Undergraduate Student Awards

Process of selection

Members of the Research Advisory Committee of the Alzheimer Society of Nova Scotia will review all submissions that meet the criteria stated below. Applications will be judged alongside applications from students at similar points in their research studies, and against what would normally be expected for students at that point in their career. Applicants will be notified of the Committee’s decision and the awards will be officially presented at the Society’s Annual General Meeting in 2024. The Committee reserves the right to offer two, one, or no awards in any given year.

Criteria – Abe Leventhal Student Research Awards

Students will be granted a maximum of one award. Former winners of one of the awards are not eligible for either award in subsequent years. Please address any questions about eligibility to [email protected].

• Open to any student currently enrolled in and attending an undergraduate-level program of study at an accredited Nova Scotia University and undertaking a major research project or supervised independent study as a component of their coursework or certification.
• The research or independent study is focused on dementia (Alzheimer’s disease or other).
• No particular discipline or type of research favoured (e.g. biomedical science, clinical research, psychosocial, policy, or quality of life)

The primary evaluation criteria are:

• Quality and clarity of the complete application package.
• Quality and content of the cover letter.
• Academic excellence and relevancy of the project to dementia.
• Clarity of the lay summary in communicating the project and its relevance to the general public.
• Merit of the student as indicated by the supervisor’s letter.

Application Process

A student applying for one of the awards must submit an application by email to [email protected] as a document/attachment using 12 pt. Times New Roman, single-spaced. The student’s full name should be in the file name.

Applications must include the following:

1. A cover letter describing the student’s interest in studying dementia and intention to pursue further studies and/or career in the field of dementia (2-page maximum)
2. Lay summary of the project – an explanation of the project and why it matters, written in a way that could be understood by people who do not have prior knowledge about the subject (1-page maximum)
3. One letter of support (to be sent separately to [email protected]). Letters should be from the faculty advisor/professor supervising the project outlined in the application.
4. A current CV that includes a list of any other academic or financial awards.

Award recipients will be asked to provide the Alzheimer Society of Nova Scotia with a copy of their final paper or equivalent, which includes a summary of their findings. Recipients may be invited to share their work at an ASNS event, such as the Annual Provincial Conference, and/or through ASNS social media/website.

All applications must be submitted via email by 11:59 p.m. on April 22, 2024 to: [email protected], subject: Abe Leventhal Award 2024.