General

The David Bensted Visiting Fellowships may be awarded to outstanding researchers to facilitate their visits to the School of Engineering Science at Simon Fraser University. A recipient shall be termed a "Bensted Visiting Fellow".

In addition to collaborating on research with members of the School of Engineering Science, a Bensted Visiting Fellow shall:

• give the David Bensted Lecture, a public lecture suited to a general technical audience;
• give the David Bensted Research Seminar delivered to students, faculty and industrial researchers;
• are available for discussions with members of the broader technical community, both within and outside Simon Fraser University.

The minimum length of visit and appointment as a Bensted Visiting Fellow shall be two weeks, and the maximum length shall be two months. Depending on length of stay and availability of funds, there may be more than one such visitor in an academic year.

An individual may be appointed as a Bensted Visiting Fellow more than once; however, successive appointments shall be separated by at least four years.

In recognition of the initial donor, the National Wireless Communications Research Foundation, the recipients of the Fellowship during the first five years will be researchers in wireless communications. Subsequently, the recipients may be in any area of research that is of interest to members of the School of Engineering Science.

The Endowment

The David Bensted Visiting Fellowship will be funded from the annual proceeds of an endowment. The initial contribution to this endowment was $225,000 from the National Wireless Communications Research Foundation. It is to the advantage of the community to make the endowment grow, and subsequent donations from other corporations or individuals are encouraged. If no Visiting Fellowship is awarded in a particular year, the proceeds will be reinvested in the endowment. As the endowment grows and more funds become available, the maximum length of appointment may be extended to three months.

Administration

Proposals for individual Fellowships shall originate with members of the School of Engineering Science. The members shall submit their proposals to a review committee consisting of the Director of the School of Engineering Science as chair, two tenured or tenure-track members of the School and the Dean of the Faculty of Applied Science. The two tenured or tenure-track members review committee shall be appointed annually by the Director of the School, and, for the first five years, those members will have telecommunications as their primary research area.

All recipients of the Fellowship must be recognized as outstanding researchers in their area, ones who would enrich the School and the technical community by their presence.

There is no annual date for submission of the proposals, and new proposals may be considered at any time, provided there are uncommitted funds sufficient for the request. Proposals will not be considered for visits beginning more than one year in advance of the proposal date.

The Bensted Visiting Fellowship is a grant-in-aid. The award will consist of two components: reimbursement of costs for economy travel to and from Burnaby and a per diem allowance. The latter is intended to defray living expenses, and does not require receipts. The per diem amount shall be $150 and the total award shall be no more than $10,000. Both of these figures are subject to occasional review to ensure they retain their value in the face of inflation.

The Bensted Visiting Fellowship may be held concurrently with other grants intended to support travel, provided that they cover other sets of costs.