The following announcement is for the Medical Scholars Research Fellowship UW nomination. In order to apply for this program, you must be nominated by the dean of the medical school. To be considered as the UW nominee, please follow the guidelines below:

Sponsor:  Physician and Scientist Support Foundation (PSSF)

Program: Medical Scholars Research Fellowship (MSRF)

UW Internal Application Deadline: Wednesday, November 15 – end of business day

PSSF Application Deadline: Thursday, January 11, 2024

Funding Amount per scholar:  Projected amount is approximately $50,000

Synopsis of Program:

Physician and Scientist Support Foundation (PSSF) provides medical students with an opportunity to spend a dedicated one-year period on mentored, rigorous basic, translational, or applied biomedical research.

Eligibility:

• All applicants must be nominated by the medical school dean. The medical school dean can nominate only one applicant in any competition year.
• Single-degree medical students interested in a dual career in research and patient care are eligible to apply for the MSRF. The MSRF is not available to students enrolled in a combined MD/Ph.D. program, a Ph.D. program, a Pharm.D., an ScD program, or those who have completed a Ph.D., Pharm.D., or an ScD in a laboratory-based science.
• Applicants to the MSRF must be currently enrolled in a medical school in the United States.
• Students may apply during any year of their studies, but applicants in the last year of school must defer graduation until the completion of the fellowship year.
• All students must conduct 12 months of continuous, full-time laboratory research with minimal interruptions.
• Prior research experience is notrequired.
• The Physician-Scientist Support Foundation is committed to promoting diversity in science and research and strongly encourages applications from members of minority groups underrepresented in medicine and science.

Stipend and Allowances:

• For the 2024 fellowship year, the total amount awarded to each Medical Student Fellow is $50,000. The annual stipend is $42,000. In addition to the stipend, the award includes an allowance of $8,000 for health insurance and travel expenses.

Location of Study:

• Students must choose an academic or nonprofit research institution in the United States as their fellowship institution, except for a government laboratory. The fellowship institution need not be the student’s medical school.
• Students are responsible for making all arrangements for attendance at their chosen institution.

Area of Research:

• The proposed project must be in the basic, translational, or applied biomedical sciences.
• PSSF supports projects that expose students to how research advances fundamental understanding related to health.
• PSSF does not fund clinical research, health services, or health policy research.

Fellowship Term:

• The fellowship term may begin no earlier than June 1, 2024 and no later than September 1, 2024.
• The term of the fellowship is 12 consecutive months.

PSSF Application:

• Only students nominated by their medical school dean may apply
• Applicants must develop a research plan in consultation with a research mentor. Plan should be no longer than 3 pages, including tables, figures, and preliminary data. References are not included in page limit (Format: single-spaced, 1 inch margins, 12 pt Arial Font). The applicant is responsible for selecting the research mentor at any academic or nonprofit research institution in the United States, except for a government laboratory, and making arrangements to work in that person’s laboratory.
• The designated mentor must be the faculty member who will directly supervise the proposed research. A mentor can have only one applicant in any competition year. A mentor should have active research programs, sustained external grant support, a strong record of training students, and the time and interest to train the applicant. An applicant may have a co-mentor if their research plan crosses areas of expertise or if a co-mentor would strengthen the research training experience.
• All application components must be submitted online by January 11, 2024, to be considered in the fellowship competition.  Applicants should retain copies of the application materials completed and submitted online. Application materials will not be returned.

UW Selection Process & Criteria:

The UW faculty panel will consider an applicant’s potential to become a physician-scientist as well as the strength and feasibility of the applicant’s proposed research project. The selected nominee will be notified by the beginning of December to allow them time to fully prepare the MSRF application that is due by January 11, 2024.  

UW Application Process:

To apply for consideration as the UW nominee, please submit the following to Meaghan O’Gilvie, somiii@uw.edu, by 5 pm PT on Wednesday,November 15, 2023:

• Current official transcript (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/transcripts/)
• Personal Statement: why are you interested in laboratory research and how will it impact your career. What do you want to accomplish through the MSRF experience? Statement should not exceed 3000 characters, including spaces and punctuation.
• CV: in addition to general CV information, please include the following,
  • Research Experiences (if any): previous research experience is not required. However, if you have engaged in previous wet-laboratory research please provide a summary of your accomplishments in research. Do not exceed 3000 characters, including spaces and punctuation.
  • Please provide a list of research publications (if any)
  • Professional Experiences: Should not exceed 3000 characters, including spaces and punctuation
  • Honors and Awards: Should not exceed 3000 characters, including spaces and punctuation
• Research Project to include:
  • Project title (should not exceed 255 characters, including spaces and punctuation)
  • Research Plan Summary and Specific Aims (should not exceed 1600 characters, including spaces and punctuation)
• 1-2 page letter of recommendation from research mentor. Note: if you are selected as the UW nominee, PSSF requires a NIH biosketch from your research mentor to be included with their letter of recommendation.

Please mark application materials “Medical Scholars Research Fellowship” and submit them to Meaghan O’Gilvie, somiii@uw.edu