Full Text PAR-97-094 INDIVIDUAL PREDOCTORAL DENTAL SCIENTIST FELLOWSHIP NIH GUIDE, Volume 26, Number 27, August 15, 1997 PA NUMBER: PAR-97-094 P.T. Keywords: National Institute of Dental Research Application Receipt Dates: April 5, August 5, December 5 PURPOSE The National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) seeks through this Program Announcement (PA) new National Research Service Award (NRSA) applications for an Individual Predoctoral Dental Scientist Fellowship (PDSF). The purpose of the PDSF is to offer an integrated dental and graduate research training program that leads to attainment of both the D.D.S./D.M.D. and Ph.D. degrees. The PDSF provides an approach to expanding the cadre of well-trained oral health scientists by stimulating early commitment to research careers by outstanding dental students. The NIDR anticipates that graduates of the PDSF will be able to bring into clinical studies of dental, oral and craniofacial health and disease fundamental knowledge and insight from the basic biomedical, behavioral and social sciences, as well as from related fields such as biomimetics, tissue engineering, biostatistics, epidemiology, health services research and the computer and information sciences. BACKGROUND For many years, there has been a recognized need to train and develop clinician-scientists capable of understanding and pursuing dental, oral and craniofacial health research from the basic, behavioral and clinical perspectives. In particular, such researchers can elucidate essential biological processes and apply this knowledge to the prevention, diagnosis, management, care and treatment of individual patients. To facilitate development of clinician-scientists at the predoctoral level, the NIDR started in 1996 the Institutional Dental Scientist Training Program (DSTP). This mechanism provides funds to dental schools which then select two students per year to pursue concurrently the D.D.S./D.M.D. and Ph.D. degrees in an integrated, interdisciplinary program. At present there are three dental schools (State University of New York at Buffalo, University of California at San Francisco and University of Connecticut) which conduct this program. At the postdoctoral level, the NIDR has supported since the mid-1980s the Institutional Dentist Scientist Award (DSA), the Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award (formerly known as the Individual Dentist Scientist Award or Physician Scientist Award for Dentists) and the Institutional Postdoctoral NRSA. These mechanisms support dentists to obtain the Ph.D. in a research field related to dental, oral and craniofacial health and disease as well as advanced clinical training in a dental specialty. There has been a noticeable decrease over the past few years in the number of highly qualified dentists applying to the postdoctoral Institutional DSA and NRSA programs. Given the implications of such a decline for the future viability of oral health research, the NIDR has embarked on several activities to improve the situation. NIDR staff have communicated with many dental students and recent graduates who are currently involved in research about their perceived obstacles for pursuing a research career. The major reason indicated by most students and recent graduates is the large indebtedness (over $100,000 at some private institutions) with which dentists are burdened upon graduation. However, some of the best and brightest students in dental schools throughout the United States have indicated that they might be more interested in a research career if provided with some financial support while in school, thereby decreasing their level of debt upon graduation. To address this issue and thereby stimulate greater interest in a research career among the most outstanding dental students, the NIDR is proposing in this Program Announcement (PA) an individual Predoctoral Dental Scientist Fellowship Program (PDSF) which would enable students attending any dental school in the United States to obtain both the Ph.D. and dental degree through the NRSA mechanism. This mechanism would decrease the amount that students would have to pay while in dental and graduate school and thus their level of indebtedness by providing at least partial tuition payment, covering some educational expenses and paying an annual stipend. The PDSF is patterned after the Individual Predoctoral NRSA Fellowship for M.D./Ph.D. (F30 mechanism) currently supported by the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute on Drug Abuse and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. This model provides individual NRSA fellowships to students in medical school for pursuit of the MD and Ph.D. degrees in an integrated program. Research areas in which the PDSF students are trained must be relevant to the goals of the NIDR, which are to understand, prevent, diagnose and treat dental, oral and craniofacial diseases and disorders. Current special areas of interest include: (i) inherited diseases and disorders, including the development of teeth and bone; (ii) emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, including bacterial, viral, fungal and parasitic disorders and AIDS; (iii) neoplastic diseases; (iv) chronic disabling diseases, such as osteoporosis and related bone disorders, temporomandibular joint disorders, pain, neuropathies and neurodegenerative diseases and other systemic disorders with oral manifestations; (v) biomimetics, tissue engineering and biomaterials; and (vi) behavior, health promotion and the environment. HEALTHY PEOPLE 2000 The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the health promotion and disease prevention objectives of "Healthy People 2000", a PHS-led national activity for setting priority areas. This PA for the Individual Predoctoral Dental Scientist Fellowship is related to the priority area of oral health. Potential applicants may obtain a copy of "Healthy People 2000" (Full Report: Stock No. 017-001-00474-0 or Summary Report: Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) through the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325 (telephone 202/512-1800). ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS At the time of award, fellows 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-551). Noncitizen nationals are persons born in lands that are not States, but are under United States sovereignty, jurisdiction, or administration (e.g., American Samoa). Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible. Racial/ethnic minority individuals, women and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply. An applicant for the PDSF must show evidence of both high academic performance in the biological, chemical, physical or behavioral/social sciences and significant interest in research. When the application is submitted, the applicant must meet at least the following requirements: [a] be enrolled in a formal program at an approved dental school that leads to the award of a DDS or DMD; [b] have been accepted in a Ph.D. (or an equivalent degree) program in one of the research fields listed above in the Background section related to dental, oral and craniofacial health and disease; and [c] have a confirmed mentor in that scientific field. Trainees must begin their PDSF not later than the third year of dental school, although preference will be given to starting in the individual~s first or second year. In addition, all fellows must have received a baccalaureate degree by the beginning date of their appointment. Individuals currently enrolled in a joint D.D.S./D.M.D.- Ph.D. program are eligible for consideration as trainees. Individuals who obtained a Ph.D. prior to entering dental school and desire to pursue another research doctorate while in dental school are not eligible. An individual may not have more than one NRSA competing application pending with the Public Health Service concurrently. Although NRSAs are not usually meant or intended for study leading to the D.D.S./D.M.D. or for study that is part of residency training leading to a dental specialty, this program is specifically designed to support training in an established, combined D.D.S./D.M.D.- Ph.D. program. The institutional setting must be a domestic, nonprofit private or public institution. MECHANISM OF SUPPORT Awards resulting from this PA will use the NRSA F30 mechanism to provide combined dental school and predoctoral Ph.D. support for five years. No other predoctoral NRSA support may be received during this time. Any exception to these limitations requires a waiver from the Director of the NIDR based on a review of the justification provided by the individual awardee and his/her sponsor. In general, written requests for additional years of support (up to a total of seven years) will be considered favorably for one year at a time if justified by adequate progress made by the individual in his/her program. Since a fellow~s course of study for the combined degrees may take longer than seven years, all individuals should consider other potential sources of support for additional years of training. Continued support beyond the first year is dependent upon satisfactory progress toward the combined degree. Annual reports are to be provided by the fellow, the Ph.D. department and sponsor and the dental school. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES A. Dental and Graduate Research Training Program An individual PDSF must provide integrated clinical and graduate research training required to obtain the D.D.S./D.M.D. and Ph.D. degrees and to pursue the investigation of dental, oral and craniofacial health and diseases. Each fellow~s program must offer two distinct and integrated components. A clinical component must ensure the acquisition of requisite clinical knowledge and technical expertise in order to meet the requirements for a D.D.S./D.M.D. degree and to obtain a license to practice dentistry. A science field component must be a doctoral (Ph.D. or equivalent) level program that ensures development of knowledge and research skills in scientific areas relevant to dental, oral and craniofacial health and disease. Current areas are stated in the Background section. The interdisciplinary program for the fellow should maximize the research and educational resources of his/her academic institution(s) and any collaborating organizations. The program should be tailored to meet the unique research and clinical development needs of the fellow and ensure that the individual completes the program with requisite competencies. The sequence in which the two components are offered and their integration should be based on the specific circumstances and organization of the training institution and should represent what is deemed most desirable, feasible, and efficient by the administration of the dental and graduate institutions. Each fellow must have a mentor, an accomplished investigator active in the proposed area, to guide the person's development and research project. Usually, a mentor will be the doctoral thesis advisor. The mentor must be committed to continue this involvement throughout the individual's total period of development under the award. A co- mentor, representing the clinical component, also may be named. Where feasible, women and minority mentors should be involved as role models. All fellows must meet the criteria described in ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. B. Allowable Costs Annual Stipends: The annual trainee stipend is $11,496 per year regardless of previous research experience. A stipend is provided as a subsistence allowance for the fellow to help defray living expenses during the research training experience. Stipends may be supplemented by an institution from non-Federal funds. Other funds from the PHS, such as from the NIH, may not be used to supplement stipends. Non- PHS Federal funds may be used for stipend supplementation only if specifically authorized under the terms of the program from which the supplemental funds are derived. For example, an individual may make use of Federal educational loan funds or Department of Veterans' Affairs benefits when permitted by those programs. Additional support may be provided to the fellow without obligation by the sponsoring institution or may be conditioned on his or her performance of certain services such as teaching or serving as a laboratory assistant. Under no circumstance may the condition of stipend supplementation detract from or prolong the training. The stipend is not a payment for services performed. Fellows supported under individual awards are not considered to be employees either of the Public Health Service (PHS) or their sponsoring institution, even though the payment of the stipend is made through the sponsoring institution. Stipends are subject to State and Federal income tax. The taxability of stipends, however, in no way alters the relationship between NRSA fellows and institutions. NRSA stipends are not salaries. NRSA fellows are not in an employee-employer relationship with the institution in which they are pursuing research training, nor are they considered to be self-employed. Stipends are not subject to self-employment tax (FICA). Tuition, Fees and Health Insurance: Tuition, fees, and self-only health insurance are allowable costs if such charges are required of all individuals in a similar training status at the institution, regardless of their source of support. On an annual basis, the fellowship award will cover 100% of the first $2,000 of the combined cost of tuition, fees, and self-only health insurance and 60% of any amount above $2,000. Up to four years of dental school tuition and up to four years of graduate school tuition, fees and self-only health insurance may be requested under this fellowship, but no more than five years of tuition and fees support in the aggregate can be awarded unless a waiver is obtained. Other Training Costs: Travel, including attendance at scientific meetings, is an allowable cost at an amount of $800 per year. In addition, institutional costs of $1,500 per year may be requested to defray expenses such as consultant costs, equipment and research supplies. Tax Liability: The Tax Reform Act of 1986, Public Law 99-514, affects the tax liability of all individuals supported under the NRSA program. The NIH is not in a position to advise students or institutions about tax liability. Degree candidates may exclude from gross income reported for tax purposes any amount used for tuition and related expenses such as fees, books, supplies, and equipment required for courses of instruction at their sponsoring institution. The business office of the sponsoring institution will be responsible for the annual preparation and issuance of the IRS form 1099 for fellows paid through the institution. NIH will issue the form for all fellows paid directly by them (fellows training at Federal laboratories). Payback Provisions: Predoctoral trainees do not incur payback obligations. 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 new policy results from the NIH Revitalization Act of 1993 (Section 492B of Public Law 103-43) and supersedes and strengthens the previous policies (Concerning the Inclusion of Women in Study Populations, and Concerning the Inclusion of Minorities in Study Populations) which have been in effect since 1990. The new policy contains some new provisions that are substantially different from the 1990 policies. All investigators proposing research involving human subjects should read the "NIH Guidelines For Inclusion of Women and Minorities as Subjects in Clinical Research," which have been published in the Federal Register of March 28, 1994 (FR 59 14508-14513), and reprinted in the NIH GUIDE FOR GRANTS AND CONTRACTS of March 18, 1994, Volume 23, Number 11. Investigators may obtain copies from these sources or from the program staff or contact person listed below. Program staff may also provide additional relevant information concerning the policy. APPLICATION PROCEDURES Applications are to be submitted on the Individual NRSA grant application form (PHS 416-1, rev. 8/95). Application kits are available at most institutional offices of sponsored research and may be obtained from: ASKNIH, Extramural Outreach and Information Resources, National Institutes of Health, 6701 Rockledge Drive MSC 7910, Bethesda, MD 20892-7910; telephone 301/710-0267, email: asknih@odrockm1.od.nih.gov. At least three completed sealed letters of reference must be submitted with the application. Applications without the required number of reference letters will be returned without review. Non-citizen applicants must include a notarized statement of permanent residence indicating possession of an Alien Registration Receipt Card or at least application for this card. No award will be activated without proof of possession. Applicants are advised to pay special attention to the following important items in PHS 416-1: Face Page, Part I (Prepared by Applicant): Item 1. Title of Research Training Proposal. Type in "Individual Predoctoral Dental Scientist Fellowship" Item 2. Level of Fellowship. Type in "predoctoral" and the number of the program announcement. Item 3. Leave blank. Item 5. Training Under Proposed Award. Identify the Ph.D. discipline according to the NIH Lexicon of NRSA disciplines on page 31 of the instructions. Item 8. Degree Sought During Proposed Award. Type in both the dental (DDS or DMD) and Ph.D. (or equivalent) degrees with expected completion dates for each. Item 29a. Activities Under Award.. Applicants should describe how they expect to divide their time between dental and graduate school, e.g., dental school courses, graduate school courses, research, research training, etc., during both the school year and the summer for each year of the 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. In addition to these items, applicants should provide scores for all exams relevant to dental and graduate school that they have taken recently (e.g., GRE, Dental Admissions Test, etc.) Part II (Prepared by Sponsor): Items 32 and 33. Sponsor's Previous Fellows/Trainees, Training Plan, Environment, and Research Facilities. The sponsor should be funded currently 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 Ph.D. program also must describe the department's commitment to and proposed role in guiding the individual applicant and any modifications to the department's usual Ph.D. requirements that are necessary to facilitate this fellow~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. Application Receipt and Review Schedule Applications for the PDSF will be accepted and reviewed three times a year according to the following schedule: Application Receipt Date: Apr 5 Aug 5 Dec 5 Review Meeting: Jun/Jul Oct/Nov Feb/Mar Notification: Aug/Sept Dec/Jan Apr/May Range of Likely Start Dates: Sept-Dec Jan - Mar May - July The completed original and two legible copies of the application must be sent or delivered to: DIVISION OF RESEARCH GRANTS NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH 6701 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE, ROOM 1040 - MSC 7710 BETHESDA, MD 20892-7710 BETHESDA, MD 20817 (for courier/overnight service) At the time of submission, two additional copies of the application must be sent to: H. George Hausch, Ph.D. Division of Extramural Research National Institute of Dental Research Natcher Building, Room 4AN.44F 45 Center Drive, MSC 6402 Bethesda, MD 20892-6402 Telephone: (301) 594-2372 REVIEW CONSIDERATIONS It is important to emphasize that the F30 program is a training mechanism and not a research mechanism. The central issues in review are [a] the applicant's potential for a productive scientific career, [b] the role of the sponsor in the research training that is proposed, [c] the record of the sponsor and the Ph.D. program in producing active, funded research scientists, and [d] the probability that the graduate training will enable the fellow to engage in research with dental, oral and craniofacial relevance. Applications will be reviewed for completeness and responsiveness to the PA by NIH staff. Incomplete or nonresponsive applications will be returned to the applicant without further consideration. Remaining applications may be subjected to triage by the NIDR Special Grants Review Committee, a standing NIH initial review group, to determine their merit relative to others received in response to the PA. The NIDR will withdraw applications judged to be noncompetitive and notify the applicant. Applications judged to be competitive will be evaluated further for scientific and technical merit by the review committee. Detailed review criteria are listed below: Applicant: o evidence of the applicant's commitment to a career in research o the applicant's demonstrated potential for a productive research career o quality of the applicant's academic record, awards, and honors o extent and quality of applicant's previous research and/or clinical training Research Training Plan: o specificity and clarity of the description of the research skills and knowledge to be acquired o overall coherence and potential of the research training plan to provide the fellow with individualized supervised experiences that will foster research skills 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 adequacy of plans for the protection of human subjects and/or care of animals, if applicable o adequacy of plans to include women and minorities as subjects in research, if applicable o adequacy of plans for training in the responsible conduct of research Sponsor: o adequacy and relevance of sponsor's academic and research qualifications and experience in providing guidance to fellows and trainees o evidence of the proposed sponsor's understanding of and commitment to fulfilling the role of sponsor 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 these needs o adequacy of the sponsor's ongoing research program as a context for the expected research training Environment: o evidence that there is an established D.D.S./D.M.D.- Ph.D. program o access to facilities and related resources (e.g., equipment, laboratory space, computer time, subject populations) necessary to provide the applicant a high-quality training environment o strength of the institution's commitment to research training as demonstrated by ongoing programs, experienced faculty, and, in particular, commitment to the proposed D.D.S./D.M.D.- Ph.D. student o track record of the department and sponsor in training students who become active researchers o track record of the department in training and graduating women and racial/ethnic minorities o strength of the institution's overall research activities References: o strength and specificity of the proposed sponsor's endorsement of the applicant, including identification of the applicant's strengths and weaknesses o strength and specificity of additional references as well as adequacy of these reports based on the referee's opportunity to observe and evaluate the applicant's potential as a research scientist o Secondary review will be conducted by the National Advisory Dental Research Council (NADRC). Notification: Shortly after the initial review meeting, each candidate will be sent a mailer that includes the IRG recommendation, the priority score, and the name of a program official in the Division of Extramural Research, NIDR. The institute automatically forwards a copy of the summary statement to the applicant as soon as possible after receipt from the IRG. Following the second-level review, the institute will notify each applicant of the final disposition of the application. Any questions about initial review recommendations and funding possibilities should be directed to the appropriate institute program official. AWARD CRITERIA Applications will compete for available funds with all other approved training and fellowship applications assigned to the NIDR. The following will be considered in making funding decisions: quality of the application as determined by peer review, availability of funds, program priority, and balance among types of research training supported by the NIDR. Activation An awardee has up to 6 months from the issue date on the award notice to activate the award. Under unusual circumstances, an NIH institute may grant an extension of the activation period upon receipt of a specific request from the fellow. Terms and Conditions of Award Awards are made for full-time efforts to achieve the D.D.S./D.M.D. and Ph.D. Fellows are expected to use their time in course studies, clinical duties, research training, research, and other necessary and relevant activities in such a way as to optimize their training experience. Awardees in academic institutions are not entitled to vacations as such. They are, however, entitled to the normal short student holidays observed by their training institution. The time between the spring and fall semester is to be used as an active part of the training period. An NRSA may not be held concurrently with another Federally sponsored fellowship or similar Federal award that provides a stipend or otherwise duplicates provisions of the NRSA. An NRSA recipient may, however, accept concurrent educational remuneration from the Department of Veterans' Affairs and loans from Federal funds. 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 PHS. At the end of the total support period, the individual fellow must submit a Termination Notice (PHS-416-7) to the NIDR in order to ensure proper documentation of the fellow's records. Fellowships must be administered in accordance with the current National Research Service Award Guidelines for Individual Awards and Institutional Grants, the current PHS Grants Policy Statement, and any terms and conditions specified on the award notice. The following policies are noted: PHS policy is to make available to the public the results and accomplishments of the activities that it funds. Therefore, it is incumbent upon fellows to make results and accomplishments of their F30 activities available to the public. There should be no restrictions on the publication of results in a timely manner. Publications should acknowledge support from the NIDR, including grant number. Except as otherwise provided in the terms and conditions of the award, the recipient is free to arrange for copyright without approval when publications, data, or other copyrightable works are developed in the course of work under a PHS grant-supported project or activity. Any such copyrighted or copyrightable works shall be subject to a royalty-free, nonexclusive, and irrevocable license to the Government to reproduce, publish, or otherwise use them, and to authorize others to do so for Federal Government purposes. The NIH research training and career development programs are conducted in compliance with applicable laws that provide that no person shall, on the grounds of race, color, national origin, handicap, or age, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity (or, on the basis of sex, with respect to any education program or activity) receiving Federal assistance. INQUIRIES Written and telephone inquiries concerning this PA are encouraged. The opportunity to clarify any issue or questions from potential applicants is welcome. Direct inquiries on programmatic issues to: James A. Lipton, DDS, Ph.D. Division of Extramural Research National Institute of Dental Research Natcher Building, Room 4AN-18J 45 Center Drive, MSC 6402 Bethesda, MD 20892-6402 Telephone: (301) 594-2618 or 594-7710 FAX: (301) 480-8318 Email: LIPTONJ@DE45.NIDR.NIH.GOV Direct inquiries pertaining to grants management issues to: Mr. Martin Rubinstein Division of Extramural Research National Institute of Dental Research Natcher Building, Room 4AS-55 45 Center Drive, MSC 6402 Bethesda, MD 20892-6402 Telephone: (301) 594-4800 FAX: (301) 480-8303 AUTHORITY AND REGULATIONS NRSA awards are made under the authority of Section 487 of the Public Health Service Act as amended (42 USC 288), and Title 42 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 66. The following Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance numbers are applicable to these awards: 93.121, 93.172, 93.173, 93.272, 93.278, 93.282, 93.306, 93.361, 93.398, 93.821, 93.837-93.839, 93.846-93.849, 93.853-93.856, 93.859, 93.862- 93.867, 93.880, 93.894, and 93.929. 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, any portion of a facility) in which regular or routing 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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