Current Nomination Opportunities

This award recognizes an outstanding junior faculty member who demonstrates leadership potential in addressing inequity in medical education and health care; demonstrated efforts in addressing educational, societal, and health care needs of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States; and is committed to a career in academic medicine. The recipient receives a $25,000 grant to support a project performed in the United States to support racial and ethnic minorities. Funding for the fellowship begins in November 2020.

NOTE:  HMS faculty at the affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation Funds program. 

Eligibility  Criteria :

Harvard Medical School may nominate one current faculty member per year for this award.

A candidate must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
• Hold the rank of full-time assistant professor in a LCME-accredited U.S. medical school department.
• Have held the assistant professor position appointment beginning no earlier than July 1, 2017.
• Have received only one appointment as assistant professor.
• Hold a MD, PhD, or have earned another doctoral degree.

Application Information:  Please fill out the online form and attach the following documents as a single PDF

1. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head, discussing the nominees:

Demonstrated efforts in addressing educational, societal, and health care needs of racial and ethnic minorities in the United States.

Potential for leadership in addressing inequities in medical education in health care.

Strong promise for a career in academic medicine.

1. A personal statement from the nominee discussing your motivations and objectives for a career in academic medicine (not to exceed two double-spaced pages).
2. A project description which could include project aims, objectives, goals, and potential accomplishments (not to exceed two double-spaced pages).
3. CV, which clearly indicates exact date of appointment. 

Additional Information

HMS faculty at the affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation Funds program. 
100% of this award must be utilized for direct costs.

APPLY HERE: HUFP APPLICATION

Eligible Faculty:  Independent HMS Quad Faculty within ten years of the date when PhD/MD degree was awarded (with exceptions for career breaks including maternity and paternity leave). 

Nominations Available to HMS:  2   

Funding and Award period:  Awards of US$100,000 will be made to successful applicants, via their institutions, for research costs. Funding is to be spent over a two-year duration and can support: Stipends for research staff within the Award recipient’s lab, Equipment, supplies, laboratory costs and/or technician, Imaging costs, Publication fees, Patient participant expenses, Travel

In addition to the US$100,000, US$20,000 will be awarded as a cash prize payable directly to the recipient (50% after year 1, 50% after year 2). Lastly, 1907 Research will cover travel & expenses to two annual meetings.

Program Description:  The 1907 Trailblazer Award was established to encourage high-impact, step-change approaches to research in the brain and mind sciences for mental health.

Projects should represent new lines of research and be distinct from other research projects conducted by the investigator. This competition encourages innovative, unorthodox and exploratory research that may be in the early and conceptual stages of project development, but has potential for significant impact on our understanding of the brain. The generated data will enable early-career investigators to apply for larger gifts that will lead to long-term projects and create innovative and sustainable research programs.

Projects must be grounded in the study of biological mechanisms underlying brain function, cognitive processes, and/or consciousness. We support projects for basic science in addition to near-term applications (e.g. disruptive technologies and potential clinical interventions)

Applications for the 1907 Trailblazer Award should describe programs of work that aim to improve knowledge and outcomes of psychiatric illness through brain-mind research.  Eligible disciplines include, but are not limited to:

• Neuroscience
• Neurology
• Psychology
• Psychiatry
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Clinical Psychology
• Computational Neuroscience
• Neuroimaging
• Genetics and Engineering (including novel technologies and devices)

The 1907 Research Foundation particularly encourages research that involves human patients, but projects can also focus on well-validated animal models, and/or on psychiatrically- relevant research in healthy humans or conceptual/theoretical work. The projects can be framed around a single disorder or can be transdiagnostic, e.g. with an emphasis on shared risk factors (genetic or environmental) or common neural substrates. For projects in basic science, applicants who provide an in-depth understanding of the disorder(s) they are trying to treat will be prioritized.

The key criterion in assessing applications will be the extent to which research programs bring us closer to causes & cures based on an enhanced understanding of how aberrant neurobiological and/or psychological mechanisms give rise to behavioral (objective) and psychological (subjective) symptoms. A good example of this approach is provided by the emerging discipline of computational psychiatry, which aims at uncovering the neurobiological mechanisms underlying psychiatric symptoms. By contrast, research programs that simply test the efficacy of an existing intervention are poorly aligned with our aims. Similarly, applications that follow established research paradigms - for example, using standard analytic tools on large public imaging databases - are not suitable for this call.

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants must be within ten years of the date when PhD/MD degree was awarded (with exceptions for career breaks including maternity and paternity leave)
• Applicants must be currently be employed by a university or public research institute in the US, the UK, or Canada, with full-time employment guaranteed for the duration of the project (tenure or tenure-track and international equivalents).
• Applicants must already work in a supervisory role (PhD, MD, Postdoctoral supervisor primary or secondary)
• Applicants will have demonstrated independence from senior colleagues. They must be able to initiate and direct their own research as principal investigator, have full responsibility for running their labs and full control of their research funds. Postdoctoral fellows or adjunct faculty are not eligible to apply
• Applicants will have a strong track record of scientific publications relevant to their research program
• Research applications may be related to but cannot be identical to any other currently funded projects

Please Submit the Following Application Materials as a single PDF:

1.  A four page summary of your "novel idea" addressing the following four questions (word count allocation to each question at discretion of the applicant):

• What is the novel idea and what is the potential impact to the field? Explain the novel idea in lay terms. What does it hope to achieve? How can it empower others in the field to identify causes & cures?
• What is the scientific rationale of the idea given current gaps in knowledge? Concise explanations are preferred.
• What is your execution plan and why are you uniquely positioned to execute? What tools, resources and relationships do you have to enable you to complete the research? How do you anticipate the US$100,000 research gift to be used?
• Why is 1907 Research best positioned to partner with you? Explain why your project requires dedicated unrestricted funding and why it would not be likely to be funded from traditional sources (universities, governments, other established foundations).

2.  A one-page letter of reference from your department head (or higher administrative level) attesting to the applicant’s suitability for the Award, including the institution’s commitment to supporting the applicant’s project, including any additional or in-kind commitment of resources, including but not limited to relief from teaching/admin duties.
3.  NIH Biosketch (limit 5 pages)  Please clearly identify the date your PHD/MD degree was awarded. 

Apply through the Harvard University Funding Portal

Additional information about this opportunity:  https://www.1907-research.org/apply

ADA Pathways to Stop Diabetes Awards

Eligible Faculty:   HMS quad faculty only.   Faculty at HMS affiliated hospitals are invited to submit separate nominations for this award.  Please contact your research administration representative for details

Research Focus:  Diabetes.

Nominations Available to HMS: 1

HMS is allowed to submit one nomination to one of the Pathway Award categories: Initiator, Accelerator or Visionary Pathway Awards.

Funding and Award Period:  Awards provide five years of research support at a maximum of $325,000 per year (including 30% indirect costs), for a total of $1,625,000.See descriptions for the Initiator Accelerator and Visionary Awards below for details

Program Description:  

Pathways awards seek to bring new investigators and new perspectives to diabetes research. Supporting scientists with different backgrounds and experience is critical to achieving that objective. Pathway accepts nominations for exceptional investigators with medical and scientific backgrounds who propose innovative basic, clinical, translational, behavioral, epidemiological and health services research relevant to any type of diabetes, diabetes-related disease state or complication. Pathway solicits nominations for candidates in all disciplines as applied to diabetes including medicine, biology, chemistry, computing, physics, mathematics and engineering. In addition, nomination of scientists from diverse backgrounds, including minority groups that are underrepresented in biomedical research, is strongly encouraged.  

Program Opportunities:

1.  Initiator Award Description:  This two-phased award is designed to support the transition of scientists from mentored training to independent research faculty.

Initiator Award Eligibility: Eligible applicants must currently be in research training positions (post-doctoral fellow, research fellowship) and have no more than seven years of research training following terminal doctoral degree. Applicants cannot concurrently hold an NIH K99/R00 grant.

Initiator Award Funding: Awards provide two distinct phases of research support: Phase 1 provides up to two years of support for mentored training at a maximum of $100,000 per year (including 10% indirect costs), Phase 2 provides up to five years of support for independent research at a maximum of $325,000 per year (including 30% indirect costs). Maximum combined support for Phase 1 and Phase 2 is $1,625,000.

2. Accelerator Award Description:  Awards are available to early-career diabetes investigators proposing innovative and ambitious diabetes-related research programs.

Accelerator Award Eligibility:  Applicants must hold faculty positions and have demonstrated independent productivity in diabetes research. Applicants may currently hold independent NIH funding (K, U or R awards, including an initial R01/U01) but must not have applied for, or received, an R01/U01 renewal or a second R01/U01 award.

Accelerator Award Funding: Five years of research support at a maximum of $325,000 per year (including 30% indirect costs), for a total of $1,625,000.

3. Visionary Award Description:  This award is designed to support established, experienced investigators with strong records of outstanding productivity in fields outside of diabetes who are interested in applying their considerable skills and expertise to diabetes research. These awards are highly competitive and intended to support particularly innovative and transformational ideas that have the potential to have an exceptional impact in diabetes. 

Visionary Award Eligibility: Applicants must hold independent faculty positions and have demonstrated significant productivity in their current field of research. Applicants cannot have previously received national grant support (NIH, NIDDK, ADA, JDRF, etc.), as either a PI or Co-PI, in diabetes or diabetes-related research.

Visionary Award Funding: Awards provide two distinct phases of research support: Phase 1 provides up to three years of support at a maximum of $325,000 per year (including 30% indirect costs), Phase 2 provides up to two years of support at a maximum of $325,000 per year (including 30% indirect costs). Phase 2 is contingent upon demonstration of significant contributions to the field of diabetes research in Phase 1. Maximum combined support for Phase 1 and Phase 2 is $1,625,000. 

*Allowable costs under this award:  Between 10% and 30% (see funding details above).

Apply through the Harvard University Funding Portal:

Apply Here for the Initiator Award

Apply Here for the Accelerator Award

Apply Here for the Visionary Award

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the American Diabetes Association Pathways to Stop Diabetes website
https://professional.diabetes.org/meetings/pathway-stop-diabetes%C2%AE

Nominations Available to HMS:  1   

Funding and Award period:  $110,000 per year for up to five years.*

Eligible Faculty:  Assistant Professors.   HMS Faculty at the affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation funds.

Program Description:  The Rita Allen Foundation Scholars program funds basic biomedical research in the fields of cancer, immunology and neuroscience.  The program embraces innovative research with above-average risk and ground-breaking possibilities.

Rita Allen Foundation Scholars are distinguished by their bold approaches to basic scientific questions that address problems of global concern, as well as their potential for learning, leadership and collaboration.

Eligibility Criteria:

1.  Candidates should be independent investigators within the first three years of their appointment to Assistant Professor as of May 31, 2020.    Candidates should provide persuasive evidence of distinguished achievement or extraordinary promise in research in one of the relevant fields: cancer, immunology or neuroscience.

2.  While instructors at HMS are often considered junior faculty they may be at a competitive disadvantage in the national selection.  Instructors who wish to apply must demonstrate significant research independence.  Interested instructors should contact the HMS Foundation Funds Program Coordinator at clare_lamont@hms.harvard.edu, prior to applying.

3.  Candidates must have received committed start-up funds from their respective institutions

4.  Candidates must have lab space from their institutions.

Rita Allen Foundation Scholars may not accept an award from the Beckman Young Investigator Program, Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences, Searle Scholars Program or Vallee Scholars Program that would take effect beginning in year one of the RAF award. Rita Allen Scholars may apply for awards from these organizations that would take effect beginning in year two of the RAF award. Other sources of funding also may influence selection.

Required Application Materials:

Please submit the following documents as a single PDF:

• A proposal/narrative plan of work of no more than two pages (a third page may be used for related graphics and/or references), ncluding responses to the following:

1. Description of how a Rita Allen Foundation Scholars Award would enable the candidate to pursue new ideas and take strategic risks (1 paragraph)
2. Explanation of how this proposal differs from or relates to the candidate's other support projects (1 paragraph)

• NIH Biosketch that includes details of current or pending support from other funding sources
• A letter of nomination from a Department Chair or Center Director

*Allowable Costs Under this Award:  100% of the funds must be utilized for direct costs.

Apply HERE for the Rita Allen Foundation Scholars Program

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Rita Allen Foundation website

Eligible Faculty:  Associate and full professors at HMS and HMS affiliated hospitals.

Research Focus:  Basic and Clinical Neuroscience.

Nominations Available to HMS: 1    HMS Faculty must apply through the HMS Foundation Funds Program.  Harvard University is the official nominating institution.  HMS Nominees will move on to the Harvard-wide competition offered through the Office of the Vice Provost for Research.   

Funding and Award Period: $75,000 per year for up to two years.* (funds must be used within the award period) 

Program Description:  Brain Research Foundation (BRF) Annual Scientific Innovations Award supports innovative discovery science in both basic and clinical neuroscience. This funding mechanism is designed to support creative, cutting-edge research in well-established research laboratories, under the direction of established investigators.

This funding opportunity is for projects that may be too innovative and speculative for traditional funding sources but still have a high likelihood of producing important findings in a very short time frame. It is expected that investigations supported by these grants will yield high impact findings and result in major grant applications and significant publications in high impact journals

Funding Preferences:

Funding must be directed at projects that may be too innovative and speculative for traditional funding sources but still have a high likelihood of producing important findings. This should be a unique project for senior investigators who are encouraged to stretch their imagination into areas that can substantially change an area of research.

Funding of research projects that will likely lead to successful grant applications with NIH and other public and private funding entities

Eligibility Criteria:

The nominated candidate must be a full-time associate professor or full professor at an invited US academic institution, working in the area of studies of brain function in health and disease. Current major NIH or other peer-reviewed funding is preferred but evidence of such funding in the past three years is essential. Studies should be related to either normal human brain development or specifically identified disease states. This includes molecular and clinical neuroscience as well as studies of neural, sensory, motor, cognitive, behavioral and emotional functioning in health and disease. The grant proposal must detail a new research project that is not funded by other sources. This grant is not to be used as bridge funding. Investigators at institutions that are affiliated with a medical school or university are eligible to apply only through the institution where they hold a full-time faculty position.

*Allowable costs under this award:  100% of these funds must be utilized for direct costs.

Apply through the Harvard University Funding Portal

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Brain Research Foundation Scientific Innovations Award website

Nominations Available to HMS: 2

Funding and Award Period: $100,000 for one year (Administrative costs, which are included in the $100,000 award, must be limited to 8% of grant funds.)

Program Description:  The mission of the Breast Cancer Alliance is to improve survival rates and quality of life for those impacted by breast cancer through better prevention, early detection, treatment and cure.

The research project must be directly related to the field of breast cancer. Areas of relevant research may include but are not limited to: diagnosis, etiology, immunology, genetics, therapies, prevention and clinical studies.

Eligibility Criteria: HMS Quad faculty at any stage of their careers whose primary focus is breast cancer. 

*Allowable costs under this award:  8% of the total $100,000 grant may be utilized for indirect costs.

Apply Here for the Breast Cancer Alliance Exceptional Projects Grant

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on Breast Cancer Alliance Exceptional Projects Grants website: http://breastcanceralliance.org/what-we-fund

Nominations Available to HMS:  1    Faculty at the affiliated hospitals may apply only through HMS Foundation Funds. Harvard University is the nominating institution for these awards. Therefore, the HMS Foundation Funds Committee will select the HMS nominees and forward their applications to the Provost’s Office.  A Committee appointed by the Provost’s Office will review all applications and select the University’s nominees.

Funding and Award period:  50% of a Scholar’s salary plus benefits for three years, up to the NIH salary cap.

Eligible Faculty:  Assistant Professors at HMS and HMS Affiliated Hospitals. 

Program Description:  Core focus on front-line issues in bioethics.

 The Greenwall Faculty Scholars Program in Bioethics is a career development award to enable junior faculty members to carry out innovative bioethics research. It supports research that goes beyond current work in bioethics to help resolve pressing ethical issues in clinical care, biomedical research, and public policy, and creates a community that enhances future bioethics research by Scholars and Alumni/ae.

Each year, the Foundation selects approximately three Greenwall Faculty Scholars to receive 50 percent salary support for three years to enable them to develop their research program. Applicants must be junior faculty members at a university or non-profit research institute that has tax-exempt status in the United States.  Scholars and Alumni/ae attend twice-yearly meetings, where they present their works in progress, receive feedback and mentoring from the Faculty Scholars Program Committee and other Scholars and Alumni/ae, and have the opportunity to develop collaborations with other researchers. The ongoing involvement of Alumni/ae with the Program provides them ongoing opportunities for professional development and feedback, and engages them in mentoring of younger Scholars.
The award supports 50% of a Scholar’s salary plus benefits for three years, up to the NIH salary cap, with 10% institutional costs for the salary and benefits. In addition, the foundation provides $5000 each year for limited project support and travel (no indirect costs are provided for these items).

Eligibility Criteria:  Priority will be given to applicants who have not yet been considered for tenure or an equivalent promotion; whose research will have an impact on public policy, biomedical research, or clinical practice; and who will make important contributions to the field of bioethics over their careers.

Applicants must hold a faculty appointment that allows at least 50 percent of their effort to perform research (often this is a faculty position with at least a 60 percent appointment in a tenure-track position or its equivalent).

Faculty Scholars will be selected on the basis of their achievements, the strength of their research project, their commitment to the field of bioethics, and support from their home institution, including after the end of this award. While the amount and quality of an applicant's research in bioethics will count favorably towards his/her application, outstanding candidates with less direct experience in bioethics will also be considered when their proposed work aims to advance the bioethics field. 

Within this group, priority will be given to applicants whose research addresses front-line bioethics, innovative ideas and/or emerging topics to move forward the field. Lower priority will be given to applicants who are primarily carrying out policy or advocacy work, educational reform or theoretical work with limited applicability to practice, research, or health care delivery.

The Greenwall Foundation particularly welcomes applicants from backgrounds that are under-represented in bioethics and academia.

Faculty at the affiliated hospitals may apply only through HMS Foundation Funds. Harvard University is the nominating institution for these awards. The HMS Foundation Funds Committee will select the HMS nominees and forward their applications to the Provost’s Office.  A Committee appointed by the Provost’s Office will review all applications and select the University’s nominees.

*Allowable Costs Under this Award:  10% of these funds may be utilized for indirect costs.

Apply HERE for the Greenwall faculty Scholars Program

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Greenwall Foundation Website

Nominations Available to HMS:  1   

Funding and Award period:  $40,000 for one year*.   

Program Description:  The intent of the Grunebaum Foundation Faculty Fellowship is to provide support to independent junior faculty at Harvard medical School who exhibit a commitment to an academic career in cancer research. 

Eligibility Criteria:

• Applicants must be within the first five years of their faculty appointment with a focused on basic or translational cancer research.
• Applicants must be independent research faculty at the time of application
• Faculty with R01 NIH or comparable funding are not eligible to apply.
• Applications for a second year extension may be considered.

Required Application Materials:

Applicants must submit the following as a single PDF:

1. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
2. A letter of interest describing your personal commitment to a career as a physician-scientist.
3.  A summary of your proposed research project (Limit 3 pages)
4. CV or NIH Biosketch

Apply HERE for the Grunebaum Cancer Research Foundation Faculty Fellowship

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Grunebaum Foundation Website

Nominations Available to HMS: 1

Funding and Award Period: Total award amount is $450,000 over two years beginning January 1, 2020 ($225,000 per year, inclusive of 10% indirect costs)

Program Description:  The Charles H. Hood Foundation 2020 Major Grants Initiative to Advance Child Health supports outstanding investigators conducting innovative and transformative research in child health. The overall goal of the Program remains the funding of translational or clinical research that will improve child health clinical outcomes, or improve health care access, affordability, and quality.

Research Focus:  Two areas of focus will be considered for the Major Grants Program: Neonatology and Brain Science and Child Development.

• Neonatology

Although the incidence of prematurity has been declining, recent data shows that 10% of babies born in Massachusetts are premature, 7.7% weigh less than 2.5 kg, and 1.3% weigh less than 1.5 kg. These infants require complex and expensive medical care after birth and are at high risk for pulmonary disease, neurological conditions, developmental delay and other issues. Thus, improvements in neonatal care are likely to result in better health outcomes for the infants, and lower initial and lifetime health care costs.

Please note that research projects that focus on pregnant women and their fetuses will not be considered responsive to this RFA.

New England has long been a leader in neonatology research. Through the funding of the Major Grants Program in this area, the Hood Foundation hopes to continue this tradition of excellence.

• Brain Science and Child Development

Groundbreaking work, beginning in the late 1990s, has demonstrated that childhood experiences determine important aspects of brain growth and development. There are at least two critical periods of rapid brain growth during childhood: the first three years of life and, again, during adolescence. In parallel with the rapid advance of brain science, a new pediatric subspecialty, Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, has begun to carve out its own research agenda.

Recent clinical and scientific advances in understanding children’s normal and abnormal development have arisen through a variety of approaches: from a basic science understanding of neural development to the epidemiology of the long-term health effects of children’s experiences. New England researchers have led many of these advances in knowledge. Therefore, this focus of the Major Grants Program will support continued innovations that will further the scientific understanding of children’s brain and behavioral development that may inform improvements in the treatment of children’s physical and mental health.

Innovations

The Major Grants are intended to fund innovative work that may be difficult to fund with traditional grant mechanisms. For example, relatively few child health researchers make use of advanced statistical and computational techniques, ranging from computational biology to health services research to geographic information systems. In addition to traditional project-related costs, all projects funded under this Program may include the use of funds to bring new techniques or novel collaborations into child health research.

Collaboration

The Charles H. Hood foundation encourages collaboration between investigators and institutions. If the project would benefit from a collaborative approach, please describe the nature of the collaboration and the scientific benefits. Although collaboration is not required for the 2020 cycle, evidence of meaningful collaboration will be considered in funding decisions.

Note: If the Hood Major Grant funds are intended to augment a currently funded study, clearly describe the additional research to be conducted with Hood funding.

Eligibility Criteria:  HMS faculty at all ranks are invited to apply, however, only one faculty member may serve as the Principal Investigator who will submit the application. Note that the PI, while responsible for the project, may include other investigators on the research team.

Grant Selection Criteria:  The following criteria will guide the Hood Foundation in selecting which candidates to invite back for Full Proposal submissions:

• Investigators: Qualifications of the Principal Investigator and evidence of exceptional creativity. Where applicable, the qualifications of the entire collaborative research team will be considered
• Innovation: Research Project is highly innovative in methodology, research hypotheses, or patient population.
• Impact: Successful proposals must describe research that would likely lead to important improvements in child health, knowledge of child health and disease, or children’s clinical outcomes or health care access, affordability, and quality.

Apply HERE for the Hood Major Grants Initiative to Advance Child Health

Nominations Available to HMS:  2  

Funding and Award period: $60,000 per year for up to 3 years.*

Eligible Faculty:  Faculty within the first to fourth year of your first tenure track appointment as of August 1, 2020.  HMS is the sole nominating institution in the Harvard community for this award.  HMS Faculty at the affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation funds.

Harvard University is the official nominating institution.  HMS Nominees will move on to the Harvard-wide competition offered through the Office of the Vice Provost for Research.   

Program Description:  The mission of the Foundation is to support early stage investigators engaged in basic biomedical research that has the potential to significantly advance the understanding, diagnosis or treatment of disease.

The funds are designed to provide faculty members who hold M.D. and/or Ph.D. degrees who are within the first to fourth years of their first tenure track position, with support to move the project forward to the point where R01 or other independent funding can be obtained. 

Eligibility Criteria:

1.  Must hold a PHD or MD/PHD degrees

2.  Applicants must be within the first to fourth year of your first tenure track appointment as of August 1, 2020). 

3.  Have support to move their project forward to the point where independent funding can be obtained.

4.  Candidates with current R01 funding should not apply

*Allowable Costs Under this Award:  100% of these funds must be utilized for direct costs.

Harvard University is the official nominating institution.  HMS Nominees will move on to the Harvard-wide competition offered through the Office of the Vice Provost for Research.   

Apply HERE for the Mallinckrodt Foundation Grant

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Mallinckrodt Foundation website

Eligible Faculty: Assistant Professors at Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard Medical School, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Applicants must have received their appointment on or after June 15, 2017. 

Note: BIDMC, BWH, CH, DFCI and MGH are invited to submit separate nominations for this award.  Faculty at these hospitals should NOT apply for the Harvard University nomination. Please contact your research administration representative for details.

Nominations Available to Harvard University: 1    

Funding and Award Period: $75,000 per year for up to four years.*

Program Description:  The Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences provides funding to young investigators of outstanding promise in science relevant to the advancement of human health.  Awards are granted in the broad field of biomedical research, including areas such as bioengineering, biophysics, and chemistry.  The program supports the independent research of outstanding individuals who are in their first three years of their appointment at the assistant professor level.

Candidates should demonstrate outstanding promise as contributors in science relevant to human health. This program does not fund clinical trials research. Strong proposals will incorporate particularly creative and pioneering approaches to basic, translational, and applied biomedical research. Candidates whose work is based on biomedical principles but who bring in concepts and theories from more diverse fields are encouraged to apply.

Ideas with the potential to produce an unusually high impact are encouraged. Selection of the successful candidates will be based on a detailed description of the work that the applicant proposes to undertake, evaluations of the candidate’s performance, and notable past accomplishments, including honors, awards, and publications. In evaluating the candidates, the National Advisory Committee gives considerable weight to evidence that the candidate is a successful independent investigator and has published significant work.

Eligibility Criteria:

1. Candidates must have a doctorate in biomedical sciences, medicine or a related field.
2. As of September 10, 2020, nominees must hold full-time appointments at the rank of assistant professor. (Appointments such as research assistant professor, adjunct assistant professor, assistant professor research track, visiting professor or instructor are not eligible.)
3. On June 15, 2020, candidates must have been in such an appointment for less than three years (not appointed before June 14, 2017), whether or not such an appointment was on a tenure track. Time spent in clinical internships, residencies, in work toward board certification, or on parental leave does not count as part of this three-year limit. Candidates who took parental leave should contact the Foundation Funds Program Coordinator (clare_lamont@hms.harvard.edu) to ensure that application reviewers are aware of their circumstances.
4. Candidates may be nominated by their institution two times in total. ALL applicants must be nominated by their institution and complete the Pew 2021 online application.
5. Funding from the NIH, other government sources, and project grants from non-profit associations do not pose a conflict with the Pew scholars program. 

The amount of the award that may be used for the principal investigator’s salary is limited to $12,500 per year (including benefits) or $50,000 over the duration of the grant. There are no limits on student or postdoctoral salaries.
Not more than 8 percent ($24,000) of the total award value may be allocated for facilities and administration (F&A) charges or indirect costs (IDCs)

Apply HERE for the Pew Biomedical Scholars Program

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Pew Charitable Trust Biomedical Scholars Program webpage.

Nominations Available to HMS: 2    

Funding and Award Period: $100,000 per year for up to three years.*

Program Description:  The Searle Scholars Program is intended to support the independent research of outstanding early-career scientists who have recently been appointed as assistant professors on a tenure-track appointment.   The goal of this program is to support researchers with the potential to make innovative and high-impact contributions to research over an extended period of time.

Eligibility Criteria: Applicants for the 2021 competition (awards which will be activated on July 1, 2021 ) are expected to be pursuing independent research careers in biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, immunology, neuroscience, pharmacology, and related areas in chemistry, medicine, and the biological sciences.

Applicants should have begun their appointment as an independent investigator at the assistant professor level on or after July 1, 2019. The appointment must be their first tenure-track position (or its nearest equivalent).

The Searle Scholars Program does not ordinarily support purely clinical research but has supported research programs that include both clinical and basic components. Potential applicants who are unsure if their research is appropriate for our Program are encouraged to examine the research interests of present and former Searle Scholars on this website.

The Searle Scholars Program does not place any restrictions on funding from other sources of support. The Searle Scholars award is meant to supplement other funding an investigator receives

 *No part of this award may be allocated for indirect costs.

Faculty at HMS affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation Funds Program

Apply HERE for the Searle Scholars Program.

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the Searle Scholars Program webpage

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Eligible Faculty: Assistant Professors on the HMS quad.  Applicants must have received their appointment between July 1, 2018 and December 1, 2020.

Faculty at HMS affiliated hospitals are invited to submit separate nominations for this award.  Please contact your research administration representative for details

Research Focus:  Basic Biomedical Research

Nominations Available to HMS: 2

Funding and Award Period: $100,000 per year for up to three years.*

Program Description:  The three-year Award supports newly independent faculty engaged in basic biomedical research.  Investigators in the physical sciences (physics, chemistry and engineering) whose projects focus on biomedical science are also encouraged to apply.   Clinical research will not be funded.

In recognition of the importance of research collaboration within the scientific community, collaboration is an additional, but not required, positive ancillary factor. These projects may involve researchers within and/or outside the applicant’s institution.

Eligibility Criteria:

1. Applicants must be full-time faculty who have received or will receive their first independent faculty appointment on or between July 1, 2018 and December 1, 2020.
2. If an Applicant has been on medical or family leave, or if research was interrupted for other reasons, this period of absence does not count towards eligibility. Please address any gaps in work history in the Personal Statement on the Biosketch. The Department or Division Chair’s letter must also confirm the leave of absence as well as applicant eligibility.
3. The Applicant’s level of independence is critical. The Department or Division Chair’s letter must be very clear about the Applicant’s autonomy. Space, start-up package, and institutional commitment will be used in evaluating independence. Although it is expected that a national search will have been conducted for this position, candidates may have been promoted within their current institutions. If the Applicant was promoted internally, the Chair must clarify why a national search was not conducted. 
4. In addition to describing the Applicant’s qualifications, the Department or Division Chair must explain how the institution will contribute to the Applicant’s research career.
5. United States citizenship is not required.

Current, Pending and Post Award Funding

• Applicants are ineligible if, at the time of application, they have combined federal and non-federal funding totaling $500,000 or more in direct costs in either of the first two years (12/1/20- 11/30/21or 12/1/21 - 11/30/22) of the three-year Smith Award. This figure refers to external funding only and not an Applicant’s start-up package, other intramural support or the Smith Award.
• Applicants are also ineligible if they were previously or are currently a Principal Investigator or Co-P.I. on an R01, P01, Pioneer Award, New Innovator Award or similar large awards from other federal agencies or national foundations.

Pending Federal and Non-Federal Support

• Applicants who have pending R01s or other large applications to the NIH and other agencies are encouraged to submit proposals to the Smith Family Foundation.
• If notified on or prior to 9/1/2020 that they have been successful in securing federal or nonfederal grant support which, when combined with other support, totals $500,000 or more in direct costs in either of the first two years of the Smith Award, applications to the Program will be ineligible for review. Notification of funding after 9/1/20 will not impact eligibility for a Smith Family Award.

Allowable costs under this award: * This award includes 5% overhead.

Faculty at HMS affiliated hospitals must apply through their own institution

Apply HERE for the Smith Family Foundation Award for Excellence in Biomedical Research

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Additional information about this opportunity is available on the  Smith Family Foundation webpage

Eligible Faculty: HMS faculty within seven years of a terminal degree. Faculty at HMS affiliated hospitals must apply through the Foundation Funds Program.

Research Focus Areas:  Reducing inequality or improving the use of research evidence to improve the lives of young people ages 5-25 in the U.S.

Nominations Available to HMS: 1

Funding and Award Period: Up to $350,000 over five years

Program Description:  The Foundation’s mission is to support research to improve the lives of young people ages 5-25 in the United States.

The William T. Grant Scholars Program supports career development for promising early-career researchers. The program funds five-year research and mentoring plans that significantly expand researchers’ expertise in new disciplines, methods, and content areas.

Applicants should have a track record of conducting high-quality research and an interest in pursuing a significant shift in their trajectories as researchers. The foundation recognizes that early-career researchers are rarely given incentives or support to take measured risks in their work, so this award includes a mentoring component, as well as a supportive academic community. Awards are based on applicants’ potential to become influential researchers, as well as their plans to expand their expertise in new and significant ways.

Researchers interested in applying for a William T. Grant Scholars Award must select one of the foundations two focus areas:

Reducing Inequality

In this focus area, the W. T. Grant Foundation supports research to build, test, and increase understanding of approaches to reducing inequality in youth outcomes, especially on the basis of race, ethnicity, economic standing, language minority status, or immigrant origins. The foundation is interested in research on programs, policies, and practices to reduce inequality in academic, social, behavioral, and economic outcomes.

Improving the Use of Research Evidence

The foundation supports research to identify, build, and test strategies

to ensure that research evidence is used in ways that benefit youth. The foundation is

particularly interested in research on improving the use of research evidence by

state and local decision makers, mid-level managers, and intermediaries.

Eligibility Criteria:  Applicants must be nominated by their institutions. Major divisions (e.g., College Applicants must have received their terminal degree within seven years of submitting their application. We calculate this by adding seven years to the date the doctoral degree was conferred. In medicine, the seven-year maximum is dated from the completion of the first residency.

Applicants must be employed in career-ladder positions. For many applicants, this means holding a tenure-track position in a university. Applicants in other types of organizations should be in positions in which there is a pathway to advancement in a research career at the organization and the organization is fiscally responsible for the applicant’s position.

Applicants outside the United States are eligible. As with U.S. applicants, they must pursue research that has compelling policy or practice implications for youth in the United States.

Applicants of any discipline are eligible.

Allowable costs under this award: * Up to 7.5% of total direct costs

Required Application Materials:

1. Summary of proposed research (limit 2 pages. A third page may be used for references)
2. Nominating letter signed by your department or division head.
3. NIH Biosketch, including past and pending sources of funding.  For current funding include abstract and specific aims and indicate if there is any overlap with your proposal.  (Limit 5 pages).

Apply HERE for the W.T. Grant Foundation Scholars Program

Additional information about this opportunity is available at the  W.T. Grant Foundation Scholars Program.