MGH Physician and/or Scientist Development Award 2024

Three- or Four-Year Award for Investigators

who are Underrepresented in Academic Medicine*

Deadline: Wednesday, February 7, 2024 at 5:00pm

*Fundamental, Clinical, Translational, and Health Services investigators are all eligible

 

DESCRIPTION OF THE AWARD

Applications for grants are invited by the MGH Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI), and the Executive Committee on Research (ECOR).  Up to six applicants will be selected to receive Physician and/or Scientist Development Awards.  $180,000 plus 20% indirect costs will be awarded to be spent over a three or four-year period, with a maximum of $60,000 plus indirect costs per year for 3-year awards and a maximum of $45,000 plus indirect costs per year for 4-year awards.

The MGH Physician and/or Scientist Development Award (PSDA) is designed for MD and/or PhD investigators at MGH who are underrepresented in academic medicine (UiM). Please see below for detailed eligibility requirements. This Award is intended to provide transitional funding for support in the development of physicians and scientists underrepresented in academic medicine, and thereby increase opportunities for UiM researchers to advance to senior positions in academic medicine at MGH. This award is a key faculty initiative of the CDI.  The CDI will evaluate the need for this Award on a regular basis.  

We encourage applicants to engage with the Center and learn more about our programs and other initiatives: www.massgeneral.org/cdi. 

AM I UiM (Underrepresented in Medicine)?

Based on national data analyzed by the National Science Foundation, the following racial and ethnic groups have been shown to be underrepresented in biomedical research and health-related sciences: Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.

For the purposes of the PSDA, MGH follows the definition of underrepresented in medicine and biomedical research (UiM) of the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).  UIM groups may include Latino/Hispanic (including Brazilian), African-American/Black, American Indian, Native American, Native Hawaiian and Alaskan Natives, among others. 

Sources: AAMC (https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/urm/) and National Science Foundation (http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/showpub.cfm?TopID=2&SubID=27)

Despite some improvement in the number of UiMs entering U.S. medical and graduate schools, the number of UiM physicians and scientists entering training programs in academic medicine has not kept pace with this available pool.  This fact is particularly manifested in the low number of UiMs occupying academic research faculty positions in the United States.  The reasons for this disparity are multifaceted and complex, but two factors - a lack of effective mentoring, and the large level of indebtedness facing many UIM physicians and scientists - are often cited.  The dearth of UiM physicians and scientists in academic hospital programs creates a critical void: It dilutes the effort to break new ground in fundamental and clinical investigation of disease and is an impediment to the delivery of innovative, culturally competent care to our patients.
 

• Up to six awards will be provided.
• The Award cycle will commence on July 1, 2024.  
• $180,000 plus 20% indirect costs will be awarded to be spent over a three- or four-year period, with a maximum of $60,000 plus indirect costs per year for 3-year awards and a maximum of $45,000 plus indirect costs per year for 4-year awards as detailed below:

 °Grant funds of up to $60,000 plus 20% indirect costs per year, which can be used only for laboratory assistance, research endeavors and non-capital equipment, may also be used for Awardee salary only with specific advance approval.  Prior to submitting the application, please email ecor@mgh.harvard.edu to request pre-approval to use funds for PI salary support.

 °Funds can also be used for loan repayment up to a maximum of $15,000 per year. Loan repayment funds must be used to repay qualified educational loans and must be based on documented need.  Any funds awarded to repay outstanding loans are taxable.   

• The Award is non-transferable.  If the Awardee leaves MGH during the duration period of the Award, the Awardee must notify the CDI and will forfeit any remaining funding or loan forgiveness of the Award.
• If applicable, approved human or animal use protocols must be current prior to award of funds.
• The Awardee will be required to submit a yearly progress report and budget to the CDI, which must provide details of how the Award funding is being used and accomplishment of goals. The final progress report will include additonal components related to how the award has impacted the recipient's professional and research objectives.

• The Awardee must:
  • present a talk at least once following the close or during the tenure of their award to the Chester Pierce Research Society, an interdepartmental forum for UiM researchers at MGH
  • submit a yearly abstract of the research the award recipient is being funded
  • submit a poster or ppt slides that will be part of a general presentation at the MGH President, MGPO President and Center for Diversity and Inclusion’s annual Welcome and Recognition Celebration each year, with the exception of the award year.

• The award recipient will be expected to serve as a resource, advisor and mentor to students and trainees who are part of CDI initiatives. This includes the Summer Research Trainee Program (SRTP) efforts. 
• Failure to comply with the above requirements may result in the rescission of this Award.

ELIGIBILITY

• The CDI’s Physician/Scientist Development Award provides funding for physicians, physician-scientists and researchers who are underrepresented in medicine.
• Fundamental, clinical, translational and health services research investigators are encouraged to apply.
• MD and/or PhD required.  The only exception to this is that clinical psychologists in their final PhD training year are eligible.
• Must have a primary faculty appointment at the MGH throughout the full period of the Award.  The funds must be relinquished if the awardee is no longer at MGH and does not have a primary appointment at MGH. 
• Since this award is intended to retain UiM faculty, applicant must have an academic appointment at the level of Instructor or Assistant Professor, Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. If the applicant's academic appointment or promotion is pending, a signed letter from the applicant's Chief must be included with the application. The letter should explain the status of the applicant's academic appointment. The Instructor, Assistant Professor or Associate Professor appointment must be finalized before the PSDA review committee meeting with the exception of graduating clinical fellows who must have an instructor appointment by July 1st, 2024, which is the start of the award period.   
• At the time of application, applicant must be within 10 years of completion of fellowship training.
• Applicants and their Supervisors/Mentors must both have full-time primary appointments at MGH during the entire award period.

REVIEW PROCESS

Proposals will be evaluated and ranked for funding priority by the Subcommittee on Review of Research Proposals (SRRP), whose recommendations will be submitted to ECOR and the CDI for final approval.  All applicants will be notified of the results by e-mail.

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The following  thirteen items must be included:

1. Title of Research Project

2. Previous PSDA Application(s).  Have you previously applied for a Physician/Scientist Development Award?  If yes, please indicate when and provide the title of each research project.

3. Layman's Description of your work (200 words only)

4. Research Plan (5-page limit, excluding references), including:

• Specific aims
• Background and significance
• Preliminary data
• Experimental design and methods
• References

5. Three- or Four-Year Project Timeline, ie Gannt chart - List your project timeline and goals for each year during the duration of the project.  Click here to see an example of a Project Timeline.

6. Grant Proposal budget per year for up to 4 years. (The total budget for grant and debt repayment cannot exceed $180,000 with a maximum of $60,000 plus indirect costs per year for 3-year awards and a maximum of $45,000 plus indirect costs per year for 4-year awards). Up to $15,000/ year can be allocated to the loan repayment component of this Award).

7. Debt information for which you are requesting loan repayment. Please provide appropriate documentation from the loan repayment agency.  If you are not requesting loan repayment, please state this in the uploaded document. Documentation should show that the loan repayment amount requested is equal to or less than the balance of the loan.

8. Personal Statement (1-page maximum) - in which the candidate states the importance of this Award to furthering their career development and advancement in academic medicine.

9. Statement of Contribution to Diversity (1-page maximum) - in which the candidate states their past and future contributions to diversity and inclusion within and beyond the MGH community through research, teaching and mentorship, including engagement with the CDI.

10. NIH Biosketch of the applicant. Please click here to see an example of an NIH Biosketch.  

11. Other Support (if applicable). Include the following:

• List all current and pending research support using the NIH format (Click here for an example of the NIH format.)  Include the funding period and effort.

12. Two Letters of support:

1. Department Chair.  This letter must include:
   • If the applicant's academic appointment or promotion is pending as described in the eligibility section of this call, the letter should explain the status of the applicant's academic appointment. 
   • Commitment to continue to retain and support this individual in their career development over time.
   • Potential role this individual will play in the department/division over time.
   • Statement explaining how the funds supplied by this Award (up to $180,000 over 3-4 years, plus indirect costs) will alter the Awardee’s activities and relate to his/her career goals.
   • Agreement to meet with this individual bi-annually for career planning meetings.
2.   Mentor.  This letter must include:
   • Description of the mentor’s role in the project.
   • Commitment from mentor to support the Awardee for a minimum of the 3 to 4- year grant period.

13.  Personal Demographics:  Please provide your demographic information below:

• Gender: Which gender identify best describes you (select one)
  • Woman
  • Man
  • Non-binary or otherwise gender expansive
  • Other ________
  • Prefer not to answer
• Race: Which racial category/categories best describe(s) you (select all that apply)*
  • Alaska Native
  • Black or African American
  • Native American/American Indian
  • Native Hawaiian
  • Other Pacific Islander (Chamorro, Fijian, Marshallese, Samoan, Tongan)
  • Asian: If you previsouly selected Asian, are you Cambodian or Laotian? 
    • Yes, Camodian
    • Yes, Laotian
    • No
    • Prefer not to answer 
    • Prefer not to answer
  • White
  • Other (Please use the text box to self describe)____________________
  • Prefer not to answer

• Ethnicity**: Are you Latino/a/x or Hispanic ethnicity?
  • Yes, from Latin America
  • Yes, from Spain
  • No
  • Other (Please use the text box to self describe) ______________
  • Prefer not to answer

DEFINITIONS:

• *Race: BLACK (Persons having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa - not of Hispanic origin.) ASIAN OR PACIFIC ISLANDER (Persons with origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands.)  AMERICAN INDIAN OR ALASKAN NATIVE (Persons with origins in any of the original peoples of North America and who maintain cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition.)
• **Ethnicity: Latino/a/x/ ethnicity (Persons from Brazil, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Central or South America.)

 

FORMAT GUIDELINES

• Use margins of 0.5 inches or greater and 11 pt font size or greater for the Research Plan, NIH Biosketch, Other Support, Debt Information, Personal Statement and Three- or Four-Year Project Timeline.
• Upload PDF documents only.  Limit characters to A-Z, a-z and 0-9 when naming PDF documents.  Do not use periods, commas, or dashes in the file name.

 

HOW TO APPLY

ECOR accepts applications online via the MGRI Online Grant Management Portal. This user-friendly system will allow MGH researchers to submit electronic applications to ECOR. The system has been designed to allow users to:

• Create a personal profile which will auto populate your future ECOR applications
• Assign a delegate to submit applications on your behalf (optional)
• View current calls and apply to open opportunities
• Save and edit current applications in progress
• Submit completed applications
• View all your ECOR applications that have been submitted via the online grants system

Instructions for Applying Online

1. Create your account: Login using your MGB credentials and fill-out the profile information.
2. Complete the application: once your profile is complete, you will automatically progress through the online application. If you cannot complete the application at one time, “save” the application and return to it at a later time to finish. Before submitting your application, you will have the ability to make changes to the application.
3. Submit your application: once you have completed the application click on the “submit” button at the bottom of the page. Once you submit it, you will not be able to make further changes unless you send a request to ECOR (note that once the deadline passes, request to make changes will not be accepted).

Useful tips:

• To avoid losing your work, remember to save frequently
• You can only upload PDF documents
• If you previously created a profile, please ensure your information is current

Click "Apply" below to begin the application.
 

QUESTIONS

Click here for the MGH Physician-Scientist Development Award FAQ page.

To view a list of past recipients, click here.

For further information regarding the application process, please email ecor@mgb.org. All other questions may be addressed to Karen Osborne Greene, Assistant Director for Grants and Awards, ECOR and Administrative Director for Research, CDI at kosborne@mgb.org.