iJOBS Workshop: Grant Writing F-Fellowships and Thesis Proposals

 By Joshua Stuckey

This guide outlines the key steps of the NIH fellowship application process and offers helpful tips from Dr. Lauren Aleksunes, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Rutgers university and an active NIH-funded investigator. In addition to her academic work, Dr. Aleksunes has served as a reviewer for NIH study sections and has spent years mentoring young researchers through the fellowship application process.

(Note: National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowships are limited to U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals, or lawful permanent residents. Similar opportunities exist—such as fellowships from the American Heart Association or the NJ Autism Center of Excellence for to U.S. citizens, non-citizen nationals, or lawful permanent residents and international students/postdoctoral researchers. Although this guide focuses on NIH NRSA fellowships, much of the advice also applies to other training grants.).

NRSA Terms and Conditions

Before beginning an application, it's important to understand the terms and eligibility requirements for NRSA fellowships. To be eligible for an NRSA, you must be a U.S citizen, a non-citizen national, or lawful permanent resident. Predoctoral fellowships require a bachelor’s degree and enrollment in a PhD or MD/PhD program while postdoctoral fellowships require a doctoral degree (PhD or equivalent). NIH currently has 27 institutions offering NRSA fellowships for life sciences researchers at different career stages. These fall into two categories:

• Individual fellowships: Awarded directly to trainees and typically based on career stage. Examples include F30 and F31 for predoctoral students, the F99/K00 for transition from predoctoral to postdoctoral stages, and the F32 for postdoctoral trainees.
• Institutional fellowships:  Applied for by faculty or program directors on behalf of an institution. These fellowships support selected trainees, often during their first year of graduate school.

Any combination of individual F and/or institutional T awards can be used to support trainees, but for a limited time span. Predoctoral trainees can receive NRSA support for up to 5 years, and postdoctoral trainees for up to 3 years. The fellowship covers stipends, tuition, health insurance, and other training-related expenses. A more comprehensive list of fellowship provisions can be seen by following the link here, and a list of the individual and institutional fellowships can be accessed here.

Finding the Right Fellowship

NIH Fellowships and funding opportunities are published in funding opportunity announcements and program announcements, which outline  funding priorities and participating NIH institutes. Reviewing these opportunities is a great way to understand currently available funds, and terms and conditions for applicants. Reporter.NIH.gov helps applicants find successfully funded grants in their field. You can use the:

• Advanced Project Search to find grants based on keywords, project types, etc.
• Matchmaker tool to input your abstract or papers and receive suggestions for relevant programs and contacts.

Writing Strategy

While the specific requirements may vary between fellowships, most applications share common sections:

1. Candidate Section
2. Training and Timeline
3. Research Strategy
4. Specific Aims

Below is a breakdown of the content that should be included and some strategies for writing each section effectively:

 1. Candidate Section

Candidate section is typically about 3 pages long. It should focus on:

• Long-term goals: What do you aim to achieve through this research and how will it support your career in biomedical science?  These goals should then be backed by evidence of the candidate’s preparedness.
• Preparedness: Highlight academic and research experiences, relevant coursework, outreach, teaching, and professional development activities. While the statements of preparation tell reviewers what the candidate offers, the statements of potential show reviewers what the training can offer the candidate.
• Potential: Reflect on personal strengths and areas for growth. Discuss your scientific perspective, field importance, project impact, and unresolved questions.

2. Training and Timeline

This section, about 3 pages long, should describe your training plan both verbally and graphically:

• Address developmental needs and how planned activities will support your goals.
• Highlight collaboration with mentors/sponsors.
• Use a Gantt chart to clearly show the feasibility and timeline.

3. Research Strategy

This is the most extensive part of the fellowship application. It is typically 6 pages long and requires careful planning. Dr. Aleksunes provided a structured breakdown for this section:

• Preliminary Data (½ - ⅔ page): Summarize prior results and their relevance. Starting here allows you to get words on the page without overthinking as it has already been completed and is the most objective part. This also keeps the larger goal of your research in mind and provides a launching point for getting into the approach which Dr. Aleksunes recommends writing next.
• Approach (3.5 – 4.5 pages): Focus on two well-defined aims. For each aim, include:
  
  • Rationale
  • Methodological rigor (e.g. sample sizes, controls, statistical analysis)
  • Expected outcomes
  • Pitfalls and alternative strategies

If you are applying for a fellowship, odds are you have thought about some pieces of the approach already. Writing this section after the preliminary data, you may find the remaining pieces come to you quickly. Following, it may be easier to write the conclusion (⅓ page).

• Significance and Innovation (½ - ⅔ page): Explain why the research matters and what makes it novel. Take this time to discuss scientific novelty, follow-up questions, and critical gaps in the literature that will be addressed.

4. Specific Aims

This section is a 1-page document within the research strategy that outlines the objectives of your research and gives an overview of your project. Dr. Aleksunes recommends structuring your specific aims with an introduction that explains the research topic and its importance. Follow this with technical details, including your research hypothesis, methods, and how your work builds on previous studies.

• Opening paragraph: start with a hook – a sentence that explains the research topic and why it is important. One method for doing this is to cite a relevant statistic that speaks to the importance of your research. The hook compels the reader to acquire more information, which you can cater to with supporting facts in the following sentences. This sets the stage for you to introduce the knowledge gap and give a few supporting sentences on why addressing this gap is important.
• Central Paragraph: With a firm rationale for the project established, central paragraphs can be focused on the technical aspects of the project. Outline your hypothesis, methods, and how your work builds on prior studies. This paragraph should be used to connect the broad concepts introduced in the opening to the specifics of your question.
• Aim Structure: Clearly define two related but independent aims with objectives, hypotheses, and strategies, ensuring findings will be made regardless of complications in one of the aims.
• Closing Paragraph: Emphasize feasibility, potential impact, and innovative aspects.

Key NIH Contacts and Deadlines

Two key NIH contacts that NRSA applicants should be familiar with are the Scientific Review Administrator (SRA) and the Program Officer (PO).

• Scientific Review Administrator (SRA):  SRAs organize the peer review process by assigning reviewers and facilitating study sections. You cannot contact SRAs, but it helps to know which study section your application falls under (for study sections, visit here).
• Program Officer (PO): POs manage grant programs, advise applicants, and track scientific progress. Unlike SRAs, you can contact POs directly. Dr. Aleksunes suggests doing so about two months before submission with specific questions or a draft of your aims page.

NIH fellowship applications follow three cycles of deadlines: Winter (April 8^th), Spring (August 8^th), and Fall (December 8^th). The review process can take several months, with fellowships starting ~5–6 months after submission.

Understanding the Review Process

Applications are first reviewed by the Center for Scientific Review and then assigned to a study section. They go through:

1. Initial Peer Review: 3 reviewers (1 primary, 2 secondary selected by SRAs) write detailed critiques and give a preliminary impact score.
2. Advisory Counsil Review: Applications are discussed in a panel of ~20 scientists, most of whom vote. The average reviewer score is multiplied by 10, resulting in a score from 10 (high impact) to 90 (low impact).

Tips to Impress Reviewers:

Applications that achieve high impact scores are those that effectively communicate the importance and feasibility of their research. While there is no one right way to do this, Dr. Aleksunes suggests:

• Writing for non-experts: Avoid excessive jargon, use clear sentence structure, and build a strong rationale.
• Emphasizing your mentorship team’s strength and your training plan’s alignment with their expertise.
• Ensuring the importance, feasibility, and innovation of your project are clearly conveyed.

With a clear picture of the project, and the team behind it, reviewers can make a fair judgment on which projects are likely to progress the field.

Start Early!

Dr. Aleksunes recommends starting at least 6 months before submission. Involve your mentor, co-investigators, and a biostatistician early to refine your approach. Review successful applications and attend mock study sections to strengthen your proposal. The earlier you start, the more time you’ll have to polish your application and increase your chances of success.

This article was edited by Junior Editor E. Beyza Guven and Senior Editor Joycelyn Radeny.