CIRCEM directed research course

Host organizations eligible for this program provide applied research internships in areas related to the field of research of the CIRCEM. All organizations external to the University of Ottawa are eligible. This does not exclude, on occasion, the possibility of producing research in collaboration with a professor who is a member of the CIRCEM. However, supervision and coaching of the intern must be provided by a professional from the host organization.

Host organizations must provide a brief information document for each proposed research project as well as the name of the professional responsible for supervising the student. At a minimum, this person must have a master's or doctoral degree in the social sciences, management, or a relevant field. Multiple offers are accepted from the same host organization. For each project, the information provided must include:

• The name and address of the organization;
• The name and title of the person who will supervise the student (must have a master's or doctoral degree in the social sciences, management, or a relevant field);
• A brief description of the research project and its relevance to the CIRCEM;
• An explanation of how the participating student will benefit from the project;
• A list of clear and measurable commitments, tasks and outcomes that the student is expected to meet during the semester;
• Identification of any specific qualifications required from the student in order to carry out the research project.

Organizations interested in submitting a proposal for a directed research project should submit a project. 

IMPORTANT: Projects must be undertaken in French, even if the training environment may be bilingual.

The host organization must agree to meet with the participating student at regular intervals, at least once a week, to assess progress and provide guidance.

At the end of the project, the host organisation must prepare an evaluation of the student's performance, according to an evaluation grid that will be provided by the CIRCEM.

The CIRCEM will validate the final grade for each student in the course.

Throughout the research internship
During the research internship, students are committed to dedicating approximately 100 hours of work to the project (or approximately 7 hours per week). Students must coordinate with the designated supervisor to meet regularly to ensure the progress of the project. Students must demonstrate a high level of professionalism throughout the project.

Research Product
The professional designated to supervise the research internship will establish the expectations and criteria for the research report. This can take various forms (Word document, Powerpoint presentation, Excel file, etc.). The research report must be submitted to the internship supervisor by the date prescribed in the course outline.

Mid-term evaluation
Around the mid-term, students and internship supervisors will be required to complete the mid-term evaluation:

1. The student will have to self-assess using the evaluation grid provided.
2. The student and the internship supervisor will coordinate a meeting to discuss the student's self-assessment.
3. The internship supervisor will make the necessary changes to the evaluation grid.
4. The internship supervisor will send the revised mid-term evaluation grid to CIRCEM at the following email address: [email protected]. 
    

Final evaluation by the internship supervisor
At the end of the session, the internship supervisor will complete the evaluation grid provided and send it to CIRCEM at the following email address: [email protected]. 

Internship report
At the end of the project, students must prepare a short report for the CIRCEM management. This report will be part of the evaluation for the grading of the course. The grade of the course will be awarded by the CIRCEM management and must include the following documents:

1. a one-page description of the work performed.
2. a one-page evaluation describing the quality of interactions with the professional supervising the internship and a description of the skills acquired.
3. a two-page reflective text on the learning acquired and its relevance for the research carried out at CIRCEM: citizenship, citizen participation, care, immigration, democracy and political thought, biopolitical issues, minority and minoritized groups.
4. a copy of any research reports produced by the student as part of the internship.

Students must submit a copy of the research report as well as the internship report to CIRCEM via Brightspace by the date indicated in the course outline.

The CIRCEM will validate the final grade for each student in the course.

For any questions, students and supervisors can contact CIRCEM at [email protected]. 

The program is not available during the summer term. In the fall and winter terms, the CIRCEM will be calling for potential host organizations to develop and receive research projects for 4^th year social science students. A bank of projects will be compiled and made available to students in mid-August (fall term) or mid-December (winter term).

Interested and qualified students will submit a form including their eligibility criteria (latest course transcripts), and a letter of intent for available projects (250 words maximum). Each student may identify a maximum of 2 projects (identifying first and second choice). A bank of qualified students will be prepared by the CIRCEM taking their preferences into account.

The CIRCEM management will be in charge of pairing research projects and students during first round. The host organization will have to approve or disapprove the proposed match based on the student's file. Some interaction may be necessary to ensure that the interests of the students and the needs of the host organizations are best matched. Once the host organization has approved the match, the student will be offered a place in the Directed Research course.

The number of internships offered for a given duration may be less than the number of qualified and interested students. In such a case, the CIRCEM will give priority based on the excellence of the student's academic record. Qualified students who are denied an internship in one term may apply for another term. Qualified students will be allowed to complete only one practicum in their fourth year. International students may also participate.

Some project opportunities may not be filled due to the limited number of students. The CIRCEM will then inform the organizations concerned. In this case, the organization will be invited to submit its project(s) for the following semester.

The following organizations have confirmed their participation in the CIRCEM’s directed research course (description in French): 

Fall 2024

Clinique interdisciplinaire en droit social de l'Outaouais (CIDSO)

(https://www.uottawa.ca/faculte-droit/droit-civil/cidso/a-propos) 
Fondé en 2020 par une équipe multidisciplinaire de professeur.es de l’Université d’Ottawa et de l’Université en Outaouais, le projet de la clinique découle de résultats de recherches montrant la croissance de la judiciarisation des personnes vivant des troubles de santé mentale et/ou en situation d’itinérance. 

Concilivi
(https://www.concilivi.com/fr/north_eastlien externe) 
Concivili aspire à être le leader québecois dans le domaine de la conciliation famille-travail. Notre mission est de contaminer positivement les employeurs pour l’implantation de mesures de conciliation famille-travail adaptés à la nouvelle réalité du travail et aux besoins des employés.  

Élections Québec
(https://www.electionsquebec.qc.ca/francais/north_eastlien externe) 
Élection Québec est une organisation qui tient à assurer l’intégrité, la transparence et la fiabilité des élections et de promouvoir les valeurs démocratiques québécoises.

Exeko
(https://exeko.org/frnorth_eastlien externe)  
Exeko utilise la créativité intellectuelle et artistique au service d’une transformation sociale inclusive et émancipatrice. Exeko propose des approches innovantes et collaboratives pour créer les conditions nécessaires à l’inclusion et l’émancipation intellectuelle des individus.

Fondation Dialogue
(https://fondationdialogue.ca)
La fondation dialogue engage un dialogue durable au sein de la francophonie et avec toute la diversité du Canada par divers moyens. Afin d’atteindre ces objectifs, la Fondation Dialogue mise sur cinq axes stratégiques, soit la stabilité et diversification du financement, la visibilité et la reconnaissance, une programmation axée sur le dialogue ouvert, le renforcement des capacités de ces membres ainsi que les collaborations et partenariats stratégiques engagés.
 

Fédération de la jeunesse franco-ontarienne (FESFO)
(https://www.fesfo.ca/north_eastlien externe) 
La FESFO informe, sensibilise et mobilise des milliers de jeunes afin que leurs voix et leurs besoins se fassent entendre auprès des différents décideurs.

Institut du nouveau monde (INM)
(https://inm.qc.ca/north_eastlien externe) 
L’institut du nouveau monde est une organisation qui a pour ambition d’accroitre la participation des citoyens et des citoyennes à la vie démocratique en contribuant au développement des compétences civiques, au renforcement du lien social et à la valorisation des institutions démocratiques. 

Lab22
(https://www.lab22.org/north_eastlien externe) 
Le Lab22 est un laboratoire d’innovations sociales et environnementales. Il aspire à co-créer des solutions innovatrices qui auront pour impact d’améliorer positivement et durablement la collectivité. Le Lab22 se préoccupe notamment de la relance d’une école écoresponsable au Québec.

Maison de la francophonie d’Ottawa (CMFO)
(https://cmfo.ca/north_eastlien externe) 
La Maison de la francophonie d’Ottawa souhaite devenir un lieu de prédilection pour tous les francophone et francophile en examinant, entre autres, la question de la discrimination systémique.

Réseau québécois en innovation sociale (RQIS)
(https://www.rqis.org)
La mission du RQIS est d’offrir un espace de partage et de mobilisation des savoirs et des expériences en innovation sociale au Québec. Le RQIS joue plusieurs de carrefour, de développeur d’expertises ainsi que le rôle de partage des expertises.

Université de Namur (Amélie Pierre)
(https://directory.unamur.be/staff/apierre) 
Chercheure post-doctorante et professeure invitée à l’Université de Namur et à la Haute école de travail social Henallux, Amélie Pierre s’intéresse à comprendre les impacts des photographies sur le collectif, ainsi que l’utilisation du photo-voix dans la recherche qualitative en sciences sociales.

uOttawa's Criminology Department (Sandra Lehalle)

The Department of Criminology and the Hull Detention Facility are currently working together to develop training in French for facilitators of ComPaS (Knowledge Sharing Community). The ComPaS course grew out of the Walls to Bridges program, which has been offered in the rest of Canada since 2011. This course was offered in French for the very first time in Canada in 2023 by the uOttawa team, bringing together students from the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Hull Detention Facility to reflect, together, on representations of justice and equity in popular culture. It is a seminar-style course that is rooted in the students' experiences, emphasizing critical thinking, emotion, and respect.

Under the direction of Sandra Lehalle, the research intern will support the team on various levels to develop this brand new training that will allow others to create this type of course, in French, in other institutions in Quebec, Canada and internationally. The research question we will try to answer is the following: What strategies can be put in place to eliminate or reduce power relations and inequities within a group and to promote common learning in a classroom context? In addition, this research internship will involve a review of scientific literature in French based on the literature used in the English training to adapt the course content to the particular challenges and issues of the prison context in which the ComPaS course is offered (writing of reading sheets). It will also involve translation activities assisted by artificial intelligence, activities during which critical reflection will be necessary to avoid possible semantic shifts (production of a concept map). In a transversal way, the intern will participate in an ethical reflection on the choices and decisions made in the development of this training, in the light of the values of the program and the objectives or expectations of the institutions involved (writing a logbook).