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Pre-Doctoral Fellowships - Individual NRSA



Notices, Policy Announcements and Other Information:

  • Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Stipend and Other Budgetary Levels Effective for Fiscal Year 2012 (NOT-OD-12-033)
    January, 2012
  • New Policy on Post-Submission Information on Sponsor's Research Funding (NOT-OD-12-022)
    December, 2011
  • Revised Instructions for Required Educational Information (NOT-OD-11-062)
    April, 2011
  • Requirements for Responsible Conduct of Research (NOT-OD-10-019)
    March, 2011
Citizenship Eligibility: At the time of award the individual must be a citizen or a non-citizen national of the United States or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence.



F31 - Individual NRSA for MD-PhD Students

Starting with the April 8, 2010 receipt date, NINDS will use the F31 NRSA mechanism to support MD-PhD students in combined MD-PhD programs. These fellowships will support students for up to 5 years of predoctoral research training. This mechanism does not support medical school education. MD-PhD students are encouraged to apply for F31 support as early in their careers as possible, potentially as early as the end of the medical school year prior to beginning research. Applicants must have identified a lab, mentor(s) and research project. However, preliminary data and/or publications from the graduate lab are not required for a competitive application. Peer review evaluation is described in detail in the funding opportunity announcement. Emphasis will be placed on the quality of the research being done in the chosen lab, the creativity of the applicant’s proposed research project, the career development/training plan and the training track record of the mentorship team.

Applicants are STRONGLY encouraged to contact the NINDS Training Office before preparing an application, as NINDS will consider only those applications that are designed to support the training and development of scientists with interests relevant to the mission of NINDS. Eligible applicants must be enrolled in an MD program at an accredited medical school, accepted in a related scientific PhD program, and supervised by a mentor in that scientific discipline when the application is submitted.

  • New Requirements on Submission of Reference Letters NOT-OD-11-047
  • See NINDS Program Announcement: PAR-13-127
  • NRSA FY2012 Stipend levels: NOT-OD-12-033
  • Application form SF 424
  • Initial Application Receipt Date for PAR-13-127: May 2, 2013
  • Subsequent Application Receipt Dates for PAR-13-127: August 8, and December 8, 2013

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F31 - Individual NRSA for PhD Students

NINDS provides National Research Service Award (NRSA) predoctoral training fellowships (F31) to promising applicants with the potential to become productive, independent investigators in the scientific mission areas of the Institute. NINDS uses this mechanism to support the career development of neuroscientists (some rare exceptions apply), so the applicant must propose dissertation research in an area within the scientific mission of the NINDS and a training program appropriate for a career in neuroscience research. The mentor should be committed to the successful transition of the applicant to a subsequent appropriate position, have a strong track record in training, and have an active, funded research program in the area of the applicant's proposed research. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the NINDS Training Office before preparation of an application to determine whether their proposed training and research falls within the NINDS mission. This program will provide predoctoral training support for doctoral candidates who are within their first 6 years of graduate school, have or will have successfully completed their comprehensive examinations or the equivalent by the time of award, and will be performing dissertation research and training. Support will be provided for a maximum of 3 years. The applicant should provide evidence of potential for a productive research career based upon the quality of previous research training and academic record. The research training program should be carried out in a research environment that includes appropriate human and technical resources and is demonstrably committed to the research training of the applicant in the program he/she proposes in the application.

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F31 - Individual NRSA for Diversity PhD Students

NINDS provides National Research Service Award (NRSA) training fellowships to outstanding predoctoral candidates from groups that have been shown to be underrepresented, including underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, and individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds.  The intent of this program is to increase the number of scientists from underrepresented populations in biomedical research.  Award recipients will receive up to five years of research training leading to a PhD. or equivalent research degree, a combined MD-PhD. degree, or another formally combined professional and research doctoral degree in biomedical, behavioral, health services, or clinical sciences who are within their first 6 years of graduate school. Support is NOT available for individuals enrolled in medical or other professional schools UNLESS they are enrolled in a combined professional doctorate/PhD degree program in biomedical or behavioral research. This mechanism does not support medical school education. Potential applicants are encouraged to contact Dr. Michelle Jones-London, jonesmiche@ninds.nih.gov for additional information.

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Last updated April 29, 2013