Research (OER)
9000 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, Maryland 20892
and Human Services (HHS)
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NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING INSTITUTIONAL TRAINING AWARDS
Release Date: February 10, 2000
PA NUMBER: PA-00-057
National Institute on Aging
Application Receipt Date: May 10, 2000 and succeeding years
PURPOSE
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) will award new and competing renewal
National Research Service Award (NRSA) Institutional Training Grants (T32) to
eligible institutions to develop or enhance research training opportunities
for individuals, selected by the institution, who are training for careers in
specified areas of aging research. The purpose of this announcement is to
help ensure a broad cadre of researchers trained in the content and methods
of aging research and in the major biomedical, behavioral and social areas of
research most closely related to their field of study within aging. NIA
supports both predoctoral and postdoctoral training in aging. The Institute
also supports short-term research training for students in health-
professional programs as part of an overall T32 program.
This announcement describes NIA's particular emphases and programs within the
overall NRSA program. Full information about eligibility, allowable costs,
payback requirements, leave and other NRSA policies is available from the
National Research Service Award Guidelines available at:
https://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm. Potential applicants should consult
that document as well as the current program announcement before applying.
HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000
Each NIH PA addresses one or more of 22 Health Promotion and Disease
Prevention priority areas identified. These areas can be found via the WWW at
http://odphp.osophs.dhhs.gov/pubs/hp2000.
APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Only domestic, non-profit, private or public institutions may apply for
grants to support research training programs. The applicant institution must
have a strong research program in the area(s) proposed for research training
and must have the requisite staff and facilities to carry out the proposed
program. The research training program director at the institution will be
responsible for the selection and appointment of trainees to receive NRSA
support and for the overall direction of the program.
Trainees appointed to the training program must have the opportunity to carry
out supervised research on aging with the primary objective of developing or
extending their research skills and knowledge in preparation for a research
career.
TRAINEE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
Positions on NRSA institutional grants may not be used for study leading to
the M.D., D.D.S., or other clinical, health-professional degrees except when
those studies are a part of a formal combined research degree program, such
as the M.D./Ph.D. Similarly, trainees may not accept NRSA support for
studies which are part of residency training leading to certification in a
medical or dental specialty or subspecialty, except when the residency
program credits a period of full-time, postdoctoral research training toward
board certification and the trainee intends to pursue a research career.
Students enrolled in health-professional doctoral degree programs may receive
support for short-term research training as described above. Additionally,
health-professional students may interrupt their studies for a year or more
to engage in an extended period of full-time research training before
completing their professional degree.
Trainees are required to pursue their research training on a full-time basis,
devoting at least 40 hours per week to the program. Within the 40 hours per
week training period, research trainees in clinical areas must devote their
time to the proposed research training and must confine clinical duties to
those that are an integral part of the research training experience.
Citizenship. To be appointed to a training position supported by an NRSA
research training grant, an individual must be a citizen or noncitizen
national of the United States or must have been lawfully admitted for
permanent residence (i.e., in possession of a currently valid Alien
Registration Receipt Card I-551, or must be in possession of other legal
verification of such status). Noncitizen nationals are generally persons
born in outlying possessions of the United States (e.g., American Samoa and
Swains Island). Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible.
Predoctoral Trainees. Predoctoral trainees must have received a
baccalaureate degree by the beginning date of their NRSA appointment, and
must be training at the postbaccalaureate level and enrolled in a program
leading to a Ph.D. in science or in an equivalent research doctoral degree
program. Health-professional students who wish to interrupt their studies
for a year or more to engage in full-time research training before completing
their professional degrees are also eligible.
Postdoctoral Trainees. Postdoctoral trainees must have received, as of the
beginning date of the NRSA appointment, a Ph.D., M.D. or comparable doctoral
degree from an accredited domestic or foreign institution. Eligible doctoral
degrees include, but are not limited to, the following: D.D.S., D.M.D.,
D.O., D.V.M., O.D., D.P.M., Sc.D., Eng.D., Dr. P.H., D.N.Sc., D. Pharm.,
D.S.W., and Psy.D. Documentation by an authorized official of the degree-
granting institution certifying all degree requirements have been met prior
to the beginning date of training is acceptable.
Short-Term Health-Professional Trainees. To be eligible for short-term
predoctoral research training positions, health-professional students must
have completed at least one quarter in a program leading to a clinical
doctorate prior to participating in the program. Individuals matriculated in
a formal research degree program, or those holding a research doctorate or
masters degree or a combined health-professional/research doctorate are not
eligible for short-term training positions. Within schools of pharmacy, only
individuals who are candidates for the Pharm.D. degree are eligible for
short-term positions. Before individual health professional trainees are
appointed, approval for their appointment must be obtained from NIA.
Short-term research training positions should last at least 2 months but must
not exceed 3 months. Individual health-professional students selected for
appointment should be encouraged to obtain multiple periods of short-term
research training during the years leading to their degree. Such appointments
may be consecutive or may be reserved for summers or other "off-quarter"
periods.
MECHANISM OF SUPPORT
The mechanism of support will be the Institutional NRSA research training
grant (T32). These awards may be made for periods up to 5 years and are
renewable. Awards within an approved competitive segment are normally made
in 12-month increments with support for additional years based on
satisfactory progress and the continued availability of funds.
Trainee appointments are normally made in 12-month increments. No trainee
may be appointed for less than 9 months during the initial period of
appointment, except with the prior approval of NIA or when health-
professional students are appointed to approved, short-term research training
positions.
No individual trainee may receive more than 5 years of aggregate NRSA support
at the predoctoral level or 3 years of support at the postdoctoral level,
including any combination of support from institutional training grants and
individual fellowship awards. Any extension of the total duration of trainee
support at either the predoctoral or postdoctoral level requires approval by
the director of NIA. Requests for extension must be made in writing by the
trainee, endorsed by the director of the training program and the appropriate
institutional official, and addressed to the NIA Training Officer. The
request must include a sound justification for an extension of the statutory
limits on the period of support.
PAYBACK PROVISIONS, TRAINEE REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND ALLOWABLE LEAVE
For provisions governing the above policies applicants should consult the
National Research Service Award Guidelines available at:
https://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
NIA recognizes a continuing and expanding need to train new researchers in
aging research. Such work includes knowledge of the underlying genetic,
biological, neuroscientific, behavioral, social and economic causes of age-
related change and stability, of the aging process, of the diseases of old
age, of the age, gender, and ethnic structure of the population, and of the
interventions that may alleviate problems of aging. The work also includes
knowledge of health disparities as they relate to aging, and of the
particular challenges of studying diverse older populations. A more complete
description of current NIA priorities in research and training is available
from the NIA Home Page http://www.nih.gov/nia. That site also includes the
NIA Strategic Plan for FY 2001 - 2005 (in draft form at the time of
publication of this announcement).
It is clear that aging research both benefits from, and contributes to, more
general basic research in the life sciences. Therefore programs that
integrate teaching of aging research with focused training in the fields of
life science research are particularly encouraged.
Training that is exclusively focused on aging research as defined by a focus
on age differences or changes is also appropriate. Training that targets age-
related and age-associated diseases is similarly encouraged where attention
is given to factors about aging that contribute to morbidity, the course of
disease, the costs of disease, the need for care, the response to treatment,
and subsequent mortality.
Training may be multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary. Such approaches to
training offer potential for new perspectives on aging research and improved
methods to resolve problems of aging. At the same time NIA encourages such
applications to have a strong central focus through which the perspectives
offered by different disciplines can be contrasted, their separate strengths
recognized, and the potential, in this context, for combined methods and
emergent concepts emphasized. Structural recognition of the combined
disciplinary perspectives is also encouraged, such as the presence of joint
degree programs.
Innovative approaches to integrating training in emerging tools of
bioengineering, neuroimaging, computer modeling, and data analysis techniques
with training in aging research are particularly encouraged. Applicants
intending to focus on neuroscience and aging should also see the
announcement: JOINTLY SPONSORED NIH PREDOCTORAL TRAINING PROGRAM IN THE
NEUROSCIENCES
Though the breadth of topics covered in a particular application is the
choice of the applicants and will reflect local institutional strengths,
applicants are reminded that aging research is a very broad field. It is
important to choose a focus for the training proposal that reflects a
coherent course of instruction and defined goals for the trainees within the
field rather than seek to address all fields of aging research in a single
application.
TRAINEE COSTS
(also see: NRSA Stipend Increase and Other Budgetary Changes)
Stipends
National Research Service Awards provide funds, in the form of stipends, to
graduate students and postdoctoral trainees. A stipend is provided as a
subsistence allowance to help trainees defray living expenses during the
research training experience. It is not provided as a condition of
employment with either the Federal Government or the awardee institution.
Stipends must be paid to all trainees at the levels approved by the Secretary
of the Department of Health and Human Services.
The stipend rates shown are for FY2000. Applicants should contact the
individual listed at the end of this announcement or consult the NIH Guide
for recent information on stipend rates.
Predoctoral Trainees. The stipend for predoctoral trainees in FY 2000 is
$15,060 For appointments of less than a year, the stipend will be based on a
monthly proration that is $1,255 per month in FY 2000.
Postdoctoral Trainees. The current annual stipend for postdoctoral trainees
is determined by the number of FULL years of relevant postdoctoral experience
at the time of appointment. Relevant experience may include research
experience (including industrial), teaching, internship, residency, clinical
duties, or other time spent in full-time studies in a health-related field
following the date of the qualifying doctoral degree.
Postdoctoral stipend rates in FY 2000 are as follows:
Postdoctoral Years of Experience
0 $26,916
1 $28,416
2 $33,516
3 $35,232
4 $36,936
5 $38,628
6 $40,332
7 or more $42,300
NIH Policies on administering stipends, on stipend supplementation, on other
compensation, on educational loans, on concurrent awards and, on advice on
the tax liability of stipends are available from: National Research Service
Award Guidelines.
Tuition, fees, and health insurance
Tuition, fees, and medical insurance, are allowable trainee costs if such
charges are required of all individuals in a similar training status at the
institution, regardless of their source of support. Family medical
insurance coverage is now an allowable cost for trainees with families.
Tuition at the postdoctoral level is limited to that required for specific
courses in support of the approved research training program. On an annual
basis, for each trainee, the training grant will cover 100% of the first
$3,000 of the combined cost of tuition, fees, and health insurance and 60% of
any amount above $3,000. Institutions are instructed to request the full
amount of these costs in competing applications. Noncompeting awards will
reimburse tuition, fees, and health insurance costs in the amount paid in the
previous award year, unless there is a change in the scope of the award.
Other trainee costs
Trainee travel, including attendance at scientific meetings that the
institution determines to be necessary to the individual's research training,
is an allowable trainee expense. NIA allows up to $500 per year per
predoctoral trainee and up to $1,000 per year per postdoctoral trainee. In
addition, support for travel to a research training experience away from the
institution may be permitted. Research training experiences away from the
parent institution must be justified considering the type of opportunities
for training available, how these opportunities differ from those offered at
the parent institution, and the relationship of the proposed experience to
the trainee's career stage and goals. This type of research training
requires prior approval from NIA. Letters requesting such training may be
submitted to NIA at any time during the award period.
Institutional costs of up to $2,000 a year per predoctoral trainee and up to
$2,500 a year per postdoctoral trainee may be requested to defray the costs
of other research training related expenses, such as staff salaries,
consultant costs, equipment, research supplies, and staff travel.
Under exceptional circumstances, which can include providing accommodations
for a trainee with disabilities, it is possible to request institutional
costs above the standard rate. Requests for additional costs must be
explained in detail and carefully justified in the application. Consultation
with NIA program staff in advance of such requests is strongly advised.
The institution may receive up to $167 per month to offset the cost of
tuition, fees, health insurance, travel, supplies, and other expenses for
each short-term, health-professional research training position.
A facilities and administration allowance (indirect cost allowance) based on
8 percent of total allowable direct costs (this excludes amounts for tuition,
fees, health insurance, and equipment) may be requested. Applications from
State and local government agencies may request full indirect cost
reimbursement (see PHS Grants Policy Statement).
APPLICATION PROCEDURES
Applications are to be submitted on grant application form PHS 398 (rev.
4/98). Section V of that form contains special instructions for
Institutional National Research Service Awards (T32). Application kits are
available at most institutional offices of sponsored research and may be
obtained from the Division of Extramural Outreach and Information Resources,
National Institutes of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive, MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD
20892-7910, Phone (301) 710-0267, Email: GRANTSINFO@NIH.GOV. Applications
are also available on the internet at
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html .
Applicants planning to submit an investigator-initiated new (type 1),
competing continuation (type 2), competing supplement, or any amended/revised
version of the preceding grant application types requesting $500,000 or more
in direct costs for any year in response to this announcement are advised
that they must contact NIA program staff before submitting the application,
i.e., as plans for the study are being developed. Furthermore, applicants
must obtain agreement from NIA staff that the Institute will accept the
application for consideration for award. Finally, applicants must identify,
in a cover letter sent with the application, the staff member, with address,
who agreed to accept assignment of the application.
This policy requires applicants to obtain agreement for acceptance of both
any such application and any such subsequent amendment. Refer to the NIH
Guide for Grants and Contracts, March 20, 1998 at:
https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-030.html
Applications Requesting Short-term Training for Health Professional Students.
Applicants who wish to include a request for short-term research training
positions should identify short-term positions separately within the
"stipends" and "training related expenses" categories on the budget page.
Under "stipends," short-term positions should be listed in the "other"
category. Tuition, fees, health insurance, and trainee travel, and other
expenses, are to be included in "training related expenses." The description
of the short-term research training program should be included in the
application for the regular research training program, but should be
separated from the description of the regular program within each section of
the application. In addition to the information requested in the "program
plan" section, the applicant should address the relationship of the proposed
short-term program to the regular research training program and provide
assurance that the short-term program will not detract from the regular
program.
Applicants must observe the 25-page limit on the narrative section.
Submit a signed, printed, original of the application, including the
checklist and five signed photocopies in one package to:
CENTER FOR SCIENTIFIC REVIEW
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH
6701 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE, ROOM 1040, MSC 7710
BETHESDA, MD 20892-7710
BETHESDA, MD 20817 (for express/courier service)
The title and number of the program announcement must be typed on line 2 of
the face page of the application form and the YES box must be marked.
REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS
Applications will be assigned on the basis of established Public Health
Service referral guidelines. Applications that are complete will be
evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate peer review
group convened in accordance with NIH peer review procedures. As part of the
initial merit review, all applications will receive a written critique and
undergo a process in which only those applications deemed to have the highest
scientific merit, generally the top half of applications under review, will
be discussed, assigned a priority score, and receive a second level review by
the appropriate national advisory council or board.
Applications are evaluated for merit by NIH initial review groups based on
the following criteria:
o Past research training record of both the program and the designated
preceptors as determined by the success of former trainees in seeking further
career development and in establishing productive scientific careers.
Evidence of further career development can include receipt of fellowships,
career awards, further training appointments, and similar accomplishments.
Evidence of a productive scientific career can include a record of successful
competition for research grants, receipt of special honors, a record of
publications, receipt of patents, promotion to scientific positions, and any
other measure of success consistent with the nature and duration of the
training received.
o recruitment and selection plans for trainees and the availability of high
quality candidates;
o objectives, design, and direction of the research training program;
o caliber of preceptors as researchers, including successful competition for
research support;
o the institutional training environment, including the level of
institutional commitment, quality of the facilities, availability of
appropriate courses, and availability of research support;
o record of the research training program in retaining health-professional
postdoctoral trainees for at least 2 years in research training or other
research activities;
o when appropriate, the concomitant research training of health-professional
postdoctorates (i.e., individuals with the M.D., D.O., D.D.S., etc.) with
basic science postdoctorates (i.e., individuals with a Ph.D., etc.) or
linkages with basic science departments.
Short-Term Research Training Positions: In addition to the above criteria,
applications that request short-term research training positions will also be
assessed using the following criteria:
o quality of the proposed short-term research training program including the
commitment and availability of the participating faculty, program design,
availability of research support, and training environment;
o access to candidates for short-term research training and the ability to
recruit high quality, short-term trainees from the applicant institution or
some other health-professional school;
o characteristics of the research training program that might be expected to
persuade short-term trainees to consider academic/research careers,
particularly in clinical areas;
o success in attracting students back for multiple appointments (competing
continuation applications);
o effect of the short-term training program on the quality of the regular
research training program or any existing, stand-alone short- term research
training program; including the appropriateness of the number of short-term
positions, and the plan to integrate the short-term training program into
other existing programs;
o plan to follow former short-term trainees and to assess the effect of such
research training on their subsequent careers.
Additional Review Considerations
Minority Recruitment Plan: The NIH remains committed to increasing the
participation of individuals from underrepresented minority groups in
biomedical and behavioral research. As first announced in 1989, all
competing applications for institutional NRSA research training grants must
include a specific plan to recruit and retain underrepresented minorities in
the training program. In addition, all competing continuation applications
also must include a report on the recruitment and retention of
underrepresented minorities during the previous award period. If an
application is received without a plan, or without a report on the previous
award period, the application will be considered incomplete and will be
returned to the applicant without review. Additional information on this
requirement was published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, Volume
22, Number 25, July 16, 1993.
As indicated above, competing continuation applications must include a
detailed account of experiences in recruiting individuals from
underrepresented groups during the previous award period. Information must be
included on successful and unsuccessful recruitment strategies. The report
should provide information on the racial/ethnic distribution of:
o students or postdoctorates who applied for admission or positions within
the department(s) relative to the training grant,
o students or postdoctorates who were offered admission to or a position
within the department(s),
o students actually enrolled in the academic program relevant to the
training grant,
o students or postdoctorates who were appointed to the research training
grant.
For those trainees who were appointed to the grant, the report should include
information about the duration of research training and whether those
trainees have finished their training in good standing.
After the overall educational and technical merit of an application has been
assessed, peer reviewers will examine and evaluate the minority recruitment
plan and any record of recruitment and retention. For competing continuation
applications, the reviewers will examine and evaluate the record of the
program in recruiting and retaining underrepresented minority trainees during
the previous award period. The panel also will consider whether the
experience in recruitment during the previous award period has been
incorporated into the formulation of the recruitment plan for the next award
period.
The findings of the panel will be included in an administrative note in the
summary statement. If the minority recruitment plan or if the record of
recruitment and retention of minorities is judged to be unacceptable, funding
will be withheld until a revised plan that addresses the deficiencies is
received. Staff within the NIH awarding component, with guidance from the
appropriate national advisory committee or council, will determine whether
amended plans and reports submitted after the initial review are acceptable.
Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research: Every predoctoral and
postdoctoral NRSA trainee supported by an institutional research training
grant must receive instruction in the responsible conduct of research. (For
more information on this provision, see the NIH Guide for Grants and
Contracts, Volume 21, Number 43, November 27, 1992.)
Applications must include a description of a program to provide formal or
informal instruction in scientific integrity or the responsible conduct of
research. Applications without plans for instruction in the responsible
conduct of research will be considered incomplete and may be returned to the
applicant without review.
o Although the NIH does not establish specific curricula or formal
requirements, all programs are encouraged strongly to consider instruction in
the following areas: conflict of interest, responsible authorship, policies
for handling misconduct, policies regarding the use of human and animal
subjects, and data management. Within the context of training in scientific
integrity it is also beneficial to discuss the mutual responsibilities of the
institution and the graduate students or postdoctorates appointed to the
program.
o Plans must address the subject matter of the instruction, the format of
the instruction, the degree of faculty participation, trainee attendance, and
the frequency of instruction.
o The rationale for the proposed plan of instruction must be provided.
o Program reports on the type of instruction provided, topics covered, and
other relevant information, such as attendance by trainees and faculty
participation, must be included in future competing continuation and
noncompeting applications.
The NIH encourages institutions to provide instruction in the responsible
conduct of research to all graduate students and postdoctorates in a training
program or department, regardless of the source of support.
NIH initial review groups will assess the applicant's plans on the basis of
the appropriateness of topics, format, amount and nature of faculty
participation, and the frequency and duration of instruction. The plan will
be discussed after the overall determination of merit, so that the quality of
the plan will not be a factor in the determination of the priority score.
Plans will be judged as acceptable or unacceptable. The acceptability of the
plan will be described in an administrative note on the summary statement.
Regardless of the priority score, applications with unacceptable plans will
not be funded until a revised, acceptable plan is provided by the applicant.
The acceptability of the revised plan will be judged by staff within the NIH
awarding component.
Following initial review, applications are also reviewed by the appropriate
NIH institute or center council, board, or other advisory group. These
advisory groups will consider, in addition to the assessment of the
scientific and educational merit of the research training grant application,
the initial review group's comments on the recruitment of individuals from
underrepresented minority groups into the research training program and the
plan for instruction in the responsible conduct of research.
Review Schedule
Application Initial Council Earliest
Receipt Date Review Review start date
May 10 Oct./Nov. February May 1
Award Criteria
Applications will compete for available funds with all other recommended
applications for institutional training grants. The following will be
considered in making funding decisions:
o Quality of the proposed project as determined by peer review
o Availability of funds
o Program priority.
INQUIRIES
Additional information on NIH training programs and policies is available at
the NIH training web site: https://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm c .
Inquiries are encouraged. The opportunity to clarify any issues or questions
from potential applicants is welcome.
Direct inquiries regarding programmatic issues to:
Robin A. Barr, D. Phil.
NIA Training Officer
National Institute on Aging
7201 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 2C218 MSC 9205
Bethesda, MD 20892-9205
Telephone: (301) 496-9322
FAX: (301) 402-2945
Email: rb42h@nih.gov
Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:
Mr. Joe Ellis
Grants and Contracts Management Office
National Institute on Aging
7201 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 2N212, MSC 9205
Bethesda, MD 20892-9205
Telephone: (301) 496-1472
FAX: (301) 402-3672
Email: je14j@nih.gov
Authority and Regulations
NRSA Institutional Research Training Grants are made under the authority of
Section 487 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 288). Title
42 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 66, is applicable to this
program. This program is also described under the following number in the
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: 93.866.
The PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to provide a
smoke-free workplace and promote the non-use of all tobacco products. In
addition, Public Law 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, prohibits smoking
in certain facilities (or in some cases, any portion of a facility) in which
regular or routine education, library, day care, health care or early
childhood development services are provided to children. This is consistent
with the PHS mission to protect and advance the physical and mental health of
the American people.
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