National Research Service Awards Health Services Research Training

To provide predoctoral and postdoctoral training opportunities in health services research. Individual fellowships will be awarded directly to applicants for postdoctoral research training. Domestic institutions will also be awarded grants to enhanc

To provide predoctoral and postdoctoral training opportunities in health services research.

Domestic public or private nonprofit organizations or institutions may apply for training grants. The applicant institutions must have or expand training programs designed to develop competent investigators in the methods and techniques of conducting health services research. Profit-making organizations are not eligible. Individual applicants for postdoctoral fellowships must have received a clinical or research doctoral degree. All persons supported as fellows or trainees must be citizens or noncitizen nationals of the United States, or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence.

Individuals and public or private nonprofit organizations or institutions are the beneficiaries of this program.

Fellowship support is available for full-time health services research training. An institutional allowance is provided to the sponsoring institution for each fellow. Also, research training grants are awarded to institutions to provide support to trainees selected by the training program director at the grantee institution. This support is available for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees. Offsets for tuition and fees are allowable for trainees, and an amount for training related expenses will be provided. Indirect costs are not allowed for Fellowships. For training grants, indirect costs are capped at 8% MTDC. Postdoctoral fellows and trainees in the first 12 months of postdoctoral NRSA support incur one month of payback obligation for each month of support. The thirteenth and subsequent months of postdoctoral NRSA support are considered payback service for prior postdoctoral support. Predoctoral fellows and trainees do not incur a service payback obligation.

Generally, no individual may receive more than 3 years of aggregate National Research Service Award support at the postdoctoral level, or 5 years at the predoctoral level, including any combination of support from institutional and individual awards. Institutional training grants may be awarded for project periods up to 5 years. Awards are made on an annual basis and it is expected that obligations will be made within the budget period awarded. After awards are issued, funds are released in accordance with the payment procedure established by the grantee with DHHS, which may be an Electronic Transfer System or a Monthly Cash Request system.

For Individual fellowship applications, the following review criteria will be used: (1) The applicant's past academic and research accomplishments; (2) research goals; (3) research training proposed; (4) qualifications of the sponsor; (5) appropriateness of training environment; and (6) reference reports. For Institutional training grant applications, the following review criteria will be used: (1) goals of the proposed training and probability of achievement; (2) substantive content, including courses offered; (3) qualifications and responsibilities of program director and faculty; (4) ability to recruit trainees; (5) extent of institutional participation through provision of necessary space, curriculum time, financial support, and appropriate facilities; (6) documented cooperation of related agencies in providing research experience; (7) proposed number of students; (8) methods for monitoring and evaluating trainees; and (9) reasonableness of budget. In all cases, AHRQ will consider the recommendations of the review committee, the Council program interests, and availability of funds in making the final selection of grantees.

Applications are reviewed for scientific merit by a committee including nonfederal consultants who are selected from appropriate scientific fields. AHRQ considers the recommendations of the review committee, program interest, and the availability of funds in the final selection of grantees. When such decisions are made, applicants are notified and a Notice of Award is issued. Before receiving support, all individual fellows and institutional postdoctoral trainees must submit required forms, including a payback agreement.

If additional support is desired to continue a grant beyond the approved project period, an application for competing continuation must be submitted for review in the same manner as a new application. Generally, no individual may receive more than 3 years of aggregate National Research Service Award support at the postdoctoral level, or 5 years at the predoctoral level, including any combination of support from institutional and individual awards.