NINDS MEDICAL STUDENT DUAL-DEGREE MD/PHD OR MD/MPH FELLOWSHIPS Release Date: May 23, 2001 PA NUMBER: PA-01-100 (This PA has been replaced, see PA-05-151) National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke PURPOSE The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) invites applications for individual National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowships for MD/PhD and MD/MPH students. There is a critical need for clinician-scientists with the medical training and research experience to investigate problems of disease in humans. Yet, the enormous complexity of the neurological disorders prevents the standard course of study at most medical schools from providing the experience necessary to develop researchers. Support for NRSA MD/PhD and MD/MPH fellowships is designed to help ensure that highly trained clinician-scientists will be available in adequate numbers to conduct basic and clinical research in disorders relevant to the mission of the NINDS. While this program is primarily focused on individuals pursuing the MD degree, other health professional students (e.g., D.O., D.D.S.) may also apply. For additional information about NINDS programs please consult the following Website: http://www.ninds.nih.gov 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, NINDS MEDICAL STUDENT DUAL-DEGREE MD/PHD OR MD/MPH FELLOWSHIPS, 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 Citizenship: By the time of award, individuals must be citizens or non-citizen nationals of the United States, or must have been lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence (i.e., possess a currently valid Alien Registration Receipt Card I-551, or other legal verification of such status). Non-citizen nationals are generally persons born in outlying possessions of the United States (i.e., American Samoa and Swains Island). Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible. Degree Requirements: The applicant must have a baccalaureate degree and show evidence of both high academic performance in the sciences and substantial interest in research in areas of high priority to the sponsoring Institute. The applicant must be enrolled in an MD (or other clinical) program at an accredited medical/health professional school, accepted in a related scientific PhD or MPH program, and supervised by a mentor in that scientific discipline when the application is submitted. The typical applicant will apply during the first year of medical school for funding to begin in the second year; however, applications may be submitted at any stage of medical school. Sponsor: Before submitting a fellowship application, the applicant must identify a sponsoring institution and an individual who will serve as a sponsor (also called mentor or supervisor) and will supervise the training and research experience. The applicant's sponsor should be an active investigator in the area of the proposed research who will directly supervise the candidate's research. The sponsor must document the availability of staff, research support, and facilities for high-quality research training. The institutional setting must be domestic, and may be private (profit or nonprofit) or public, including the NIH Intramural Programs and other Federal laboratories. MECHANISM OF SUPPORT Awards made under this program announcement will use the F30 Individual Predoctoral MD/PhD or MD/MPH fellowship mechanism to provide combined medical school and predoctoral PhD or MPH support for a maximum of six years; no other NRSA support may be received during this time. Any exception to these limitations requires a waiver from the sponsoring Institute based on a review of the justification provided by the individual awardee and his or her sponsor. Continued support beyond the first year is dependent upon satisfactory progress toward both degrees. Annual reports are to be provided by the fellow, the PhD or MPH department and sponsor, and the medical school. Although NRSAs are not usually made for training leading to a health professional degree, or for training that is part of a clinical residency, this program is specifically designed to support training in an established, combined MD/PhD or MD/MPH program. NINDS intends to award up to five fellowships per year. Allowable Costs Stipends: The annual stipend for predoctoral individuals will remain fixed for the period of support, unless the stipend level is changed in the NIH annual appropriation. Applicants should consult with Institute Program Staff for the latest stipend level. Alternatively, applicants may obtain information about current stipend levels and other policy documents from the URL for "NIH Training Related Policy Documents": http://www.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm Tuition and Fees and health insurance: The NINDS will offset the combined cost of tuition and fees at the following rate: 100 percent of all costs up to $3,000 and 60 percent of costs above $3,000. Costs associated with tuition and fees are allowable only if they are required for specific courses in support of the research training experience supported by the fellowship. A full description of the tuition policy is contained within the NRSA Policy Guidelines on the NIH website at http://grants.nih.gov/training/nrsa.htm Institutional Allowance: An allowance of up to $2,500 per predoctoral fellow per twelve month period will be provided to the sponsoring institution to help defray such expenses as research supplies, equipment, travel to scientific meetings, and related items for the individual fellows, and to otherwise offset, to the extent possible, appropriate administrative costs of graduate research training. The allowance is provided only upon official activation of the award, and the sponsoring institution is expected to administer the allowance and disburse the funds. If an individual fellow is in a training status for less than six months of the award year, only one-half of that year's allowance may be charged to the grant. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES Applicants for NINDS MD/PhD and MD/MPH fellowship awards must propose to conduct biomedical research in areas of high priority/public health significance to neurological sciences and document that the proposed graduate program and proposed research project offers them an opportunity to develop expert research skills and knowledge leading to a research career in neurological sciences. The research training experience must provide a strong foundation in research design, methods and analytic techniques; the development or enhancement of the fellow’s ability to conceptualize and think through research problems with increasing independence; experience in conducting, presenting and publishing independent research; the opportunity to interact with members of the scientific community at meetings and workshops (including NIH sponsored meetings); and the development and documentation of a well thought-out career plan to increase the applicant's ability to secure federal support for his/her research. The applicant’s experience should be under the guidance and supervision of a committed sponsor who is an active and established investigator in the area of the applicant's proposed research. The research training program should be carried out in a research-intensive environment that includes appropriate human and technical resources and is demonstrably committed to research training in the particular program proposed by the applicant so that the applicant can grow as a creative scientist. The application must include evidence that instruction in the principles of responsible conduct of research will be incorporated into the proposed research training plan. Applications without plans for training in responsible conduct of research will be considered incomplete and will be returned without review. The NRSA legislation requires that the Nation's overall need for biomedical research personnel be taken into account by giving special consideration to training physicians who propose to become active biomedical researchers. The sponsoring Institutes recognize the critical importance of training physicians to become researchers as well as training clinicians to conduct patient-oriented research. Racial/ethnic minority individuals, women, and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS Awards must be activated within six months of receipt of award notice (see below for application receipt, review, and start dates). No funds may be disbursed until the individual has started training under the award and an Activation Notice (PHS 416-5) has been submitted to and accepted by the sponsoring Institute. Individuals are required to pursue their MD/PhD or MD/MPH training program on a full-time basis, devoting at least 40 hours per week to the training program. 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 sub-populations must be included in all NIH-supported biomedical and behavioral research projects involving human subjects, unless a clear and compelling rationale and justification are provided indicating 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. 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 applicants are encouraged to contact the Program Staff listed under INQUIRIES, for pre-application consultation. The Individual National Research Service Award application kit PHS 416-1 must be used in applying for fellowships. These forms 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, Telephone: (301) 710-0267, FAX: (301) 480-0525, Email: GrantsInfo@nih.gov. Application kits are also available on the Internet at: http://www.nih.gov/grants/forms.htm The number and title of this program announcement must be typed in Item 3 on the face page of the application form. At least three completed letters of reference in sealed envelopes must be attached to the application. Applications without the required number of reference letters will be returned without review. Application Receipt and Review Schedule: Applications responding to this Program Announcement will be accepted and reviewed three times a year according to the following schedule: Application Receipt Date: April 5, August 5, and December 5 Review Meeting: June/July, October/November, and February/March Notification: August/September, December/January, and April/May Earliest Possible Start Date: August/September, December/January, and April/May Applications received after these receipt dates are subject to assignment to the next cycle, or may be returned to the applicant upon request by the applicant. An original and one copy of the completed and signed application are to be submitted 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) At the time of submission to the Center of Scientific Review, one additional copy of the completed and signed application and all copies of the appendix materials (if any) 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) ATTN: NRSA F30 Fellowships Applicants are advised to pay special attention to the following important items in PHS 416-1: Part I (Prepared by Applicant): Item 5. Training Under Proposed Award. Identify the PhD discipline according to the NIH Lexicon of NRSA disciplines on page 27 of the instructions. Candidates who expect to receive a PhD in Neuroscience should enter a code number of 188 (Neurobiology). Item 22. Scholastic Performance. In addition to the information requested in the application, applicants should provide scores for MCAT, GRE, and other exams relevant to medical and graduate school that they have taken recently. Item 29a. Activities Under Award. Typically, an MD/PhD or MD/MPH student spends the first 2 years of the program in medical school courses with a limited amount of time devoted to PhD or MPH work; the third and fourth years of support are spent on PhD or MPH work; and the last 2 years are used to complete medical school. Applicants should describe how they expect to divide their time between medical and graduate school, e.g., medical school courses, graduate school courses, research, research training, etc., during both the school year and the summer for each year of the program. A minimum of 40 hours/week are required for support under the NRSA program. Item 29b. Research Proposal. All applicants should provide a research plan, including a description of a research proposal in which they will be involved as part of their training. The plan should include substantive detail that adds to the information about time allocations requested in Item 29a. Part II (Prepared by Sponsor): Items 32 and 33. Sponsor's Previous Fellows/Trainees, Training Plan, Environment, and Research Facilities. The sponsor must currently be funded to conduct independent research (e.g., Principal Investigator on an R01 or equivalent) and must describe past experience in the guidance of other research trainees and fellows. In addition, the sponsor must describe in detail his/her commitment to and proposed role in guiding the individual applicant. The chairman of the graduate committee for the PhD or MPH program must also describe the department's commitment to and proposed role in guiding the individual applicant and any modifications to the department's usual PhD requirements that are necessary to facilitate this trainee's special needs. The application must include evidence that training in the principles of responsible conduct of research will be incorporated in the research experience of each fellow. This should be presented under Item 33. Issues such as conflict of interest, data recording and retention, professional standards and codes of conduct, responsible authorship, and ethics in biological and behavioral research can provide the substantive base of such training. REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS Upon receipt, all F30 fellowship applications will be reviewed for completeness by the Center for Scientific Review. Incomplete applications will be returned to the applicant without further consideration. Fellowship applications that are complete will be evaluated for merit by an appropriate peer review group convened by the NINDS Scientific Review Branch. As part of the merit review, all applications will receive a written critique and will be assigned a priority score. Review Criteria The F30 individual MD/PhD or MD/MPH predoctoral fellowship is designed to train future generations of outstanding clinician-scientists committed to pursuing a research career in the neurological and communication sciences. The review of an application will focus on the following: the applicant, the research training plan, the sponsor, and the institutional environment/commitment. Information from the letters of reference will be used to inform considerations of these factors, and the final priority score will reflect the overall evaluation of the entire application. Applicant: o The applicant's potential for, and commitment to, a productive scientific career. The reviewers may take into account the applicant's history as a student, as well as past and current involvement in research activities Research Training Plan: o Objectives, design, and direction of the proposed research program o Specificity and clarity of the description of the research skills and knowledge to be acquired and objective evaluation of progress in each area o Clarity, completeness, originality, and significance of the goals of the proposed research training plans o Adequacy of knowledge of relevant literature and current methods in the proposed research area o Potential of proposed research training to serve as a sound foundation that will lead the applicant to a productive career in neurological sciences research o Adequacy of plans for the protection of human subjects, animals, or the environment, to the extent they may be adversely affected by the research proposed o Adequacy of plans to include women, children and minorities as subjects in research, if applicable Sponsor: o Caliber of the sponsor as a researcher, including successful competition for research support o Evidence of the proposed sponsor's understanding of and commitment to fulfilling the role of sponsor and mentor o Evidence of an understanding of the applicant's research training needs and a demonstrated ability, on the part of the sponsor, to assist in meeting those needs o Past research training record of the sponsor in terms of the rate at which former predoctoral trainees obtain their doctoral degree and go on to postdoctoral or other scientific careers o Plan to provide the fellow with individualized supervised experiences that will develop his/her research skills Institutional Environment/Commitment: o Training environment including the institutional commitment to research training and career development, the quality of the facilities and related resources (e.g., equipment, laboratory space, computer time, subject populations) and the availability of research support. o Adequacy of plans to provide training in the responsible scientific conduct of research. This belongs in sponsor or environment AWARD CRITERIA The responsibility for award decisions resides solely with authorized program staff of the sponsoring Institute. The following criteria will be used in making award decisions: (1) overall merit of the application; (2) relevance of the application to the mission and research priorities of the awarding institute; (3) program balance; and (4) availability of funds. INQUIRIES Inquiries are encouraged. Prospective applicants are encouraged to visit the NINDS Research Training and Career Development website in order to obtain current information about program priorities and policy guidelines: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/funding/research_training.htm 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 (for courier: Rockville, MD 20852) Phone: (301) 496-4188 FAX: (301) 594-5929 Email: NINDSTrainingOffice@ninds.nih.gov 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 EMail: jh41m@nih.gov AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS This program is described in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 93.853. Awards are made under authorization of sections 301 and 405 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 241 and 284) and administered under NIH grants policies and Federal Regulations 42 CFR 52 and 45 CFR Parts 74 and 92. This program is not subject to the intergovernmental review requirements of Executive Order 12372 or Health Systems Agency review. 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, and 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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