• Overview
• Choosing a research sponsor
• Message to sponsor
• Off-site projects
• Application

Overview

Quarterly grants are available to third and fourth year students who will commit at least one quarter to a mentored research project. The project may be a continuation of research begun earlier in school, perhaps as an extension of a project started with a Summer Fellowship, or it may be a new project.

The program is administered by the Office of Curricular Affairs and applications are reviewed by either the Student Research Committee or by ad hoc reviewers from the Faculty. Students are expected to work full time on the research.

Each student whose application is approved receives a stipend of $4000 for a three month project. Three month projects can be conducted without prolonging time in school. Longer projects require extending to a five-year program. Students may apply for a maximum of two successive grants. The stipends are intended to defray student living expenses during the research period. The cost of supplies or other support for the research are the responsibility of the sponsor. These grants are not available to support research of students in the MSTP or other advanced degree programs.

Fellowship Deadlines:

• Fall Quarter: July 15
• Winter Quarter: October 15
• Spring Quarter: January 15
• Summer Quarter: April 15

Choosing a research sponsor

The process for this is similar to that for the Summer Research Fellowships. Generally the sponsor will be a member of the UCSF Faculty; however, outside research will be considered if sufficient justification for the off-site location is provided. The application must contain an appropriate description of the project by the student and support from the faculty sponsor.

Message for Sponsors/Mentors:
Please note the following points with regard to the help you provide to students who are submitting research proposals under your supervision:

1. The research should be hypothesis-driven with specific research questions to be answered within the time frame allowed. If two or more students are working on the same project, each of their roles needs to clearly delineated.

2. The project should not be purely descriptive unless there is very limited literature in the field of inquiry. For example, projects that are limited to only collecting information about attitudes, opinions or practices of healthcare providers, without any plan for studying an intervention, are generally not approved for funding.

3. The writing of the proposal should convey scientific rigor and provide sufficient detail to allow the reviewers to understand the nature of the question(s) being pursued, relevant background, methodology, and potential relevance/impact. In particular, the methods section should provide a clear and detailed description of analytic approaches, including statistical methods and justification for sample size if applicable.

4. If questionnaires or other written instruments are used in the project, samples need to be included with the proposal.

5. If IRB approval is needed, please submit the IRB application promptly so that approval is obtained before the student’s proposed start date. Lack of IRB approval at the proposed start date for the student will lead to a loss funding, and possibly full cancellation of the student research grant.

Off-Site Projects

Research fellowships are intended primarily for students who will be working under the direct supervision of a UCSF faculty member. If a project is done elsewhere under the supervision of a non-UCSF faculty member, the student must still identify a UCSF faculty member who will act as a liaison. Also, off-site projects need to fulfill the following criteria:

1. There is a compelling need to carry out the work at another site. Why would it not be possible to do the same project or a similar project at UCSF? If the specific goal is to study a situation in a different setting, such as a foreign culture, the application must demonstrate familiarity with the existing literature for this setting. In other words, the project must add new knowledge to the field, not just to the individual student.

2. Supervision of the student is adequate and well-documented. The sponsor need not be a UCSF faculty member. But the sponsor must be qualified to supervise the project and must provide a letter confirming his or her support for the project and specifying the amount of time s/he expects to be available to spend with the student. The Committee advises all students considering off-site projects to discuss the qualifications of the proposed sponsor with Drs. Lowenstein (lowenstein@medsch.ucsf.edu) or Lomen-Hoerth (catherine.lomen-hoerth@ucsf.edu) before committing to the project.

3. Appropriate facilities are available. The sponsor's letter must indicate that all of the facilities necessary to the project are available to the student. This includes any necessary laboratory facilities, office space, specimens, access to study populations, computers, and any other facilities needed to complete the project. The student must either demonstrate fluency in the primary language spoken at the site of the project or must have guaranteed access to translators. If translators are needed, the sponsor's letter must state that translators will be provided and that all necessary arrangements will be made prior to arrival of the student at the site.

4. The scope of the project is appropriate to the time available and advance preparations are in progress. Our experience is that most successful off-site projects require considerable advance preparation and follow-up after the student returns to UCSF. You can increase your chances of funding by demonstrating that you have carried out the initial steps in the project. For example, if your project involves administration of a questionnaire, you should include a semifinal draft of the questionnaire (in both English and the local language) with your application.

If you have any questions about the process for Quarterly Research Fellowships, email Mario Mercurio (mario.mercurio@ucsf.edu) or Drs. Lowenstein (lowenstein@medsch.ucsf.edu) or Lomen-Hoerth (catherine.lomen-hoerth@ucsf.edu).