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Individual Predoctoral Fellowships
>
Tips to Prepare a Fellowship Application
NIGMS Home
Research Areas
Areas of Research
Biophysics, Biomedical Technology, and Computational Biosciences
Genetics and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology
Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biological Chemistry
Research Capacity Building
Training and Workforce Development
Related Information
Contacts by Research Area
Funding Opportunities and Notices
Post Award Information
Submitting an Application
Resources
NIH RePORTER
Research Training
Programs
Dashboard of TWD Funded Programs
High School and Undergraduate
Postbaccalaureate and Graduate Students
Postdoctoral, Early Career, and Faculty
Workforce Development
Related Information
Contact Information
Division Structure and Programs
Resources
Enhancing Diversity in Training Programs
Evaluation Resources
Laboratory Safety and Guidelines
Training Resources
Capacity Building
Division for Research Capacity Building
Institutional Development Award (IDeA)
Native American Research Centers for Health (NARCH)
Science Education Partnership Awards (SEPA)
Biomedical Research Environment & Sponsored Programs Administration Development (BRE-SPAD)
Related Information
DRCB News
DRCB Staff Contacts
Resources
NIH RePORTER
Grants and Funding
Funding Opportunities
Current NIGMS Funding Opportunities
Parent Announcements for Investigator-Initiated Applications
Research Funding
Research Project Grants (NIH Parent R01)
Research With Activities Related to Diversity (ReWARD)
Maximizing Investigators' Research Awards (MIRA)
Instrumentation Grant Program for Resource-Limited Institutions (RLI-S10)
Undergraduate-Focused Institutions
Small Business Research
Multidisciplinary Teams/Collaborative Research
Technology Development
Research Resources
Clinical Studies and Trials
Conferences and Scientific Meetings
Administrative Supplements
All Funding Opportunities
Grant Application and Post-Award Information
NIGMS Funding Policies
Which Research Grant Is Right for Me?
How to Apply
Grant Application and Review Process
Post-Award Information
Talking to NIH Staff About Your Application and Grant
Considerations for Multiple Principal Investigator (MPI) Applications
Resources
Attribution of NIH/NIGMS Support
Message to NIGMS Investigators
NIH RePORTER
Research Using Human Subjects or Specimens
Data Management and Sharing Plan Expectations for NIGMS Grantees
xTrain Quick Reference Guide
Resources for Post-Award Management
Science Education
STEM Education
STEM Teaching Resources
Pathways
Coloring Pages
Educator's Corner
Multimedia
Image & Video Gallery
NIGMS-Supported Resources
Protein Alphabet
Other Resources
Biomedical Beat Blog
Featured Topics
Glossary
Past Campaigns
News and Events
News
Past Releases and Announcements
Media Coverage
Biomedical Beat Blog
Feedback Loop Blog
Meetings and Events
NIGMS Events
Judith H. Greenberg Early Career Investigator Lectures
DeWitt Stetten Jr. Lectures
Webinars for the NIGMS Training Community
Face to Face with Program Directors
Grant Writing Webinar Series for Institutions Building Research and Research Training Capacity
Media Resources
Image and Video Gallery
About NIGMS
Who We Are
Overview
Director's Corner
Organizational Chart
Contacts by Research Area
History
Staff Directory
What We Do
Budget, Financial Management, and Congressional Material
Strategic Plans
Data Integration, Modeling, and Analytics
Advisory Council
Communications and Public Liaison Branch
Work With Us
Job Vacancies
Where We Are
Visitor Information
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Related Information
Related Information
NRSA Individual Predoctoral Fellowships (F30 and F31)
Tips to Prepare a Fellowship Application
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Prepare to apply
Do your homework. Find others in your program who have earned a fellowship using
NIH RePORTER
, ask peers and mentors to share strategies, consider eligibility and the intent of fellowships. Search links to "prepare effective graduate fellowship application" for detailed tips. Read, and re-read the NIH program announcement.
Communicate with your research sponsor, mentors and institutional officials. NIH applications are submitted electronically by the institution, and your grants or sponsored research office can help you with the
eRA Commons
account you must use. Consider who will provide your letters of recommendation and the process for submission. Talk with your research sponsor(s) about what you each will do for the application, and for the proposed fellowship.
Contact the program officer at NIH if you have any questions about the application process.
Plan your time. It will take a couple of months, part-time, to prep
are an effective application. Do you have the time and focus to prepare an application? Remember to give all the others who will help you enough time, as well.
Draft a proposal
The fellowship requires both a research plan and a career development plan, and both are important.
Spend time developing the specific aims, and then seek input on the aims before preparing the whole proposal.
Develop the proposal. Address hypotheses, rationale, experimental design, measurable results and interpretation, the impact if your ideas are right and alternative approaches if something doesn't work. Consider how your proposal develops skills you need—new techniques to the sponsor lab, new collaborators, experience presenting your ideas, etc.
Draft a career development plan. What are your short term and longer term goals, and how will completing this fellowship develop the skills and knowledge you need? Who will teach you, when and how? Do you need local or national courses or workshops? How will you demonstrate your progress?
Seek advice from your sponsor(s) and internal reviewers. Look for faculty who have served on fellowship panels who might provide advice.
If personal or professional issues negatively affected your academic route (e.g., poor grades, semester off, etc.) take the time to explain it in your personnel statement.
Think like a reviewer. Read the review criteria in the NOFO and be sure that each is addressed clearly in your proposal.
Submit (and Resubmit?)
Following instructions from your grants or sponsored research office, your application will be submitted. Follow its status in eRA Commons, and eventually, you will get a priority score, a percentile score and summary comments.
Contact the program officer indicated on your summary statement to discuss the review comments and next steps.
If awarded, your grants or sponsored research office will need to follow the NIH policies for allowable expenses, and you will need to provide a report on your progress every year. See the relevant fellowship NOFOs and NIH's
NRSA Policy
for additional guidance on terms and conditions of the individual fellowship awards.
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This page last updated on 3/19/2024 4:39 PM