Applications for this grant are no longer being accepted.

MGH Physician and/or Scientist Development Award 2015

Four Year Award for Investigators

who are Underrepresented in Academic Medicine*

Deadline:  4:00 pm, Friday, March 20, 2015
*Basic, 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), formerly the Multicultural Affairs Office, and the Executive Committee on Research (ECOR).  

The MGH Physician/Scientist Development Award (PSDA) is designed for MD and/or PhD investigators at MGH who are considered underrepresented in academic medicine (URM). 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 URM researchers to advance to senior positions in academic medicine at MGH.  The CDI will evaluate the need for this Award on a regular basis.  

AM I URM (Underrepresented in Medicine)?

Recently the National Institute of Health (NIH) released a diversity statement encouraging institutions to prioritize opportunities in biomedical, behavioral, and social sciences for individuals from groups identified as underrepresented.  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 (URM) of the NIH and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).  URM groups may include Latino/ Hispanic (including Brazilian), African-American/Black, American Indian, Native Hawaiian and Alaskan Natives, among others. Please note that Asians are not considered URM, UNLESS they are underrepresented relative to the population MGH serves, e.g., Cambodian or Laotian.

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

For further information regarding the application process, please email ecor@partners.org. All other questions maybe addressed to Elena Olson, Executive Director, CDI, at 617-724-3831 or ebolson@partners.org.
 

AWARD EXPENDITURES, START DATE AND REQUIREMENTS

  • Two applicants will be selected to receive Physician/Scientist Development Awards.
  • A maximum of $120,000.00 will be awarded to be spent over a three or four-year period, with a maximum of $40,000.00 per year of funding as detailed below:
  1. Grant funds of up to $40,000 per year, which may be used only for laboratory assistance, research endeavors and non-capital equipment.  Funds may also be used for Awardee salary only with specific advance approval.  
  2. 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 will be paid as a cash bonus to the Awardee and are taxable.
  • The Award cycle will commence on July 1, 2015.  
  • 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.
  • The Awardee must present a talk at least once during the tenure of their award to the Chester Pierce Research Society, an interdepartmental forum for URM researchers at MGH; and a poster at the CDI’s annual Fall Welcoming and Recognition Reception each year, with the exception of the award year. The Awardee must also comply with all CDI requests pertaining to this Award.
  • 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 considered to be underrepresented in medicine.
  • Basic, clinical, translational and health services research investigators are encouraged to apply.
  • MDs and/or PhDs are required.  The only exception to this is that clinical psychologists in their training year are eligible.
  • At the time of application, applicant must be within 10 years of completion of fellowship training.
  • Must have a primary appointment at the MGH at the time of the application and throughout the full period of the Award.
  • Must hold an appointment at the level of assistant professor, instructor, or fellow at  Harvard Medical School. (If Award recipient is a fellow, the person must receive a faculty appointment at HMS & MGH within 2 years of commencement of the Award for the award to continue.)
  • Must have demonstrated superior academic and/or clinical skills and be committed to a career in academic medicine.
  • U.S. citizenship or permanent residence.

REVIEW PROCESS

Proposals will be evaluated and ranked for funding priority by the ECOR 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

Please note:  A completed Partners Research Proposal Coversheet is no longer required to apply.  ECOR will request this form of the award recipients when they are selected.

The following eight items must be included:

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

  • Specific aims
  • Background and significance
  • Preliminary data
  • Experimental design and methods
  • References
  • Copies of approved Human or Animal use protocols, if applicable

2. NIH Biosketch of the applicant.

3. Listing of current and pending other support (NIH format).

4. Grant Proposal budget per year/ for up to 4 years. (The total budget for grant and debt repayment cannot exceed $120,000 with a maximum of $40,000/year.  A maximum of $15,000/ year can be allocated to the loan repayment component of this Award).

5. Debt information for which you are requesting loan repayment. Please provide appropriate documentation from the loan repayment agency.

6. Personal Statement - in which the candidate states the importance of this Award to furthering his/her career development and advancement in academic medicine.

7. Three or Four Year Project Plan - completion of which substantially benefits from the support derived from this Award.  The plan should be structured around laboratory or clinical investigation.

8. Two Letters of support:

  1. Department Chair.  This letter must include:
    • Commitment to hire this individual on faculty, if not already an MGH faculty member, within 2 years of Award commencement.
    • Commitment to continue to 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 $40,000.00/ year for 3-4 years) 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 3-4-year grant period.

HOW TO APPLY

ECOR is now accepting applications online via the ECOR 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
  • 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 Partners 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

Please visit the ECOR website http://ecor.mgh.harvard.edu/ and specifically the FAQ page for the MGH Physician-Scientist Development Award under the Awards and Grants tab of the site. 

All other questions may be addressed to Elena Olson, Executive Director, CDI, at 617-724-3831 or ebolson@partners.org.