National Research Service Awards

The Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Awards (NRSAs) are awarded by the NIH to individual graduate students and postdoctoral fellows to fund their training in the biomedical sciences. To be minimally eligible for an NRSA, students or postdocs must be U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or non-citizen nationals of the United States. Graduate students cannot be supported by NRSA mechanisms (including institutional training grants AND individual fellowships) for more than 5 years; graduate students in an MD/PhD program cannot be supported by the MSTP training grant and an individual fellowship for more than 6 years. Postdoctoral fellows cannot be supported by NRSA mechanisms (including institutional training grants and individual fellowships), for more than 3 years.

If you meet these minimum eligibility requirements and are interested in applying for an NRSA, this website contains tips and web links to help you with the process. The BRET Office of Career Development periodically runs NRSA information sessions for graduate students and postdocs which cover the basics of identifying and applying for an NRSA. The last information session was in December, 2008. The next information session will take place in late spring/early summer 2009. Alternatively, students and postdocs may contact Kim Petrie (kim.petrie@vanderbilt.edu) in the BRET Office of Career Development with questions about writing an NRSA.

We hope you find this website useful. Good luck writing your grant!

 

IDENTIFYING AN NRSA THAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU

If you meet minimum eligibility requirements (summarized above), you need to find an NRSA mechanism that is right for you before you start writing your application. There are four NRSA individual fellowship "mechanisms" of interest to graduate students and postdoctoral fellows:

F30: Individual fellowship for predoctoral research training of MD/PhD students ( PA-05-151 and PA-08-021)
F31 (General): Individual fellowship for predoctoral training (PA-07-002 and PAR-07-384)
F31 (Diversity): Individual fellowship to fund the predoctoral training of graduate students from underrepresented groups in science (PA-07-106)
F32: Individual fellowship to fund postdoctoral training (PA-07-107 and PA-07-319 )

The F31 diversity predoctoral fellowship is specifically for individuals from underrepresented groups in science. To find out if you qualify, read the program announcement at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-039.html

It is important to understand that the NIH is actually comprised of 27 individual institutes and centers, each of which funds research pertaining to its own mission. Not all institutes and centers fund all NRSA mechanisms!

Let me repeat:
NOT ALL INSTITUTES AND CENTERS FUND ALL NRSA MECHANISMS!

Thus, in order to write an NRSA application, you must:

1. Find an NIH institute or center (IC) that funds research in your area of interest . Ask your PI for guidance, and view IC research areas on the individual IC websites, which can be accessed from the main NIH website: http://www.nih.gov/icd/index.html

2. Determine if the IC that would fund your research also funds the mechanism you need (i.e. F30, F31, or F32). Read the relevant NIH Program Announcements by searching for PA at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html (Program announcement numbers are listed above after the fellowship mechanism number).

Generally speaking, nearly all institutes and centers fund the F32 postdoctoral fellowships and the F31 diversity predoctoral fellowships. However, the general F31 predoctoral fellowships and the F30 MD/PhD predoctoral fellowships are only funded by a subset of institutes and centers. Regardless of the mechanism you need, read the program announcement to confirm which institutes and centers fund the mechanism!

Once you've identified an NRSA that is right for you, you may want to research the NRSA funding success rates for the particular IC that would likely fund your application. Success rate statistics are at http://grants.nih.gov/training/outcomes.htm#DataStatistics

Postdoctoral fellows are required to sign a PAYBACK AGREEMENT when accepting an NRSA award. Before you apply, you will want to understand the stipulations of the payback agreement. Visit the following website for more information: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/orgcharts/detail/org_detail_oep_payback.htm

 

APPLYING FOR AN NRSA

The latest NRSA application process will always be described in the relevant program announcement. Each NRSA mechanism has its own program announcement, listed below. Search for and read the full program announcement at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html

F30 MD/PhD fellowships: PA-05-151 and PA-08-021
F31 predoctoral fellowships: PA-07-002 and PAR-07-384
F31 diversity predoctoral fellowships: PA-07-106
F32 postdoctoral fellowships PA-07-107 and PA-07-319

Through April 2009: NRSA is submitted on paper using Form 416-1 ; forms and instructions available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/416/phs416.htm

Starting August or December 2009: NRSA applications will submitted electronically. Vanderbilt students and postdocs will work with their departmental administrators to assemble and submit their application through Vanderbilt's grants management software, COEUS. To know what narrative sections will be required for electronic submission, consult the instructions for paper form 416-1 (see link above)

 

APPLICATION ADVICE & FAQs

The websites below contain helpful advice and tips for applying for NRSA. Some of the advice is specific to the institute publishing the page, but much of it is just good advice for anyone applying for an NRSA, regardless of the institute that will fund their project.

Main NIH Fellowships advice page : http://grants.nih.gov/training/faq_fellowships.htm
Advice from NIAID: : http://www.niaid.nih.gov/ncn/training/advice/fellowships.htm
Advice from NIDCD : http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/funding/types/fellowship_faqs.htm
Advice from NIDDK : http://www2.niddk.nih.gov/Funding/TrainingCareerDev/FAQs.htm#trainee
Advice NIGMS : http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Training/IndivPostdoc/PostdocFellowsFAQ.htm

HELPFUL RESOURCES WHILE WRITING YOUR GRANT

1. CRISP database : www.crisp.cit.nih.gov
Use the CRISP database to: (1) view examples of abstracts and titles of funded projects; (2) find other VU grad students and postdocs with funded NRSAs to seek their advice (and a peek at their proposal?); (3) make sure your research hasn't been proposed by someone else!

2. Recently funded F32 awards at VU: https://www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/programs/ctsd/files/new_awards2007.php

3. Description of Responsible Conduct of Research training sponsored by BRET office, and archive of past RCR programs at http://bret.mc.vanderbilt.edu/bret/php_files/rcr.php

4. Description of VU core facilities : http://www.vanderbilt.edu/oor/cores/facilities.php

5. BRET “boiler plate text ” summarizes resources available through the BRET Office of Career Development and BRET Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. Log in to view summaries and download event schedules and brochures: https://medschool.mc.vanderbilt.edu/bret_boiler/index.php

6. The Vanderbilt Office of Grants and Contracts Management offers training courses on COEUS, Vanderbilt's electronic grants management software. Most departments have grant administrators to help students and postdocs navigate the COEUS program, but if your department or division does not, visit the GCM website to sign up for COEUS training: http://www.vanderbilt.edu/oor/gcm/

 

THE NIH GRANT REVIEW PROCESS

1 NRSA study section rosters: http://www.csr.nih.gov/committees/rosterindex.asp

2. The NIH grants review process : by Nancy Brown from the Successfully Launching Your Scientific Career workshop

3. The Peer Review Process : A Primer for New Applicants from the Center for Scientific Review: http://cms.csr.nih.gov/AboutCSR/OverviewofPeerReviewProcess.htm

4. Mock study section video from the Center for Scientific Review
http://cms.csr.nih.gov/ResourcesforApplicants/InsidetheNIHGrantReviewProcessVideo.htm

5. Guidelines for reviewers of NRSA fellowship applications:
http://cms.csr.nih.gov/ResourcesforApplicants/PolicyProcedureReview+Guidelines/Guidelines+for+Review+of+Specific+Applications/

6. CSR scoring procedure:
http://cms.csr.nih.gov/nr/rdonlyres/b2cfe17e-aa1c-46e5-badb-fdbf2fbbee80/11892/csrscoringprocedure090706.pdf

7. Announcement of new scoring procedure for research applications, effective FY2010
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/not-od-09-024.html