Privacy Act.

Table 3: Representation of individuals from the underrepresented groups among all active chairholders (March 2024)
  % of Tier 1
(N = 758)
% of Tier 2
(N = 1,252)
% of total
(N = 2,010)
Gender
Women 40.0% 52.6% 47.8%
Men 55.5% 43.0% 47.7%
Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; don’t identify with any option provided - - 0.7%
Prefer not to answer - - 3.7%
Racialized individuals
Yes 27.0% 30.8% 29.4%
No 68.7% 65.6% 66.8%
Prefer not to answer 4.2% 3.7% 3.9%
Persons with disabilities
Yes 7.0% 8.2% 7.8%
No 87.6% 86.3% 86.8%
Prefer not to answer 5.4% 5.5% 5.5%
Indigenous Peoples
Yes 2.6% 5.0% 4.1%
No 93.3% 91.5% 92.2%
Prefer not to answer 4.1% 3.5% 3.7%
*Rounding conventions will sometimes result in a column that adds up to 99.9% or 100.1%.
Table 4: Representation of members of the underrepresented groups by agency and by tier (March 2024)
  CIHR NSERC SSHRC
Tier 1 Tier 2 Total Tier 1 Tier 2 Total Tier 1 Tier 2 Total
(% of Tier 1 total) (% of Tier 2 total) (% of total) (% of Tier 1 total) (% of Tier 2 total) (% of total) (% of Tier 1 total) (% of Tier 2 total) (% of total)
Total in numbers 318 443 761 305 459 764 135 350 485
Total % of all active chairs by agency by tier (N = 2,010) 42.0% 35.4% 37.9% 40.2% 36.7% 38.0% 17.8% 28.0% 24.1%
Gender
Women 45.6% 56.9% 52.2% 28.9% 42.9% 37.3% 51.9% 59.7% 57.5%
Men 51.6% 39.5% 44.5% 66.6% 53.6% 58.8% 40.0% 33.4% 35.3%
Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; don’t identify with any option provided - - - - - - - - -
Prefer not to answer - - - - - - - - -
Racialized individuals
Yes 23.3% 32.5% 28.6% 33.8% 34.2% 34.0% 20.7% 24.0% 23.1%
No 73.6% 65.2% 68.7% 62.0% 62.3% 62.2% 72.6% 70.3% 70.9%
Prefer not to answer 3.1% 2.3% 2.6% 4.3% 3.5% 3.8% 6.7% 5.7% 6.0%
Persons with disabilities
Yes 5.0% 7.2% 6.3% 8.5% 6.3% 7.2% 8.1% 12.0% 10.9%
No 91.2% 89.2% 90.0% 86.6% 89.1% 88.1% 81.5% 78.9% 79.6%
Prefer not to answer 3.8% 3.6% 3.7% 4.9% 4.6% 4.7% 10.4% 9.1% 9.5%
Indigenous Peoples
Yes 2.5% 3.2% 2.9% - - 0.8% 8.1% 12.3% 11.1%
No 95.0% 93.9% 94.3% 95.4% 95.6% 95.5% 84.4% 83.1% 83.5%
Prefer not to answer 2.5% 2.9% 2.8% - - 3.7% 7.4% 4.6% 5.4%
Table 5: Racialized individuals by gender (March 2024)
Gender Racialized individuals
(% of N = 590)
Non racialized individuals
(% of N = 1,342)
Prefer not to answer
(% of N = 78)
Total chairs (% of N = 2,010)
Women 39.7% 53.3% 15.4% 47.8%
Men 58.5% 44.9% 14.1% 47.7%
Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; don’t identify with any option provided - 1.0% - 0.7%
Prefer not to answer - 0.8% - 3.7%
Table 6: Population groups and gender (March 2024*)
Population group Women (% of N = 234) Men (% of N = 345) Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; and/or don’t identify with any option provided (N = -) % of total racialized individuals (N = 590) % of total chairholders (N = 2,010)
Arab 6.0% 9.6% - 8.1% 2.4%
Black 11.1% 7.0% - 8.8% 2.6%
Chinese 29.1% 25.5% - 26.6% 7.8%
Filipino 3.0% 2.0% - 2.4% 0.7%
Japanese 3.0% - - 2.0% 0.6%
Korean 2.6% 2.9% - 2.9% 0.8%
Latin American 8.1% 7.0% - 7.5% 2.2%
South Asian (e.g., Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan) 15.8% 19.7% - 18.0% 5.3%
Southeast Asian (e.g., Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian, Thai) - 2.0% - 2.0% 0.6%
West Asian (e.g., Iranian, Afghan) 9.4% 11.9% - 10.7% 3.1%
White - - - N/A N/A
*Another population group 3.4% 4.6% - 4.2% 3.8 %
Prefer not to answer - 2.3% - 1.7% 3.9%
* Respondents are counted in each group in which they self-identified. As a result, the total percentage by column may sum to more than 100%. The option to select “White” as a population group was introduced on the self-identification form in 2020. As self-identification data are collected at the time of nomination, data on the representation of White individuals are unavailable for 43.5% of active chairs.
Table 7: Indigenous Peoples by gender (March 2024)
Gender Indigenous Peoples
(% of N = 82)
Non-Indigenous Peoples
(% of N = 1,853)
Prefer not to answer
(% of N = 75)
Total chairs
(% of N = 2,010)
Women 69.5% 48.1% 16.0% 47.8%
Men 24.4% 50.3% 9.3% 47.7%
Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; don’t identify with any option provided - 0.5% - 0.7%
Prefer not to answer - 1.0% - 3.7%
Table 8: Indigenous Peoples by gender by group (March 2024)
Population group Women
(% of N = 57)
Men
(% of N = 20)
Gender equity-seeking groups: gender-fluid, nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit; don’t identify with any option provided (% of N = -) Prefer not to answer
(% of N = -)
% of total Indigenous Peoples (N = 82) % of total chairholders (N = 2,010)
First Nations 54.4% 50.0% - - 53.7% 2.2%
Métis 22.8% 25.0% - - 23.2 0.9
Inuit - - - - - -
Prefer not to answer - - - - - 0.3%
Table 9: Persons with disabilities by gender (March 2024)
Gender Persons with disabilities
(% of N = 156)
Persons without disabilities
(% of N = 1,744)
Prefer not to answer
(% of N = 110)
Total chairs
(% of N = 2,010)
Women 50.6% 48.8% 28.2% 47.8%
Men 42.3% 49.9% 20.0% 47.7%
Gender-fluid; nonbinary; trans; Two-Spirit, don’t identify with any option provided - 0.3% - 0.7%
Prefer not to answer - 0.9% - 3.7%

Nomination rates

The following graph and table are updated twice a year and outline nomination trends for individuals who are women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and racialized individuals from 2000 to 2023.

Graph 1: Percentage of nominations submitted for individuals who self-identified as members of the four designated groups, from 2000 to 2023

Graph 1

Description of figure

This line graph shows the percentage of Canada Research Chair nominations submitted by institutions for individuals who self-identified as women, racialized individuals, Indigenous Peoples and persons with disabilities. Data have been collected for women since 2000. But, for racialized individuals, Indigenous Peoples and persons with disabilities, data have been collected only since 2006. Gaps in the graphic reflect data that were either unavailable or redacted in accordance with the Privacy Act.

The overarching trend is a slow growth in nominations for individuals from these groups until the launch of the 2017 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Action Plan. With the launch of the action plan, the nomination rates have significantly increased.

The breakdown each year per designated group is as followsFootnote 2:

Designated group (by percentage) Women and gender equity-seeking groups* Racialized individuals Indigenous Peoples Persons with disabilities
2000 14% - - -
2001 16% - - -
2002 19% - - -
2003 25% - - -
2004 27% - - -
2005 30% - - -
2006 30% 4% - -
2007 19% 11% - -
2008 22% 15% - -
2009 27% 12% - 2%
2010 29% 14% - 2%
2011 30% 9% - -
2012 34% 17% 3% -
2013 30% 17% - -
2014 27% 13% 2% -
2015 32% 12% 1% -
2016 30% 17% 2% -
2017 36% 18% 3% 2%
2018 47% 23% 4% 5%
2019 51% 27% 5% 7%
2020 52% 28% 3% 7%
2021 45% 34% 5% 7%
2022 51% 34% 6% 8%
2023 57% 39% 8% 7%

*Data on gender equity-seeking groups was only collected beginning in 2021.

Progress made in addressing underrepresentation in the program

Table 10: Progress made in increasing representation within the CRCP since the launch of its Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Action Plan
Timeline of actions in the program January 2009 April 2016 May 2017 December 2018 May 2019 December 2019 June 2021 March 2024 December 2029
Institutions set equity targets for the first time First open letter sent to institutions CRCP’s EDI action plan is launched Two cycles after the CRCP’s EDI action plan is launched Three cycles after the CRCP’s EDI action plan is launched Four cycles after the CRCP’s EDI action plan is launched: December 2019 Equity Target Deadline Launch of new equity target-setting methodology based on Canada’s population Nearly three years after launch of new equity target-setting methodology Equity targets for the December 2029 deadline
Women and gender equity-seeking groups 24.3% 28.9% 29.8% 30.0% 33.5% 37.6% 39.6%* 48.6% 50.9%
Racialized individuals 11.7% 13.1% 13.4% 13.8% 15.9% 21.0% 22.1% 29.4% 22.0%
Persons with disabilities 1.1% 0.59% 0.3% 0.5% 1.6% 5.4% 5.7% 7.8% 7.5%
Indigenous Peoples 0.4% 0.95% 1.3% 1.4% 2.1% 3.2% 3.4% 4.1% 4.9%

The December 2019 column is estimated, as the data include all nominations submitted to the program’s second nomination deadline in 2019 (cycle 2019-2) (the program’s success rate in recent years is 98%). The June 2021 data include all active and approved Chairs.

* Data on gender equity-seeking groups are included in this column as of June 2021 and later.

Representation targets and results of participating institutions

In the spirit of openness and transparency, the program makes public the results and findings of its target-setting exercises, while respecting the Privacy Act. (In keeping with the Privacy Act, numbers lower than five were removed to protect the privacy of chairholders).

Institutions continue their efforts to address the systemic barriers in their policies, processes and structures that have contributed to the historical underrepresentation of women and gender equity-seeking groups, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and racialized individuals in the program. These efforts are fundamental to ensuring that the program achieves its objectives of attracting and retaining a diverse cadre of world-class researchers and reinforcing academic research and training excellence in Canadian postsecondary institutions.

Updated population-based target-setting methodology

In 2021, the program launched a population-based methodology to set new equity targets based on Canada’s population. These targets must be reached by December 31, 2029: 50.9% women and gender equity-seeking groups, 4.9% Indigenous Peoples, 7.5% persons with disabilities and 22% racialized individuals. Refer to the frequently asked questions for more information. All institutions must submit chair nominations in consideration of their targets.

The equity targets of all participating institutions for the 2021-29 period can be found here. The deadlines to meet equity targets are December 31, 2022, December 31, 2025, December 31, 2027, and December 31, 2029.

December 2022 deadline equity target deadline results

The full dataset with the institutional results of the December 31, 2022 equity target deadline is now available at the link below. The following table gives an overview of the number of institutions that met this deadline.

Summary of December 2022 equity target results Number of institutions Percentage of total institutions
Institutions with fewer than 40 Chairs allocated
All targets met 50/57 87.7%
All targets but one met 6/57 10.5%
All targets but two met 1/57 1.8%
All targets but three met 0/57 -
None of the targets met 0/57 -
Subtotal 57 -
N/A* 5/62 8.1%
Institutions with 40 or more Chairs allocated
All targets at both Tier 1 and Tier 2 levels met 5/16 31%
All but one target at either the Tier 1 or Tier 2 level met 5/16 31%
All but two targets at either the Tier 1 or Tier 2 level met 5/16 31%
All but three targets at either the Tier 1 or Tier 2 level met 1/16 6%
None of the targets met 0/16 -
*N/A means the institutions had no targets (i.e., some very small institutions did not have the number of active chairs necessary to meet the threshold for setting targets at the time equity targets were set).

Download the full dataset in Excel format (see Understanding the datasets for additional information).

December 2019 deadline equity target results

As per the 2019 Addendum to the 2006 Canadian Human Rights Settlement Agreement, an institution not meeting its equity targets can submit new chairholder nominations only for an individual who self-identifies as belonging to one or more of the four designated groups and only if the institution has a target for that group. This measure remains in place until the institution meets all targets for approved, active chairholders. Renewals may continue to be submitted.

In April 2016, the program’s Steering Committee urged postsecondary institutions to make concerted efforts to address the underrepresentation of individuals from the four designated groups (women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and racialized individuals) in their chairholder nominations.

In May 2017, when the program’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan was launched, the program’s Steering Committee stipulated that institutions must meet their equity targets by December 2019. The full dataset with the institutional results of the equity targets with a deadline of December 2019 is now available at the link below. The table below gives an overview of the number of institutions that met the December 2019 equity target deadline.

Summary of December 2019 equity target results Number of institutions Percentage of total institutions
All targets met 50 77%
All but one target met 12 18%
All but two targets met 2 3%
All but three targets met 0 0%
None of the targets met 1 2%
Total institutions with targets 65  -
N/A* 11 -
Total institutions 76 -
*N/A means the institutions had no targets (some very small institutions did not have the number of active chairs necessary to meet the threshold for setting targets at the time equity targets were set).

Download the full dataset in Excel format (see Understanding the datasets for additional information).

Target-setting exercise results 2009-16

Note: Tables 11 to 13 and the datasets provided below refer to equity target results that were based on the program’s previous equity target-setting methodology, which is no longer in effect as of June 2021.

Select the designated group* below to download the dataset in Excel format:

* The language used for the designated groups at the time of the target-setting exercises may not reflect the language currently used in program reporting.

Understanding the datasets

The information in the tables provided on this page reflects the number of individuals who self-identified as members of one or more of the four designated groups. Since self-identification is voluntary, this may not include all chairholders belonging to a group. This is important to consider when interpreting the data, given that low self-identification rates may affect the results, and representation may be higher than the data suggest.

In 2009, participating institutions of all sizes completed a baseline target-setting exercise, where they set their first equity targets and measured the gap between occupied chairs and these targets.

From 2012 to 2016, each year, all institutions of one size (small, medium or large) reported on their progress toward meeting their previous equity targets and set new ones. This created a three-year cycle for collecting all the data. For example, in the 2012 to 2014 target-setting cycle, institutions reported and set targets as follows: medium in 2012, large in 2013 and small in 2014. When the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan was launched in May 2017, institutions were given until December 2019 to meet their targets. They reported on the targets on their public accountability and transparency pages. Moving forward, the targets for all institutions will be set at the same time using the updated methodology.

Each year, the program categorizes institutions by size, defined as follows:

  • Large: 40 chair allocations and more
  • Medium: 11 to 39 chair allocations
  • Small: 10 chair allocations or less

Learn more about the program’s allocation method.

In addition, due to limits in available statistical data, the targets for three of the four groups (persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and racialized individuals) are set using approximations of the pools of potential nominees. Learn more about the program’s target-setting method.

In keeping with the Privacy Act, if the number of chairholders who self-identified as belonging to one of the four groups is less than five, it is not provided to protect the privacy of chairholders. For this same reason, the data are not presented by tier or agency.

Data by institution size

The tables below represent the data collected from the target-setting exercises completed between 2009 and 2016 by institution size at the time the data were published in May 2017.

Table 11: Representation of the four designated groups among Canada Research Chairs in 2009 by institution sizeFootnote 2
  Total institutions Total chairs Women Visible minorities Persons with disabilities Indigenous Peoples
Equity target - - 25% 11% 5% 0.7%
Large 15 1,341 24% 12% 1% 0%
Medium 17 371 24% 12% 1% 1%
Small 33 161 27% 9% 0% 2%
Overall total 65 1,873 24% 12% 1% 0.4%

Source: This information comes from the target-setting exercise completed by institutions in 2009 and represents almost all chairs allocated to institutions at the time of reporting. Language used for designated groups at the time of target-setting exercises may not reflect language currently used in program reporting.

Table 12: Representation of four designated groups among Canada Research Chairs in 2012-14, by institution size
  Total institutions Total chairs Women Visible minorities Persons with disabilities Indigenous Peoples
Equity target - - 28% 15% 4% 1%
Large 15 1,270 25% 13% 2% 1%
Medium 16 340 25% 15% 1% 1%
Small 39 200 35% 9% 1% 2%
Overall total 70 1,810 26% 13% 2% 1%

Source: The information comes from the target-setting exercises completed by institutions in 2012 (medium), 2013 (large) and 2014 (small). It represents almost all chairs allocated to the institutions (medium and large) or occupied chairs (small) at the time of reporting. Language used for designated groups at the time of target-setting exercises may not reflect language currently used in program reporting.

Table 13: Representation of four designated groups among Canada Research Chairs in 2015-16, by institution sizeFootnote 2
  Total institutions Total chairs Women Racialized individuals Persons with disabilities Indigenous Peoples
Equity target - - 31% 15% 4% 1%
Large 15 1,261 28% 15% 1% 1%
Medium 17 314 26% 16% 1% 1%
Overall total - - - - - -

Source: This information comes from the target-setting exercises completed by institutions for 2015 (medium) and 2016 (large) and represents the number of occupied chairs at the time of reporting (May 2017).

Visit the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Requirements and Practices page for more information on the program’s commitment to ensuring access to opportunities for all qualified candidates.

Footnotes

Footnote 1

The number of active chairholders can vary from month to month. This is due to new chairholders starting their terms, chairholders’ terms ending, and chairholders’ terms being terminated early for various reasons, such as the chairholder retiring or leaving their institution.

Return to footnote 1 referrer

Footnote 2

In keeping with the Privacy Act, numbers lower than five were removed to protect the privacy of chairholders.

Return to footnote 2 referrer