Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Individual Predoctoral Fellowship to Promote Diversity in Health-Related Research (Parent F31-Diversity) (PA-23-271)

Scope Note

Table of IC-Specific Information, Requirements and Staff Contacts

Release Date: September 12, 2023
Expiration Date: September 8, 2025

NIH Institute or Center Institute or Center Specific Information

National Cancer Institute

Scientific Program Contact:
Sangeeta Ghosh, Ph.D.
Telephone: 240-276-5065
Email: [email protected]

Anthony DiBello, Ph.D.
Phone: (240) 276-6936
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Amy Bartosch
Telephone: 240-276-6375
Email: [email protected]

NCI Specific Information:

The NCI provides support for research training leading to the Ph. D. or equivalent research degree in the areas of basic cancer research, population-based cancer research, or cancer prevention.

National Eye Institute

Scientific Program Contact:
Neeraj Agarwal, Ph.D.
Phone: (301) 451-2020
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Karen Robinson-Smith
Phone: (301) 451-2020
Email: [email protected]

NEI Specific Information:

See: Training

National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Scientific Program Contact:
Marisol Espinoza-Pintucci, Ph.D
Phone: 301-496-1898
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Kimberly Stanton
Phone: (301) 435-0166
Email: [email protected]

NHLBI Specific Information:

The NHLBI supports training programs to prepare individuals to become productive researchers in the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases of the heart, blood vessels, lungs, and blood; and in the uses of blood and blood resources. See Strategic Vision for NHLBI’s mission statement.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to read the NHLBI Strategic Plan http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/about/strategicplan/
documents/StrategicPlan_Appendix.pdf to familiarize themselves with the research areas of interest to the Institute.”

Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact NHLBI before submitting an application to determine its appropriateness for this NOFO and the mission of the NHLBI.

National Human Genome Research Institute

Scientific Program Contacts:
Temesgen Fufa, PhD
Phone: 301-480-2280
E-mail: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Deanna Ingersoll
Phone: (301) 435-7858
Email: [email protected]

NHGRI Specific Information:

NHGRI will consider only applications that propose research training directly relevant to the mission of NHGRI. NHGRI supports resources, approaches, and technologies that accelerate genomic research focused on the structure and biology of genomes; the genomics of disease; the implementation and effectiveness of genomic medicine; computational genomics and data science; the impact of genomic technology, advances, and implementation on health disparities and health equity; and ethical, legal, and social issues related to genomic advances. NHGRI recognizes the importance of diversity in the genomic workforce, without which the promise of genomics cannot be fully achieved.

In general, NHGRI supports studies that provide generalizable methods and knowledge. Approaches that are comprehensive across the genome or are generalizable across variants, tissues, diseases, or function may be in scope for NHGRI to the extent they address priority areas described in the NHGRI 2020 Strategic Vision and on the web pages for the research mission of NHGRI’s Extramural Divisions and Offices. NHGRI does not support disease-specific research.

Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the Scientific Program Contact before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute's research priorities.

National Institute on Aging

Scientific Program Contact:
Jamie Lahvic, Ph.D.
NIA Training Office
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Jessica Perez
Phone: (301) 496-1472
Email: [email protected]

NIA Specific Information:

NIA’s focus is on aging and the contribution of aging to disease etiology, prevention and treatment. NIA has a particular focus on research into Alzheimer’s disease and its related dementias.

Further information on NIA’s mission in supporting genetic, biological, clinical, behavioral, social, and economic research on aging can be found at: Research & Funding

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism

Scientific Program Contact:
Hemin Chin, PhD
Telephone: 301-443-1282
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Judy Fox
Phone: (301) 443-2434
Email: [email protected]

NIAAA Specific Information:

NIAAA sponsors a variety of fellowships and career development programs to ensure the training of highly qualified new investigators in alcohol-related research. Training opportunities under this announcement include research in the social, behavioral, biomedical, biological, and mathematical sciences as related to alcohol abuse and alcoholism. Please refer to the NIAAA website for a comprehensive description of NIAAA goals and priorities ( Strategic Plan: Fiscal Years 2024-2028). The NIAAA scientific program contact will be able to evaluate eligibility, recommend the most appropriate fellowship mechanism and refer you to the NIAAA program officer with relevant research expertise.

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Scientific Program Contact:
Diane Adger-Johnson
Phone: (240) 669-2924
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Trevor Alford
Phone: (240) 747-7398
Email: [email protected]

NIAID Specific Information:

NIAID requires a clear scientific focus in graduate research training related to any of the NIAID mission areas:
NIAID Strategic Plan 2017

Sponsors who have not yet successfully mentored a predoctoral student as an independent investigator are encouraged to include a co-sponsor with a track record for mentoring in the individual fellowship training plan. Applicants are encouraged to contact the appropriate NIAID Program Official before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute’s research priorities. Please see also: Fellowship Grants (F) and Training and Career Development Grant Programs

National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases

Scientific Program Contact:
Kristy Nicks, Ph.D.
Phone: 301-594-5055
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Jamie Thompson
Phone: (301) 594- 3614
Email: [email protected]

NIAMS Specific Information:

Specific information on NIAMS F awards can be found at: Activity Codes

National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering

Scientific Program Contact:
Dave Gutekunst, Ph.D.
Phone: 301-402-5069
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Kathryn (Katie) Ellis
Phone: 302-451-4791
Email: [email protected]

NIBIB Specific Information:

NIBIB will consider only applications that propose research training directly relevant to the mission of NIBIB. Support will be provided for a maximum of 2 years. In addition, applicants must have completed their main coursework, passed their qualifying exam, and be ready to engage in full-time research training by the start date of the award in order to receive support.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the NIBIB Scientific Contact on the left before they begin to prepare their application.
Additional information on NIBIB’s training programs can be found at Training and Careers .

Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Scientific Program Contact:
Dennis A. Twombly, Ph.D.
Phone: (301) 451-3371
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Susan Parker
Phone: (301) 435-7006
Email: [email protected]

NICHD Specific Information:

NICHD offers fellowships in areas relevant NICHD’s mission, including demography, social sciences, and population dynamics; male and female fertility and infertility; developing and evaluating contraceptive methods; improving the safety and efficacy of pharmaceuticals for use in pregnant women, infants, and children; HIV infection and transmission, AIDS, and associated infections; pediatric growth and endocrine research; child development and behavior; developmental biology and typical and atypical development; intellectual and developmental disabilities; gynecologic health conditions, including pelvic floor disorders; and childhood injury and critical illness; and rehabilitation medicine.

The research interests of NICHD are described in more detail at:
Extramural Scientific Branches

Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact NICHD’s Scientific/Research Contact before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research and training to the Institute’s research priorities.

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders

Scientific Program Contact:
Jaclyn Schurman, Au.D., Ph.D.
Phone: 301-402-4888
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Samantha Tempchin
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Telephone: 301-435-1404
Email: [email protected]

NIDCD Specific Information:

The NIDCD conducts the peer review of applications for this dissertation-stage fellowship program within its Scientific Review Branch based on the expedited review schedule of four to five months from submission to award.
NIDCD supports research and research training in hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice, speech and language. Since NIH Institutes have overlapping programmatic interests, prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the Institute’s Scientific Program Contact in the early stages of formulating an application to ensure that the proposed research is within NIDCD’s scientific purview. In addition, please consult NIDCD’s Fellowship Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQs) at NIDCD Fellowships: Frequently Asked Questions.

National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research

Scientific Program Contact:

Rachel Saré, PhD.
Research Training and Career Development Branch
Telephone: 301-496-4263
Email: [email protected]


Grants Management Contact:
Gabe Hidalgo
Grants Management Branch
Phone: 301-827-4630
Email: [email protected]

NIDCR Specific Information:

NIDCR supports predoctoral training leading to a Ph.D. or a dual DDS/DMD, Ph.D degree for fellows conducting dental, oral, and craniofacial research in an area relevant to the NIDCR Strategic Plan (http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/Research/ResearchPriorities/StrategicPlan/).

Applicants must demonstrate a commitment to a career in dental, oral and craniofacial health research. Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the NIDCR Scientific Program Contact before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute's research priorities.

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

Scientific Program Contact:
Rob Rivers, Ph.D.
Telephone: (301) 443-8415
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Aricia Ajose
Phone: (301) (301) 594-9023
Email: [email protected]

NIDDK Specific Information:

NIDDK supports the training of Ph.D., or equivalent, students in the areas of research supported by the Institute: diabetes, endocrinology, metabolic diseases; gastroenterology, hepatology, obesity, nutrition; and kidney, urologic, and hematologic disorders. We accept F31 applications in areas of science that support these research areas.


Applicants are encouraged to contact the NIDDK program contact before beginning the process of applying for this fellowship.


National Institute on Drug Abuse

Scientific Program Contact:
Lindsey Friend
NIDA Office of Research Training, Diversity and Disparities
Phone: (301) 594-4673
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Nadia Felix
Phone: (301) 827-5701
Email: [email protected]

NIDA Specific Information:

NIDA supports the training of predoctoral fellows conducting drug abuse and addiction research. Prospective applicants are highly encouraged to contact a NIDA Program Official in their area of interest, prior to preparing an application. For a list of NIDA training contacts, please see Research Training Committee. For additional guidance on applying for this predoctoral fellowship, visit What to know about the Predoctoral Process - Pre-application

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Scientific Program Contact:
Michael C. Humble, Ph.D.
Phone: (984) 287-3272
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Clark Phillips
Phone: (984) 287-3364
Email: [email protected]

NIEHS Specific Information:

Training opportunities supported under this announcement by the NIEHS are expected to focus on the environmental health sciences and be responsive to the mission of the NIEHS, which is to reduce the burden of human illness and dysfunction from environmental causes by understanding how environmental factors, individual susceptibility and age interrelate in the disease process.

Fellowship applications should examine/address how an environmentally relevant toxicant or exposure is, or might be, involved in a human health endpoint such as a specific human disease, dysfunction, pathophysiologic condition, or relevant disease process. Examples of environmentally relevant toxicants include industrial chemicals or manufacturing byproducts, metals, pesticides, herbicides, air pollutants and other inhaled toxicants, particulates or fibers, and fungal/bacterial or biologically derived toxins. Agents considered non-responsive to this announcement include, but are not limited to: alcohol, drugs of abuse, pharmaceuticals, chemotherapeutic agents, radiation which is not a result of an ambient environmental exposure, and infectious or parasitic agents, except when agents are disease co-factors to an environmental toxicant exposure to produce the biological effect.

Fellowship applications may include research in the Environmental Public Health field in which communities which are exposed to environmental exposures or have concerns about environmentally related diseases are actively engaged in all stages of research, dissemination and evaluation. Examples of proposals in the Environmental Public Health field include investigating the health effects / impacts of environmental exposures that disproportionately burden low income or minority communities, investigating emerging environmental threats to communities, investigating exposure-related diseases that are of great concern to a community, and research and evaluation methodology to improve the theories and implementation strategies for working with communities to address their environmental health concerns. Fellows would learn how to conduct research using community based participatory methods, create outreach and education programs and translate research finding to a vast array of stakeholders.

National Institute of General Medical Sciences

Scientific Program Contact:

Jeremy McIntyre, Ph.D.
Email: [email protected]

Joyce Stamm, Ph.D
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Justin Rosenzweig
Email: [email protected]

NIGMS Specific Information:

NIGMS supports advanced predoctoral research training in basic biomedical sciences that are relevant to the NIGMS mission ( About NIGMS). Applicants must have identified a research sponsor, and dissertation project that includes a promising approach to the problem, with strong training potential. The Institute will give priority to funding F31 applications with sponsors who are currently supported by NIGMS research grants.

Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact Institute program staff ( Predoctoral Fellowship Diversity F31) before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute's research priorities and for guidance on the proposed research and training plans.

National Institute of Mental Health

Scientific Program Contact:
James Churchill, Ph.D.
Telephone: 301-443-3621
Email: [email protected]

Mark Chavez, Ph.D.
Telephone: 301-443-8942
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Rita Sisco
Phone: (301) 443-2805
Email: [email protected]

NIMH Specific Information:

The NIMH supports a broad spectrum of basic and translational research, including basic neuroscience, human genetics, adult and developmental translational research, services and intervention research, and AIDS-related research ( NIMH Extramural Research Programs) that advances our mission and strategic research priorities. See NIMH NRSA Practices and Guidance for guidance about NIMH-specific practices for individual fellowship applications and awards.

Prospective applicants are strongly encouraged to contact Institute program staff before preparing an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute’s research priorities and for guidance on the proposed research and training plans.

National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities

Scientific Program Contact:
Dorothy M. Castille, PhD
Phone: 301-594-9411
E-mail: [email protected]
E-mail: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Priscilla Grant, JD
Phone: (301) 594-8412
Email: [email protected]

NIMHD Specific Information:

The mission of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) is to lead scientific research to improve minority health and eliminate health disparities National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Applications are accepted for all areas of research, including biomedical, clinical, behavioral, and social sciences, as related to minority health or health disparities.

Prospective applicants are encouraged to contact the Institute’s Scientific Program Contact in the early stages of formulating an application to discuss the relevance of the proposed research to the Institute’s research priorities.

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Scientific Program Contact:

Anahid Ebrahimi, Ph.D.
Phone: (301) 827-0175


Grants Management Contact:
Chief Grants Management Officer
Email: [email protected]

NINDS Specific Information:

Funding may be requested using this funding opportunity for support of research and training leading to a doctoral research degree. NINDS will provide fellowship support to Ph.D. students who are within the first 6 years of graduate school. Support beyond the 6th year may be made in rare and unusual circumstances and will require a written waiver from the Associate Director of the Office of Programs to Enhance the Neuroscience Workforce (OPEN). Any waiver will require a detailed written justification and should be requested at least six months prior to the termination date of the fellowship award.

​NINDS encourages dual-degree students in non-MSTP institutions who will request support for medical school training to apply for support using the F30 funding opportunity, as NINDS reviews dual degree (F30) fellowship applications in a special study section (NST-2).

Applicants should consult the NINDS training website for NINDS specific information and instructions: F31 Individual NRSA for Diverse PhD Students & Diverse MD/PhD Students from MSTP Institutions

National Institute of Nursing Research

Scientific Program Contact:
Sung Sug (Sarah) Yoon, RN, PhD
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Telephone: 301-402-6959
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Randi Freundlich
Phone: (301) 594-5974
Email: [email protected]

NINR Specific Information:

NINR uses the F31-Diversity Fellowship to provide support for individuals to pursue graduate training that leads to a research doctoral degree. Eligibility is limited to non-nurses enrolled in nursing research doctoral degree programs and to nurses with a Bachelor’s degree or higher enrolled in any research doctoral degree program.

Applications must have a clear focus in science areas related to the NINR mission, which is to promote and improve the health of individuals, families, and communities. Applicants should also consider NINR areas of special interest identified in NOT-NR-21-001 .

Those interested in applying for this opportunity are strongly encouraged to contact the NINR Program Director for Extramural Training. The applicant may contact the NINR Program Director by emailing a copy of their draft NIH Biosketch with any questions and a draft synopsis of interests and research/training aims.

Applicants proposing to receive training in clinical trial research should be sure to carefully read instructions found at: Guidance Center

National Library of Medicine

Scientific Program Contact:
Sung Sug (Sarah) Yoon, PhD
Telephone: 301-496-7101
Email: [email protected]


Grants Management Contact:
Andrea Culhane
Phone: 301-402-0069
E-mail: [email protected]

NLM Specific Information:

NLM supports research career development in data science, clinical/public health informatics, bioinformatics, translational informatics and consumer health informatics. We define informatics as the intersection of computer, information, biomedical and behavioral sciences with one or more application domains. Application domains of interest include health care delivery, basic biomedical research, clinical and translational research, public health and others.

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health

Scientific Program Contact:
Jennifer N. Baumgartner, Ph.D.
Phone: 301-402-4084
Email: [email protected]

Grants Management Contact:
Debbie Chen
Phone: (301) 594-3788
Email: [email protected]

NCCIH Specific Information:

NCCIH uses this program to support predoctoral individuals in supervised research training experiences. NCCIH will not accept applications to this program proposing to conduct new, free-standing clinical trials. Applicants to the fellowship programs interested in clinical trial research are encouraged to participate in the planning, design, and implementation of the mentor’s ongoing clinical trials in order to gain the training and experience necessary to become independent clinical investigators. Before the application receipt date, applicants and mentor(s) are strongly encouraged to discuss their proposed research interest with an NCCIH Program Officer in the specific scientific area and/or intervention that is closely related to the proposed project to confirm its relevance to NCCIH's mission, research priorities, and strategic plan. A list of NCCIH program officials can be found at Division of Extramural Research Program Directors. Applications that will include the use of natural products or devices in an ongoing interventional research project should explicitly describe the status of the Investigational New Drug (IND) or Investigational Device Exemption (IDE). Applicants interested in natural products research are encouraged to review NCCIH's Natural Product Integrity Policy.


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