Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Stipends, Tuition/Fees and Other Budgetary Levels Effective for Fiscal Year 2011

Notice Number: NOT-OD-11-067

Update: The following update relating to this announcement has been issued:

• January 20, 2012 - See Notice NOT-OD-12-033. NOT-OD-12-033 supersedes this Notice and establishes new stipend levels for fiscal year (FY) 2012 Kirschstein-NRSA awards for undergraduate, predoctoral, and postdoctoral trainees and fellows, as shown in the table below.

Release Date: April 25, 2011

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

This Notice supersedes NOT-OD-10-047, and establishes new stipend levels for fiscal year (FY) 2011 Kirschstein-NRSA awards for undergraduate, predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees and fellows, as shown in the table below. The Tuition and Fees, Training Related Expenses for trainees and the Institutional Allowance for individual fellows remain unchanged, and are also provided below.

The budgetary categories described in this Notice are effective only for Kirschstein-NRSA awards made with FY 2011 funds. All FY 2011 awards issued using FY 2010 stipend levels will be revised to increase the stipend category to the FY 2011 level. For institutional training grants already awarded in FY 2011, if trainees have been appointed to the FY 2011 budget period, the grantee institution must amend those appointments to reflect the FY 2011 stipend level once the revised award is received. Amended appointments must be submitted through xTrain in the eRA Commons. Retroactive adjustments or supplementation of stipends or other budgetary categories with Kirschstein-NRSA funds for an award made prior to October 1, 2010 are not permitted.

Stipends

Effective with all Kirschstein-NRSA awards made on or after October 1, 2010, 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.

Undergraduates in the MARC and COR Programs:

Career Level	Stipend for FY 2011
Freshmen/Sophomores	$8,136
Juniors/Seniors	$11,400

Predoctoral and Postdoctoral:

Career Level	Years of Experience	Stipend for FY 2011
Predoctoral	All	$21,600
Postdoctoral	0	$38,496
	1	$40,548
	2	$43,476
	3	$45,192
	4	$46,884
	5	$48,900
	6	$50,832
	7 or More	$53,112

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.

NRSA support is limited to 5 years for predoctoral trainees, and 3 years for postdoctoral fellows. The NIH provides 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, however, does not constitute 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 in NOT-OD-02-017.

Tuition and Fees, Training Related Expenses, and Institutional Allowances for Kirschstein-NRSA Recipients

The NIH will provide funds for tuition, fees, health insurance, and training related expenses, as detailed below.

A. Tuition and Fees

• Predoctoral Trainees and Fellows: For institutional training grants (T32, T34, T35, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F30, F31) an amount per predoctoral trainee equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $16,000 per year, will be provided. If the trainee or fellow is enrolled in a program that supports formally combined dual-degree training (e.g., M.D.-Ph.D, D.D.S.-Ph.D.), the amount provided per trainee or fellow will be 60% of the level requested up to $21,000 per year.
• Postdoctoral Trainees and Fellows: For institutional training grants (T32, T35, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F32, F33) an amount per postdoctoral trainee or fellow equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $4,500 per year, will be provided. If the trainee or fellow is enrolled in a program that supports postdoctoral individuals in formal degree-granting training, an amount per postdoctoral trainee or fellow equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $16,000 per year, will be provided.

B. Training Related Expenses on Institutional Training Grants

• For institutional training grants (T32, T34, T35, T90, TL1) these expenses (including health insurance costs) for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees will be paid at the amounts shown below for all competing and non-competing awards made with FY 2011 funds.
  • Predoctoral Trainees: $4,200
  • Postdoctoral Trainees: $7,850

C. Institutional Allowance for Individual Fellows

This allowance for predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows will be paid at the amounts shown below for all competing and non-competing awards made with FY 2011 funds.

• Institutional Allowance for individual fellows (F30, F31, F32, F33) sponsored by non-Federal Public, Private, and Non-Profit Institutions (Domestic & Foreign, including health insurance):
  • Predoctoral Fellows: $4,200
  • Postdoctoral Fellows: $7,850
• Institutional Allowance for Individual fellows (F30, F31, F32, F33) Sponsored by Federal and For-Profit Institutions (including health insurance):
  • Predoctoral Fellows: $3,100
  • Postdoctoral Fellows: $6,750

See Questions and Answers Related to NRSA Tuition, Fees, and Health Insurance Policy: https://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa_tuition_q&a.htm.

Specific 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, AHRQ, or HRSA.

General inquiries concerning NRSA stipend and tuition policies should be directed to:

Rodney Ulane, Ph.D.
NIH 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: [email protected]