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Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology

Have an idea for an NIH application? Here is when/what/who to email about your idea!

At a recent meeting, Rebecca Clark, chief of the Population Dynamics Bureau (PDB) at NICHD, provided useful insights on how researchers developing new proposals should contact officials at NIH. Her remarks were focused on PDB at NICHD, but the advice seems broadly generalizable to other institutes as well. She states: If you have specific aims, please send them to just one PDB Program Officers in one email. (NB: Do not send separate emails to each program officer within a branch, since they all confer and collaborate on any incoming inquiries.)

All potential applicants, including those who have prepared specific aims, should send responses to the following items and attach to the email inquiry:

1. One- or two-page description of your proposed project, including: 

(a) What is the research topic? What is the primary research question and why is it important to answer this research question? What research gap will this research address?

(b) Describe the relevance of this research to public health. How will this research—directly or indirectly—enhance human health, lengthen life, or prevent or reduce illness or disability?

(c) What are the specific hypotheses? Specify the dependent and independent variables; Describe the expected relationship between each of the dependent and independent variables; Discuss the mechanisms through which the independent variables affect the dependent variables.

(d) What methodology will be used? Why is this methodology appropriate to address the hypotheses? What data collection methods will be used? If existing data are to be used, describe the data set.

(e) Estimated budget (direct costs).

(e) A timeline.

2. In addition, for K (career) and F (fellowship) awards and supplements, include: 

(a) your disciplinary background and institutional affiliation;

(b) the name, disciplinary background, research interests, and institutional affiliation of your primary mentor, your secondary mentor (if you have one), and other advisors;

(c) the types of training and career development you plan and how this training and development will advance your ability to do your proposed research.

And if you’re wondering how to find an appropriate contact in the first place—the answer is to explore the web pages for the NIH institutes that seem most relevant. They all differ from one another, but, for instance, for NICHD you can turn to this page, and click on “Find a Program Officer” in the right-hand menu.

Besides the above…..

The CSDE Development Core is here to help, too.

As always, the CSDE development core team, Steve Goodreau (goodreau@uw.edu) or Sara Curran (scurran@uw.edu), are happy to help you in preparing these documents and figuring out who to contact at NIH.

Many CSDE-Relevant Grant Opportunities at NICHD!

The NICHD has listed many grant opportunities that should be of interest to CSDE affiliates. Check out the list here. If you are interested, CSDE can help you with providing ‘eyes’ for feedback on the narrative, contacting a program officer, more formalized mock review panel of experts to provide feedback on a penultimate draft, a summer grant writing program, or scientific methods consultations. We’re happy to support your science! Just ask!

Postdoctoral researchers/research associates (Open until filled)

The Social Action Lab at the University of Pennsylvania has openings for postdoctoral researchers/research associates to conduct modeling work related to behavioral change, epidemiological modeling, and health policy. A Ph.D. in a relevant discipline (e.g., statistics, biostatistics, public health, quantitative psychology, and economics) is required.

First-year postdoctoral researchers will receive a minimum stipend of $65,000 commensurate with prior postdoctoral experience and serve in a 12-month appointment, beginning September 1, 2024. Renewal for subsequent years is contingent upon performance and budgetary considerations. A relocation allowance of up to $1,000 for domestic relocations and up to $2,000 for international relocations is available to offset pre-approved, receipt-documented relocation expenses, and ASC will reimburse up to $3,000 in travel / research expenses for work conducted in the lab. Post-docs and their dependents are eligible for health insurance under the University of Pennsylvania’s plans outlined here: https://www.hr.upenn.edu/PennHR/benefits-pay/postdoctoral-researchers-and-fellows.

All postdoctoral fellows must submit documentation to demonstrate eligibility to work in the United States. Non-US citizens selected for this position will be required to apply for an appropriate US visa.

If interested, please submit a CV, a research statement, three research papers, and the names of three references at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSexg995SX3xa8lhMgGb6YJwhBk5wNMz5p8coirrnkIRzksing/viewform?usp=sf_link  

Please note that the University of Pennsylvania limits post-doctoral appointments to a maximum of five years, including time spent in post-doctoral appointments prior to joining Penn. Research associates are longer-term positions.

CSDE Population Research Planning Grants (PRPGs) (Rolling deadline)

Population Research Planning Grants (PRPGs) are designed to provide in-kind support and/or funds of up to $25k* to support a wide array of activity types throughout the development of a research project. As part of our mission to complement rather than duplicate other campus opportunities such as the Population Health Initiative seed grants, we will consider funding things activities such as:

  • Use of CSDE services beyond the standard allotments for affiliates. This could include statistical or computational consultations, administrative and logistical support, computer accounts, software purchases that contribute to the general good, virtual server capacity that contributes to the general good, communication or webinar support, etc.
  • Convening a group of scholars for a grant writing retreat or to brainstorm a possible new research collaboration
  • Hiring an RA to analyze data for discussion in the Preliminary Data section of a grant application
  • Small pilot research, when relationship to future funding requests are clearly laid out. Note that research that is well suited to an existing pilot research mechanism on campus should be submitted to that mechanism, with an optional request of matching support from CSDE (see below).
  • Publication-related fees (when no other funding is available). NEW THIS YEAR: requests for publication fees will only be considered for publications that involve at least one CSDE affiliate and at least one CSDE trainee, and which are targeted to a demography-oriented journal or comparable outlet.
  • Travel (when specifically enhancing research project development)
  • Many others; just ask!

* note that while proposals up to $25k are allowed, smaller proposals are more likely to be funded. There is no lower limit on funding size – we welcome requests for software, meetings publications, etc., that may be measured in the hundreds of dollars.