The “Rest” of the NIH F31 or F32 Fellowship

Alison K. Hall, Ph.DAssociate Dean, Research Workforce Development

December 6, 2018

https://www.maxpixel.net/Shadow-Silhouette-People-1307356

But what is all that other stuff?

I know about the research strategy…

Fellowship Biosketch

Project Summary/Abstract 30 lines of text

Project Narrative 3 sentences

Applicant’s Background and Goals 6 pages

Specific Aims 1 page

Research Strategy 6 pages

Respective Contribution 1 page

Selection of Sponsor and Institution 1 page

Responsible Conduct of Research 1 page

Sponsor/ Co-Sponsor Statements 6 page

Letters of support from collaborators 6 page

Inst Environment; Comm. to Training 2 page

Letters of recommendation

All that other stuff…

At the end of today’s discussion, you will be able to:

1.Create a strategy for your application

2.Describe key elements of fellowship application

3.Address what reviewers are looking for

4.Identify essentials of the peer review process

5.Find other fellowship opportunities

Learning Objectives

Start early and plan ahead--several months

Do you have

• time to focus

• pilot data

• appointment status

• a deadline in mind

• updated goals and IDP

Strategy: Are you ready?

University of Alabama Birmingham Grant Library

The NIH invests in support for research training and education at institutions around the nation. These grants include • Training and fellowship (T32; F30, F31, F32)

About the NIH NRSA

Funding opportunity

announcement

US citizens and PR; see also fellowship lists

Communicate:

• GW-Cayuse submission

• Dept administrator

• eRA Commons

• Your research advisor (s)

• Committee/ collaborators

• Recommenders

• Peers with fellowships

Applications and Awards go through the Institution

Fellowships and GW Cayuse

Plan to apply

Prepare Application

SubmitReview ResponseAward

All applications managed by GW Sponsored Projects • Submitted through GW Cayuse• Requires 5-7 days in advance of the NIH deadline for checks• Once submitted, follow application in eRA Commons

Sample discussion topics:

• Is this fellowship right for me?

• Are the research aims a good fit for your Institute?

• How much preliminary data is important for this application?

• How will the application be reviewed?

• What should I consider in describing my training goals?

• Do you have advice about preparing a strong application?

TALK to the program officer

Identify the NIH Institute, staff contact in FOA

Email first: “I plan to submit an F31 fellowship, and I have a few

questions. My draft aims/ idea/ mentor name are below. Could

we schedule a phone call to discuss my application? Would you

be available Tuesday at 1PM?].”

Review is done by a “study section”• 20-30 scientists• Each group has a research focus• See member rosters of NIH Center for Scientific Review• You get impact/priority score, summary in eRA Commons

NIH Fellowship Review

NIH F31 standard due dates April 8, August 8, December 8

Fellowship Biosketch 5 pages

Project Summary/Abstract 30 lines of text

Project Narrative 3 sentences

Applicant’s Background and Goals 6 pages

Specific Aims 1 page

Research Strategy 6 pages

Respective Contribution 1 page

Selection of Sponsor and Institution 1 page

Responsible Conduct of Research 1 page

Sponsor/ Co-Sponsor Statements 6 page

Letters of support from collaborators 6 page

Inst Environment; Comm. to Training 2 page

Letters of recommendation 3 plus mentor

Writing all that other stuff…

Fellowship biosketch

Educational history

Personal statement

Positions & honors

Contribution to Science

projects and publications

Funding/ grades

This is different from your CV

NIH Biosketch

Applicant’s Background and Goals

Doctoral Dissertation and Research Experience

Training Goals and Objectives

Activities Planned Under this Award

• Interest in research, research career & how this

application will assist in your goals

• IDP and goal setting

• Address any personal factors that affected advancement

• NRSAs are not designed to make better teachers

• Include a training timeline

• Sponsor describes training and career development plan

in detail; your “training goals” and “activities” should be

similar.

NIH Fellowship Budget

Standard NRSA guidelines for FY2019

Stipend

Predoctoral trainee is $24,816

Postdoctoral trainee is $50,004

Tuition and Fees

(60% of level requested up to $16,000)

Institutional Allowance for Fellows

predoc $4,200 including health insurance

Postdoc $9,750

• Provide 2 or at most 3 aims

• Define the question you will answer

• Address a hypothesis that is logical, testable,

focused, informative, simple

Sample structure:

• First paragraph: Capture attention, what’s known, the gap

you will address, why it’s important

• Second Paragraph: Introduce your solution to fill the gap

• Each Aim: Devote a short paragraph to each aim

• Summary Paragraph: What new things we will know, why

the application should be supported

• Consider: Models/Charts/Diagrams

Tips for Specific Aims

A strong research idea should pass the “so what” test.

What is the benefit of answering your question?

What is the purpose of your research?

Why you chose the approach?

Anticipated results, alternative approaches

How the proposed studies will move the field forward?

Research Strategy

How will you test hypothesis?

What is experimental approach?

Describe sample size, blinding, statistics, controls,

replication

Cite papers, but do not expect reviewer to read

Include “Anticipated outcome and Alternative

approaches” for each aim

Experimental Design

Working Models

F31 Ayala-Figueredo

F31 Hauser

Sponsor/ Co-sponsor Statement

• Consider co-sponsor if mentor is junior

• Available research support

• Sponsor’s previous trainees

• Training plan, environment, research facilities

• Number of fellows to be supervised during fellowship

• Applicant’s qualifications and potential for a research career

Sponsor identifies a unique plan for career goals!

• individual development plan, plan to address gaps

• Any remaining coursework in PhD program

• Specific skills needed for your career

• short course or workshop (CSHL, MBL)

• advanced statistics, imaging, clinical populations

• New research skills, perhaps with a collaborator or core

• Skill-building in manuscript and grant-writing, speaking

• Presentations at national meetings, name target societies

• Goals for publications, name target journals

• Describe lab meetings, research in progress explicitly--

meeting content and frequency

Tips for Your Training Plan

F31 Training

Plan

Think: Training Builds Competencies

Discpline-specific conceptual knowledge and critical thinking

Ex. coursework, qualifier exam, journal club, clinical experience

Research skill development including computational skills and data management

Ex. Core facility workshops, lab experience, biostatistics

Communication skills, oral, written and lay public

Ex. career courses, journal club, meetings

Professionalism, respect, reflect values of workplace and profession

Ex. Outreach, service, promote discipline, journal club, authorship

Leadership, management and team science skills, including collaboration

Ex. Collaborations, overseeing students

Ethics and responsible conduct of research

Ex. Coursework, lab interactions, IACUC, IRB, manage conflict of interest

Letters of Support/ Recommendations

Selecting a Referee

•At least three, but no more than five, reference letters are required.

•The letters should be from individuals not directly involved in the application, but who are

familiar with the applicant’s qualifications, training, and interests.

•The sponsor/co-sponsor(s) of the application cannot be counted toward the three Make

sure you include a list of referees (including name, departmental affiliation, and institution)

in the cover letter of the application so that the NIH staff will be aware of planned

reference letter submissions.

Reference Letter Submission Process

Referees must submit reference letters through the eRA Commons by the application due

date.

Note: Referees DO NOT need need to login to eRA Commons to submit their letters.

Referees will need to provide the following information with their reference letter:

PI’s (fellow/candidate’s) eRA Commons user name

PI’s first and last name as they appear on the PI’s eRA Commons account

Number of the funding opportunity announcement to which you are applying

Upon submission of the reference letters, the eRA Commons will send confirmation e-

mails to both the referee and the fellow/candidate.

Who will you ask? What do they need to know?

• Read grants in advance, submit initial scores before meeting• NIH 1 (great) to 9 (not great); don’t discuss higher than 5• Primary and secondary reviewers• Your application gets about 15 minutes• Whole group then scores in whole numbers• Scientific Review Officer (NIH staff) takes notes

Study Section

Summary Statement/ Resubmit

Ayala-Figueredo F31

Make it easy-Think like a reviewer

Fellowship Applicant• Are the applicant's academic record and research experience of high quality?• Does the applicant have the potential to develop into an independent and productive researcher?• Does the applicant demonstrate commitment to a research career in the future?

Sponsors, Collaborators, and Consultants• Are the sponsor(s') research qualifications (including recent publications) and track record of mentoring individuals at a similar stage

appropriate for the needs of the applicant?• Is there evidence of a match between the research and clinical interests (if applicable) of the applicant and the sponsor(s)? Do(es) the

sponsor(s) demonstrate an understanding of the applicant's training needs as well as the ability and commitment to assist in meeting these needs?

• Is there evidence of adequate research funds to support the applicant's proposed research project and training for the duration of the research component of the fellowship?

• If a team of sponsors is proposed, is the team structure well justified for the mentored training plan, and are the roles of the individual members appropriate and clearly defined?

• Are the qualifications of any collaborator(s) and/or consultant(s), including their complementary expertise and previous experience in fostering the training of fellows, appropriate for the proposed project?

Research Training Plan• Is the proposed research project of high scientific quality, and is it well integrated with the proposed research training plan?• Based on the sponsor's description of his/her active research program, is the applicant's proposed research project sufficiently distinct from

the sponsor's funded research for the applicant's career stage?• Is the research project consistent with the applicant's stage of research development?• Is the proposed time frame feasible to accomplish the proposed training?• If proposed, will the clinical trial experience contribute to the proposed project and/or the applicant's research training?

Training Potential• Are the proposed research project and training plan likely to provide the applicant with the requisite individualized and mentored

experiences in order to obtain appropriate skills for a research career?• Does the training plan take advantage of the applicant's strengths and address gaps in needed skills? Does the training plan document a

clear need for, and value of, the proposed training?• Does the proposed training have the potential to serve as a sound foundation that will clearly enhance the applicant's ability to develop into

a productive researcher?

You want to earn support

Your mentor wants you to earn support

Your study section wants you to earn support

Respond to summary statement-you may need to resubmit

Success rate is percentage of reviewed applications that receive funding

NIH Data Book F31

NIH F31 Fellowship Success

Federal and foundation

• Research mission

• Career level

• Citizenship

• Application deadlines

Plan to apply to several…

Explore Additional Fellowships

IBS website

sample applications, tips

Resources

Hollenbach AD (2014) A practical guide to writing a Ruth L. Kirschstein NRSA Grant (available online at Science Direct)

University of Alabama Birmingham Grant Library

NIH Rigor and Reproducibility/ Training Modules: 1: Lack of transparency2: blinding and randomization3: biological and technical replicates4: Sample size, outliers & exclusion

MyIDP /Sciencecareers

NIH Research Training