/Institutions/MGH-Institute-of-Health-Professions/json/2016-2017/Faculty-Handbook-local.json

/Institutions/MGH-Institute-of-Health-Professions/json/2016-2017/Faculty-Handbook.json

Faculty Handbook 2016-2017 > Section III - Faculty Policies and Procedures > Academic Policies and Procedures > Scholarship and Research > Faculty Research > Faculty Research Fellowships

Faculty Research Fellowships

The Faculty Research Fellowship Program (FRFP) is designed to encourage faculty at the MGH Institute of Health Professions to develop a program of research in their area of interest.  The program supports faculty efforts to achieve external funding for their research program by providing a $10,000 faculty research grant to conduct pilot studies that serve as preliminary data for subsequent efforts.  Grants are awarded for a one-year period (from July 1 to June 30). The Director of Research Programs coordinates the review process which utilizes the Research and Scholarship Committee as a peer review panel for all applications. The Committee will make recommendations to the Director of Research Programs, who is responsible for awarding and monitoring the fellowships.

Two awards are offered annually.  The Institute Research Fellow Award supports research in a non-specified area.  The Geriatric Research Fellow Award supports research in topics related to gerontology.  Neither award is required to be given if the Research and Scholarship Committee and/or the Provost’s Office determine that no meritorious applications have been submitted.

Timeline (specific dates for each annual award cycle will be announced each year and can be obtained from the Provost’s Office):

Fall semester	Call for applications
Early spring semester	Applications due to Director of Research Programs
End of spring semester	Office of the Provost announces award(s) and pre-award activities begin – i.e. establish sites, obtain CITI / IRB(s) approval if necessary, establish grant account
July 1	Award start date
June 30	Project end date
September 1	Final report due

Eligibility

• Applicants for these awards must currently hold a faculty appointment at the Institute and have at minimum, a 10 month contract at a 0.5 FTE level.
  • The applicant need not be physically located in Charlestown at the Institute, and may conduct the research offsite.

• A prior FRFP recipient can apply for another fellowship award contingent on fulfilling  all the previous responsibilities, including a subsequent extramural grant submission

 

Award Criteria

• The application clearly portrays a significant area in need of research, with well defined research objectives and a scientifically sound approach to the study that is deemed meritorious by peer review.
• Priority will be given to interdisciplinary approaches that align with the Institutes’ strategic vision and mission.
• Applicants’ ability to serve as Principal Investigator (PI) is evident by a track record of management /leadership and /or prior research collaborative activities commensurate with one’s stage of career.
• The project is feasible based on proposed objectives, timeline and budget.

• The project is of appropriate scope and rigor to serve as preliminary data for use in subsequent extramural funding and publication

Applicants must provide sufficient supporting documentation to meet the above criteria.  The Research and Scholarship Committee will provide written reviews to the applicants to enhance subsequent proposal development. 

 

Budget options for FRFP Funds

Appropriate use of FRFP Award monies include, but are not limited to:

• purchase of project-related equipment or project-related expenditures
• salary to “buy out” faculty teaching time      
• statistical consultation beyond available Partners-based resources if necessary
• support to complete dissertation research
• support for travel to and from a research site
• support for travel to and from a professional meeting that is related to the project.

Responsibilities of the Awardees

• Awardees must submit an end-of-project year report of their activities to the Director of Research Programs.
• Awardees must meet with the Institutes’ grant account representative initially, and at least 90 days prior to completion, to ensure appropriate accounting and monitoring of funds
• Awardees must give a formal presentation of their research progress and results to the MGH Institute community at an event organized by the Research and Scholarship Committee within six months of the completion of the funding of their project.   
• Awardees must submit their findings for publication
• Awardees are expected to use this award as the basis for a subsequent extramural grant submission

Application Process

Final application by order of assembly and page limits:

1. Proposal Cover Sheet  completed with your Academic Program Director’s (APD) signoff prior to submission(available from the Provost’s Office after November 30)
2. Proposal applicant letter attesting to rationale for application in relationship to career and your program of research (1 page) accompanied by your 2 page biosketch using the NIH format. Identify in your letter if this is your first application, a resubmission, or a new but second or more FRFP application. Describe how the funding will enhance your ability to obtain external grant funding and identify the intended grant(s).  If a previous award recipient, detail the research outcomes from your prior project.
3. Project Abstract-   Project Title and description of no more than 500 words
4. Research Plan – 10 page limit, 12 font type
1. Introduction, Goals/Objectives/Specific aims :  1 page
2. Background / significance/ importance:  up to 2 pages
3. Literature review/ Theoretical Foundation  up to 2 pages
4. Methodology/ Research Plans  5 – 7 pages not to exceed 10 total for a-d including references.
5. Budget – 1-2 pages    a. Breakdown by line item  b. narrative item justification

Submission Procedure

1. A copy of the completed application should be given to your APD for review and sign off approval regarding any effects on program resources such as faculty course buyouts and use of IHP facilities, prior to submission to the Director of Research Programs.  

2. The original copy with the proposal coversheet and APD signoff is to be submitted to the Director of Research Programs as well as an electronic version in MS Word.

Proposals involving human subjects are not required to have IRB approval at the time of submission but must receive approval by the Spaulding Human Research Committee before funds are awarded.

Post Award

1.   Support for grant management issues and monitoring of grant policy compliance occurs through the Institute’s research administration in the Office of the Provost (Director of Research Programs: Dr Robert Hillman).

2.  No extensions will be granted to the award recipients. All award monies should be spent within the fiscal year (July 1– June 31).

3. Copies of all publications resulting from FRFP-supported research should be submitted to the Director of Research Programs.  Published reports are required to acknowledge the support of the Faculty Research Fellowship Program at the MGH Institute of Health Professions, as follows:   “This work was partially supported by an Institute Research Fellow Award (or Geriatric Research Fellow Award, if appropriate) from the MGH Institute of Health Professions.” 

4. Compliance with fulfilling previously stated responsibilities of the award recipients