Sarnoff Scholar Fellow-to-Faculty Transition Award

Program Description
The Sarnoff Scholar Award is a competitive award that provides substantial financial support to Sarnoff Alumni who are committed to pursuing a career in cardiovascular research. The goal of the award is to enhance the opportunity for Sarnoff Alumni to successfully obtain “K” – level NIH support. This program will support the promising physician-in-training during the interval in which the Scholar is making the transition from a research fellow to a junior faculty member.

Award Terms
Scholar Award terms are as follows:

1. Applicants may apply during the second half of their post-residency training/fellowship program and/or overlapping with the first two junior faculty years.
   
   
2. Applicants are expected to devote two contiguous years to their research.
   
   
3. A minimum of 75% research effort per year in each of these two years is required.
   
   
4. The stipend will be $50,000 in direct costs per year for salary support.
   
   
5. The award will offer $10,000 per year research supply budget, up to $1,500 annually to defray the cost of health insurance if it is not provided by the Scholar's host institution, and travel funds of up to $1,000 to enable the Scholar to present a paper at a national conference, based on the Scholar's research, within two years of completing the Scholar Transition Award Program.
   
   
6. A maximum of 10% indirect costs will be paid to the institution for handling the award.

Application Procedure
Sarnoff Alumni interested in applying for the 2011 Scholar Award Program must submit a letter by December 15, 2010, indicating current clinical and research interests and the anticipated time frame for initiation of funding for the Scholar Program. The Scholar applicant will then be assigned a Scientific Committee advisor to assist in the preparation of a research proposal and project budget. The final application is due on January 31, 2011.

Selection Criteria
The Scientific Committee will award an applicant who demonstrates a high standard of intellectual and academic achievement and promise. In particular, the Scientific Committee considers:

• The applicant's potential for both a successful career as an independent researcher and a successful training experience
• The scientific merit of the applicant's research proposal, including significance and originality of proposed research goals, soundness of methodology, and clarity of presentation
• The qualifications of the applicant, including suitable career stage, relevant research experience, prior scientific publications and other related accomplishments
• The training environment of the host institution, including the extent of opportunity presented by the project for the candidate to acquire new approaches, techniques, and methods
• The Preceptor's relevant research expertise, previous experience in training, specific plan for training the applicant, and resources and environment
• The commitment of the institution to the development of the careers of physician-scientists, as reflected in a commitment to provide sufficient space, resources and protected time to promote the development of young physician-scientists.

Terms of the Scholar Program
The Scholar must devote a minimum of 75% effort to research training and to the conduct of research. No more than 25% effort may be dedicated to clinical and teaching activities. A Scholar supported by the Foundation may not accept another scholarship or similar award. However, the Scholar's institution may supplement the stipend in accordance with its usual policy for comparable trainees and faculty positions.

For More Information
If you would like to apply for the 2011 Sarnoff Scholar Award, please submit a letter by January December 15, 2010 indicating your current clinical and research interests and the anticipated time frame you would like to begin the Scholar Program. Letters should be submitted to:

Dana Boyd, Executive Director
Sarnoff Cardiovascular Research Foundation
731 Walker Road, Suite G-2
Great Falls, Virginia 22066

Fax: 703.759.7838

For more information on the Sarnoff Scholar Award, please contact Dana Boyd at 703.759.7600 or at dboyd@SarnoffFoundation.org.