Faculty Development Research Grant

The faculty development research grants are for early career investigators within the first five years of their first faculty appointment.

Academic Appointment and Institutional Resources:
a. The applicant (MD, PhD, PharmD, or equivalent) must have an academic appointment at an accredited institution of higher learning and be within five years of the initial academic faculty appointment by the grant application deadline (December 1). Regardless of academic title (including instructor, research associate, or equivalent), the AST defines initiation of faculty appointment as the date that the applicant obtained an institutional commitment towards an independent career which includes: a) an office distinct from lab space and/or independent lab space; and b) a start-up package or grant funds controlled by the applicant to work on projects that are independent from his/her mentor.
b. An applicant’s faculty position must commence prior to or on the start of the grant term (July 1, 2021).
c. Failure to adequately document that the applicant is an independent faculty member with less than five years’ experience will disqualify the application without further review.
d. Changing institutions once after having already become a faculty member does not restart the five-year period.
e. The five-year period may be extended if there are extenuating circumstances requiring a leave from relevant academic activities (e.g. child-bearing, armed services commitment). These will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be accompanied by a letter of explanation by the applicant.
f. The minimum protected time for basic or translational grants is 50% and for clinical grants is 25%.

AST Membership:
a. The applicant must be an active member of the AST or have submitted a completed membership application by December 1, 2020.
b. If awarded a grant, the applicant’s membership must be maintained throughout the term of the grant.

Candidates can apply for an AST grant at the same time as applying for a K-series, NIH R01, P01 or any similar research award but may not retain AST funding if the other grant is awarded.

Location: The proposed work is to be performed in a North American research setting.

Education: The applicant must have an MD, DO, PhD, DVM, PharmD or equivalent graduate degree, and have completed post-graduate training (residencies, post-doctoral fellowships, etc.) at the time of the application.

Citizenship: The applicant must be either: a) a U.S., Canadian, or Mexican citizen; b) a lawfully admitted permanent resident foreign national of the U.S., Canada, or Mexico with a valid visa during the awarded period; or c) a foreign national admitted lawfully for residence in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico during the awarded period. J1 and H1B visa holders are eligible to apply.

Faculty may only hold one new AST grant per year: as a PI of a Faculty Development Research Grant, as mentor/sponsor of a Fellowship Research Grant, or as a PI of a concurrent AST directed grant. If more than one grant from a given faculty member (as PI or mentor) is submitted and deemed competitive for funding, the AST will determine which grant to fund.

The AST Faculty Development Research Grant project must be distinct from that of any concurrent award. Moreover, this work should not directly overlap with funded projects of other faculty members within the same Section or Department.

Applicants with concurrent K-series, R00, career development, or other similar awards at the time of application are not eligible to apply for an AST grant, even if the projects are distinct.

Applicants with concurrent smaller awards and prizes must report these awards, and the application will be adjudicated by the reviewers.

Individuals are ineligible if they are a PI on a previous or current NIH grant to perform independent research (R01, project on a P01 grant, R21, VA Merit award or comparable non-mentored award).

Individuals who previously received a Faculty Development Research Grant or joint grant between AST and another society are not eligible to apply.

The following expenses are not permitted: institution overhead, capital equipment, or travel costs.

The application deadline is 11:59 pm Pacific Standard Time on December 1, 2020.

Applications must be complete and submitted online through the AST Research Network submission website.

The cycle for AST career development grants is:

- Submissions are accepted between August 1 and December 1 (New submission period beginning with 2020 grant cycle).
- Applicants are notified in the following March.
- Research begins the next July.

Grant recipients will be recognized during the 2021 American Transplant Congress June 5-9, 2021 in Seattle, WA. Recipients are expected to register for and attend ATC. Registration is not included as part of the AST grant.