NINDS MEDICAL STUDENT SHORT-TERM INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH TRAINING PROGRAM

Release Date:  May 23, 2001

PA NUMBER:  PA-01-098

National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Application Receipt Date:  May 10

PURPOSE

The National Institutes of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) will award 
National Research Service Award (NRSA) Short-Term Institutional Training Grants 
(T35) to eligible institutions to provide research training opportunities for 
medical students who are preparing for careers in basic or clinical neurological 
sciences research.  The purpose of this program is to help ensure that a highly 
trained workforce is available to assume leadership roles related to the 
Nation's neurological sciences research agenda.  The goals of the program are to 
encourage the interest of potential clinician scientists early in their 
education, and accelerate entry to independent research.

SPECIAL NOTE:  Unless otherwise noted in this program announcement, applicants 
must follow the guidelines described in the following program announcements:  
National Research Service Awards Short-Term Institutional Research Training 
Grants (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-027.html)

HEALTHY PEOPLE 2010

The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health promotion 
and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2010," a PHS-led national 
activity for setting priority areas.  This Program Announcement is related to 
one or more of the priority areas.  Potential applicants may obtain a copy of 
"Healthy People 2010" at http://www.health.gov/healthypeople.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Only domestic medical schools may apply for NINDS Medical Student Short-Term 
Institutional Research Training Programs.  NRSA institutional short-term 
training grants are intended to introduce students to research that would not 
otherwise be available through their regular course of study.  Short-term 
training is not intended, and may not be used, to support activities that would 
ordinarily be part of a research degree program.  Positions on NRSA short-term 
institutional training grants may not be used for courses and study leading to 
an M.D. or other clinical, health professional degree, nor do they support 
residency training.  Trainees are required to pursue research training for 2-3 
months on a full-time basis devoting at least 40 hours per week to the program.  
Within the 40 hours per week training period, trainees must devote their time to 
the proposed research training and must confine clinical and other duties to 
those that are an integral part of the research training experience.  Successful 
trainees may be appointed for additional periods of short-term training, or when 
appropriate, they may be encouraged to enter an extended period of full-time 
training supported by an NRSA fellowship.

Citizenship:  Trainees must be citizens or non-citizen nationals of the United 
States, or have been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent 
residence and have in their possession an Alien Registration Receipt Card 
(I-151 or I-551) at the time of award.  Individuals on temporary or student 
visas are not eligible for support from the NRSA.

MECHANISM OF SUPPORT

Medical Student Short-Term Institutional Research Training Programs (T35) grants 
may be awarded for periods up to five years and are renewable.  NINDS intends to 
support approximately 20 such programs throughout the country, each providing 5 
summer positions annually.

Allowable Costs:  Stipends, institutional allowance, tuition and fees, and 
health insurance will be provided according to NRSA Guidelines.  See full 
program announcement:  
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-027.html

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The goal of the short-term training program is to encourage interest in clinical 
neuroscience and research.  In conjunction with suitable mentoring, the program 
will inform students of clinical neuroscience careers, and educate them in 
patterns of research support.  The program will require a clinical education 
component and a research career education component.  The program is designed to 
produce highly competitive students to enter the Medical Student Scholars 
Program as well as the MD/PhD Fellowship program 
(see:  http://www.ninds.nih.gov/funding/research_training.htm).

Training should be on a full-time basis during the summer or other "off-quarter" 
periods.  Short-term appointments are intended to provide students with 
opportunities to participate in neurological sciences research in an effort to 
attract these individuals into research careers.  Short-term research training 
positions should last at least 2 months but must not exceed 3 months.  
Individual students selected for appointment should be encouraged to obtain 
multiple periods of short-term research training during the years leading to 
their clinical degree.  Such appointments may be consecutive or may be reserved 
for summers or other "off-quarter" periods.

INCLUSION OF WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS

It is the policy of the NIH that women and members of minority groups and their 
subpopulations must be included in all NIH supported biomedical and behavioral 
research projects involving human subjects, unless a clear and compelling 
rationale and justification is provided that inclusion is inappropriate with 
respect to the health of the subjects or the purpose of the research.  This 
policy results from the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (Section 492B of Public 
Law 103-43).

All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should read the 
UPDATED "NIH Guidelines for Inclusion of Women and Minorities as Subjects in 
Clinical Research," published in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts on 
August 2, 2000 (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-00-048.html); 
a complete copy of the updated Guidelines are available at 
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/women_min/guidelines_update.htm.  The revisions 
relate to NIH defined Phase III clinical trials and require: a) all applications 
or proposals and/or protocols to provide a description of plans to conduct 
analyses, as appropriate, to address differences by sex/gender and/or 
racial/ethnic groups, including subgroups if applicable; and b) all 
investigators to report accrual, and to conduct and report analyses, as 
appropriate, by sex/gender and/or racial/ethnic group differences.

NIH POLICY AND GUIDELINES ON THE INCLUSION OF CHILDREN AS PARTICIPANTS IN 
RESEARCH INVOLVING HUMAN SUBJECTS

It is the policy of NIH that children (i.e., individuals under the age of 21) 
must be included in all human subjects research, conducted or supported by the 
NIH, unless there are scientific and ethical reasons not to include them.  This 
policy applies to all initial (Type 1) applications submitted for receipt dates 
after October 1, 1998.

All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should read the 
"NIH Policy and Guidelines" on the Inclusion of Children as Participants in 
Research Involving Human Subjects that was published in the NIH Guide for Grants 
and Contracts, March 6, 1998, and is available at the following URL address:  
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not98-024.html 

Investigators also may obtain copies of these policies from the program staff 
listed under INQUIRIES.  Program staff may also provide additional relevant 
information concerning the policy.

URLS IN NIH GRANT APPLICATIONS OR APPENDICES

All applications and proposals for NIH funding must be self-contained within 
specified page limitations.  Unless otherwise specified in an NIH solicitation, 
Internet addresses (URLs) should not be used to provide information necessary to 
the review because reviewers are under no obligation to view the Internet sites.  
Reviewers are cautioned that their anonymity may be compromised when they 
directly access an Internet site.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES

Prospective institutional training grant program directors are strongly 
encouraged to contact the Institute Program Staff listed under Inquiries, and 
must use and follow the instructions accompanying the grant application form PHS 
398 (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html).  Applications are due on 
May 10 of each year.

A signed, typewritten original of the application, including the checklist, and 
three signed photocopies of the application must be sent to:

Center for Scientific Review (CSR)
National Institutes of Health
6701 Rockledge Drive, Room 1040 - MSC 7710
Bethesda, MD  20892-7710
Bethesda, MD  20817 (for express/courier service)

In addition, two copies of the completed and signed application is to be 
submitted to:

Chief, Scientific Review Branch
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 3201
Bethesda, MD  20892
(For courier mail:  Rockville, MD  20852)
Phone:  (301) 496-5324
FAX:  (301) 402-0182

REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS

Upon receipt, applications will be reviewed for completeness by the CSR and 
responsiveness by the NINDS.  Incomplete and/or non-responsive applications will 
be returned to the applicant without further consideration.

Applications that are complete and responsive to this program announcement will 
be evaluated for merit by an appropriate review committee convened by NINDS.  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 the applications under 
review, will be discussed, assigned a priority score, and receive a second level 
review by the National Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke Council.

Review Criteria

o The objectives and design of the research training program;

o The qualifications of the program director and the participating preceptors as 
basic and clinical researchers, including publications and successful competition 
for research support;

o Past research training record of both the program director and the designated 
preceptors;

o The institutional training environment, including the institutional commitment 
to training students in basic and clinical research, quality of the facilities, 
availability of appropriate courses and seminars, and availability of 
research support;

o The proposed plans for advertisement, selection, and assignment of trainees to 
preceptors; plans for teaching students about research careers and clinical 
neuroscience careers; the availability of high quality trainees;

o The institution's plan for measuring the effectiveness of the training program, 
including the productivity of the trainees (e.g. publications, abstracts, 
presentations), the impact of the program on the institution, and the impact of 
the program on the career choices, opportunities and further research activities 
of the trainees; and

o for competitive continuation (renewal) applications, the program accomplishments to 
date, as outlined in PHS 398.

AWARD CRITERIA

The final selection of NRSA Short-term institutional training grants will be 
made by the NINDS based on the review committee recommendations, National 
Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke Council review, research training 
program priorities, the acceptability of the plan for minority recruitment, and 
the acceptability of the proposal for instruction in the responsible conduct 
of research.

INQUIRIES

Applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the NINDS Program staff in advance 
of preparing an application, for additional information concerning the areas of 
research, receipt dates, and other types of pre-application instructions.

Inquiries regarding programmatic issues may be directed to:

NINDS Training and Career Development Officer
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
6001 Executive Boulevard, Room 2154, MSC 9531
Bethesda, MD  20892
Phone:  (301) 496-4188
FAX:  (301) 594-5929
E-mail:  [email protected]

Direct inquiries regarding fiscal matters to:

Joellen M. Harper
Chief, Grants Management Branch
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
6001 Executive Blvd, Room 3290
Bethesda, MD  20892-9537
Telephone:  (301) 496-9231 
FAX:  (301) 402-0219
E-Mail:  [email protected]

AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS

These programs are described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 
No. 93.853. Awards are made under authorization of the Public Health Service 
Act, Title IV, Part A (Public Law 78-410, as amended by Public Law 99-158, 42 
USC 241 and 285) and administered under PHS grants policies and Federal 
Regulations 42 CFR 66 and 45 CFR Part 74.  This program is not subject to the 
intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health 
Systems Agency review.

PHS strongly encourages all grant and contract recipients to provide a smoke-
free workplace and promote the nonuse 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.

Weekly TOC for this Announcement
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices

			Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
NIH... Turning Discovery Into Health®