Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Stipend and Other Budgetary Levels Effective for Fiscal Year 2006

Notice Number: NOT-OD-06-026

Key Dates
Release Date: January 9, 2006

Update: The following related announcement has been issued:

  • August 18, 2006 (NOT-OD-06-093) - Revision: Notice of New NIH Policy for Funding of Tuition, Fees, and Health Insurance on Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards.

Issued by
National Institutes of Health (NIH), (http://www.nih.gov/)
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), (http://www.ahrq.gov/)
Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA), (http://www.hrsa.gov/)

The stipend levels for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 Kirschstein-NRSA awards for undergraduate, predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees and fellows are shown below. The Training Related Expenses for trainees and the Institutional Allowance for individual fellows for FY 2006 are also shown below.

The Budgetary Categories Described in this Notice Are Effective Only for Kirschstein-NRSA Awards Made with FY 2006 Funds.

Retroactive adjustments or supplementation of stipends or other budgetary categories with Kirschstein-NRSA funds for an award made prior to October 1, 2005 is not permitted. Budgetary adjustments for training grant and fellowship awards, therefore, will be made only at the time of the FY 2006 award.

STIPENDS: Effective with all Kirschstein-NRSA awards made on or after October 1, 2005 , the following annual stipend levels apply to all individuals receiving support through institutional research training grants or individual fellowships, including the Minority Access to Research Career (MARC) and Career Opportunities in Research (COR) programs. These awards are made under the authority of Section 487 of the Public Health Service Act (as amended).

The stipend levels are as follows:

Career Level
Stipend for FY 2006
Undergraduates in the MARC and COR Programs:
Freshmen/Sophomores
$7,812
Juniors/Seniors
$10,956
Predoctoral
$20,772
Postdoctoral
Years of Experience:
0
$36,996
1
$38,976
2
$41,796
3
$43,428
4
$45,048
5
$46,992
6
$48,852
7 or more
$51,036

These stipend levels are to be used in the preparation of future competing and non-competing NRSA institutional training grant and individual fellowship applications. They will be administratively applied to all applications currently in the review process.

The NIH encourages institutions to limit the duration of graduate and postdoctoral training to the extent possible. In most cases, graduate and postdoctoral research training from any source should not exceed 6 years and 5 years, respectively. The NIH retains eight levels of postdoctoral stipends to accommodate individuals who complete other forms of health-related training prior to accepting a Kirschstein-NRSA supported position. The presence of eight discrete levels of experience should not be construed as an endorsement of extended periods of postdoctoral research training.

It should be noted that the maximum amount that NIH will award to support the compensation package for a graduate student research assistant remains at the zero level postdoctoral stipend as described at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-02-017.html.

Institutional Allowance and Training Related Expenses for Kirschstein-NRSA Recipients:

The Training Related Expenses for each predoctoral and postdoctoral trainee as well as the Institutional Allowance for all predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows will be paid at the amounts shown below for all awards made with FY 2006 funds:

Training Related Expenses on Institutional Training Grants
Predoctoral Trainees: $2,200
Postdoctoral Trainees: $3,850
Institutional Allowance on Individual Fellows Sponsored by non-Federal Public & Private Institutions (Domestic & Foreign)
Predoctoral Fellows: $2,750
Postdoctoral Fellows: $7,000
Institutional Allowance for Individual Fellows Sponsored by Federal and For-Profit Institutions
Predoctoral Fellows: $1,650
Postdoctoral Fellows: $5,900

Expenses allowed within these cost categories are described in the appropriate program announcements, which can be found at http://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm. These amounts will be applied to all competing and non-competing NRSA awards made with FY 2006 funds. Any FY 2006 awards issued using previously-approved levels will be revised. These levels are to be used in the preparation of future competing and non-competing Kirschstein-NRSA institutional training grant and individual fellowship applications. They will be administratively applied to all applications currently in the review process.

Please note that information concerning the NIH policy for offsetting NRSA expenses for tuition, fees, and health insurance for FY 2006 competing applications was published on August 2, 2005 and can be found at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-05-059.html.

The NIH policy for offsetting NRSA expenses for tuition, fees, and health insurance is currently being re-examined. Information regarding this issue and a recently held NIH Town Hall Meeting to discuss this topic can be found at: http://pub.nigms.nih.gov/generic_meeting/index.cfm?id=10. A final decision regarding the policy for FY 2007 is expected to be announced in the spring of 2006.

Inquiries

Questions concerning this notice or other policies relating to training grants or fellowships should be directed to the grants management office in the appropriate NIH Institute or Center.

Walter L. Goldschmidts, Ph.D.
Acting Research Training Officer
National Institutes of Health
6705 Rockledge Drive , Room 3516
Bethesda , Maryland 20892-7963
Phone: (301) 451-4225
FAX: (301) 480-0146
Email: goldschw@mail.nih.gov