Do you do biomedical and/or rehabilitation research at Clarkson University?
The CREST Steering Committee is happy to announce the 2023 CREST Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Please see the attached document for details and templates.
Briefly, PIs are invited to submit a grant related to CREST research efforts. Funds will support 1 graduate student and up to $5,000 in supplies. We anticipate supporting 2 proposals this cycle. The deadline is Friday October 13, 2023 by 5:00 pm.
If you have any questions, please email us at crest@clarkson.edu
CREST Graduate Research Fellowship Grant Program
2023 Call for Proposals
- Context
The Center for Rehabilitation Engineering, Science, and Technology (CREST) is providing a strategic investment in biomedical and bioengineering-related research with the goal of increasing competitiveness and promoting growth of biomedical research at Clarkson University.
- Purpose
The CREST Graduate Research Fellowship Grant Program solicits proposals for strategic efforts that support CREST’s mission to develop a robust, state-of-the-art fundamental basic research and applied research program built on Clarkson’s expertise in biomedical research.
To catalyze the development of biomedical research at Clarkson, a competitive grant will be used to provide grantees with financial support to achieve the following goals:
- Foster development of collaborations across Clarkson’s schools and departments
- Strengthen and enhance the competitiveness of Clarkson University in obtaining federal funding for biomedical research
All applications are required to specifically address these stated goals.
- Description
Grants will achieve the above goals through the assistance of a CREST graduate research fellowship awarded to support short-term projects with a duration of 1 year. This resource will support the preliminary proof-of-concept work necessary to initiate new collaborations between departments and develop competitive proposals for externally funded research, such as NSF and NIH applications.
Specifically, grant funds will support the stipend and tuition of 1 graduate student (hereafter known as the CREST Graduate Research Fellow) enrolled in (or expected to enroll in) a doctoral program, as well as up to $5,000 for research supplies. The recruitment and selection of the fellow will be the responsibility of the PI(s). The CREST Graduate Research Fellow will be expected to serve as a Teaching Assistant for BR- courses at Clarkson during the period of their fellowship, and the anticipated TA workload will be 12 hours/week during the Fall and Spring semesters.
The PI(s) are expected to leverage this grant to initiate new projects and submit proposals to federal funding agencies for follow-up financial support no later than 12 months after the award decision.
- Eligibility
All full-time Clarkson faculty members who are CREST affiliates, regardless of rank, are eligible to apply and serve as a Principle Investigator (PI).
- Funding Levels & Budget Requirements
CREST anticipates supporting up to two Graduate Research Fellows in the current funding cycle.
Each proposal must include a detailed justification for up to $5,000 in research supplies.
- Timeline
| Call for Proposals | September 08, 2023 |
| Submission Deadline | October 13, 2023 |
| Internal Peer Review | Returned to PIs by November 15, 2023 |
| Announcement of Awardees | December 01, 2023 |
| Funding Start Date | Spring 2024 (may be delayed to Fall 2024) |
For questions related to the submission, please email crest@clarkson.edu.
- Application
All interested PI(s) must submit a short research application that follows the attached Proposal Preparation Guidelines.
Applications that do not adhere to the guidelines may be returned without review.
- Selection Process and Criteria
All proposals will be evaluated by non-conflicted internal reviewers for innovation and technical merit, including the PI(s)’ qualifications, significance, and potential impact for follow-up funding. Reviewers will rate their assigned applications (each application according to its own merit) using a scale of 1 to 9, following NIH standards.
Merit will be determined from considerations of:
- The importance and innovation of the project’s stated goal
- The feasibility of the proposed approaches to achieve the project’s goal and objectives
- The PI(s)’ capabilities to address the project’s objectives as proposed
- The potential of the project to secure external funding within two years
- The ability to strengthen and broaden biomedical research at Clarkson
- Pre-award Requirements
All applicable institutional regulatory requirements must be addressed prior to project initiation and appointment of the CREST Graduate Research Fellow.
- Post-award Reporting Requirements
A final project report will be required 12 months after the award start date. The report will project results, efforts to pursue externally funded research, and the status of the CREST Graduate Research Fellow’s progress toward degree completion. All results obtained and grants submitted as a result of the grant must acknowledge CREST.
- Proposal Preparation Guidelines
Unless otherwise specified, the font style and size must be 11 point Arial or equivalent with paragraph line spacing of 1.07 and margins of 0.5” on all sides. Figure captions and tables are excluded from font and spacing requirements but must be legible when printed.
The corresponding PI is to email a single PDF document to crest@clarkson.edu by 5:00 pm on the deadline, October 13, 2023.
Application Components:
- Cover Page – Use the document provided; upon completion, convert to PDF (do not scan). Key words will be used to identify potential reviewers.
- Executive Summary – Use the document provided and, in 1 page, answer questions completely.
- Research Strategy – Address requested information in up to 3 pages.
- Budget – Provide a cost breakdown of supplies up to $5,000.
- References – Provide all authors’ names and citation titles. While there is no page limit, applicants are asked to provide a reasonable number of citations that objectively reflects the state of knowledge.
- Biographical Sketches – Use the attached template and provide all requested information.
A complete application comprises the above six components. Incomplete applications may be returned without review.
Appendix 1: Proposal Template
Please see attached pages.
2023 CREST Graduate Research Fellowship Cover Sheet
Key Personnel:
| Corresponding PI | Co-PI | Co-PI | |
| Name | |||
| Primary Discipline | |||
| Title | |||
| Dept | |||
| Phone |
Project Focus: Put an X before all that apply; Put #1 for primary if more than one area is selected. If your research does not fall within the areas listed, use the empty lines to list your area(s).
| Biomaterials and biomanufacturing | Rehabilitation Science and Engineering | ||
| Healthcare | Biosignaling and Biosensors | ||
| Prosthetics and robotics | Cell and Tissue Engineering | ||
| Bioinformatics | Genetics and Development | ||
| Biofluid mechanics | Other (specify): |
Key Words: Provide three descriptive terms for your project topic area(s).
| Topic Area: |
This project involves (underline applicable response):
Human subjects Yes No
Animal subjects Yes No
Hazardous materials Yes No
Existing (protected) IP Yes No
Potentially non-routine data management (HIPAA etc.) Yes No
Assurances, Certifications and Approvals of PIs and the Sponsored Research Services (SRS):
- We attest that the information contained is complete, accurate and truthful to the best of our knowledge and do not infringe on the intellectual property rights of others.
- We agree to submit an application for external funding within 12 months of project completion based upon the research results.
- We will adhere to all institutional, state and federal regulations applicable to the project work.
- We will submit required progress reports annually in accordance to the provided instructions.
| Title/Role | Printed Name | Date | ||
| PI | ||||
| Co-PI | ||||
| Co-PI |
Executive Summary
[One page limit. – Replace instructions in red or blue text with responses that completely address the information requested.]
- Project Title:
- Summary- project pitch: [Provide a one-two sentence summary of your effort: what you are trying to do and why does it matter. Do not use technical jargon. (1-2 sentences)]
- Intro/Background: In everyday language, describe the context of the problem of study. (One paragraph)
- What is the problem you are trying to solve and why is it important?
- What is/are the current state of the art and what are the limitations to current approaches?
- Impact: Describe the impact of successfully completing your project within the field, community, and wider audience. (One short paragraph)
- If you succeed, what difference do you think it will make within the thematic area(s) and how does it impact industry and economic development?
- Who is the targeted external funding source(s)?
- Why is grant support needed?
- Research plan: Outline your research plan and summarize the general methodologies you will use.
- What is the objective of your grant and of your follow-on project?
- What are the advantages of your proposed methodologies over existing ones?
- Discuss how your team’s qualifications and capabilities promote project success.
- What is the expected outcome from preliminary work that will lead to external (non-Clarkson) funding?
- Overlap: Is the project team currently or recently funded for similar work? Is yes, how does the proposed work differ in approach, scope or outcomes.
Detailed Description
[Three page limit. Replace instructions in red or blue text with responses that completely address the information requested.]
Research Strategy. In addition to the Executive Summary, the written proposal may include up to three pages describing the significant aspects of the intended research project, providing more detailed information regarding both the technical aspects of research activities, and the research and external funding plan to be pursued.
Present the rationale and approaches for your research design and experiments, and describe expected results of project experiments and objective(s).
Distinguish work to be completed within the duration of the CREST Graduate Fellowship (which is 1 year) and the follow-on project(s) to be supported by external sponsors.
Note any challenges and alternative approaches. Include a timeline for completion of specific objectives/aim(s) with milestones as applicable, and identify the activities / tasks for which each PI /investigator is responsible.
Budget. Provide a cost breakdown of research supplies up to $5,000 to explain need.
[The two sections below are not included in the page counts.]
Bibliography. Present the references cited. Include all authors and citation title. Include any other references that are relevant but not cited that reflect the current state of knowledge and the art. Not expected to exceed two pages.
Biographical Sketch. Provide a biographical sketch for all key personnel, using the attached template.
NAME
Professional Preparation
| Institution | Location | Field/major | Degree, Year |
| Include postdoc training |
Appointments – reverse chronological order
| 20xx-present | Title, Affiliation, location |
Total number of peer-reviewed publications (#) and in last five years (#):
Most Closely Related Publications/Products (up to five)
- Acceptable products must be citable and accessible including but not limited to publications, data sets, software, patents, and copyrights.
- Unacceptable products are unpublished documents not yet submitted for publication, invited lectures, and additional lists of products.
- Each product must include full citation information including (where applicable and practicable) names of all authors, date of publication or release, title, title of enclosing work such as journal or book, volume, issue, pages, website and URL, or other Persistent Identifier.
Other Relevant Publications/Products (up to five)
Synergistic Activities
Graduate Student Training
- Number of graduate students currently in the laboratory: #
- Number of graduate students (MS, PhD) completed in last five years: #
Undergraduate training
- Number of undergraduate students currently in the laboratory: #
- Number of undergraduates in the lab who are women, disadvantaged, or underrepresented: : #
External funding.
Current Awards: Sponsor name, award number, project title, your role
Pending Awards: Sponsor name, award number, project title, your role