August 7, 2018

TriCEM Graduate Student Awards

Now Accepting Applications for the Spring 2024 Graduate Student Awards!

Spring 2024 Call for Graduate Student Award Proposals

 

The Triangle Center for Evolutionary Medicine (TriCEM) is partnering with the Duke Microbiome Center (DMC), the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Global One Health Academy (GOHA) and the NCSU Genetics & Genomics Academy (GGA) to support research conducted by graduate students at Duke University and NCSU. Graduate Student Awards provide one year of funding for Ph.D. students to pursue research in evolutionary medicine.

Funds should be used for direct research expenses; tuition, fees, and stipends are not allowable expenses. Award amounts will vary depending on funding availability, up to $7,500.

As part of the application, students have the option to apply for additional funding to (1) involve undergraduate trainees in the research project and/or (2) engage the public via scientific outreach at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences related to the proposed research.

Undergraduate support: successful applicants may request an additional $2000 to support a trainee. To obtain these additional funds, we expect that the graduate student will participate in training on effective mentoring and play an active role in guiding the undergraduate.

Public outreach: the NC Museum of Natural Sciences will provide $500 stipends for two students to engage with visitors to the Museum via creative and dynamic ideas for communicating science. Examples include short talks on the student’s research, presentations related to a Museum exhibit, or interactive teaching displays to engage visitors in the galleries. Students should plan for at least 16 hours of activities at the Museum over 4 months during the award period. Awardees will have the opportunity to practice public speaking skills and receive feedback from Museum staff who have expertise in science communication.

Details specific to the TriCEM/DMC applications: We are especially interested in proposals that connect microbiome research to any of the four Research Tracks in TriCEM – pathogenic organisms, cancer, brain sciences, and social & biological determinants of health – or that engage with One Health research at the intersection of humans, animals, and the environment. To be eligible, a student must be enrolled at Duke and have completed one semester of their graduate program at the start of funding. We expect the graduate student to lead and author aspects of the proposed research under the mentorship of their advisor. The research can be independent of or related to their dissertation research.

Proposed research activities should engage with (1) evolutionary medicine, broadly interpreted to involve research that uses evolutionary and ecological perspectives to understand health and disease in humans, animals, and plants, and (2) symbiotic microbes and their communities, including those found in humans, other animals, plants, or the environment. Examples might include the connections between microbial communities and health conditions, such as cancer or neurodegenerative diseases; the role of microbial diversity in competitive suppression of pathogens, such as Clostridioides difficile. 

Download a pdf of the Duke-DMC RFP here.

Details specific to the TriCEM/GOHA/GGA applications: Proposed research activities should focus on evolutionary medicine, broadly defined to include research at the intersection of evolutionary biology, public health, and human or animal medicine, and including One Health. To be eligible, a student must be enrolled at NCSU and have completed one semester of their graduate program at the start of funding. We expect the graduate student to lead and author aspects of the proposed research under the mentorship of their advisor. The research can be independent of or related to their dissertation research.

Previously funded research areas have included: the ecology and evolution of infectious disease; psychiatric and neurodegenerative disease; evolution of antimicrobial resistance; evolutionary perspectives in global health; evolution of aging; autoimmune disease and allergy; evolution and cancer; evolutionary perspectives on emerging plant diseases and food security; One Health and comparative medicine; and the genetic basis of disease.

Download a pdf of the Duke-GOHA-GGA RFP here.

Proposal Guidelines

Proposals are short, not to exceed 3 single-spaced pages (12-pt type, margins at least 0.5 inches), and include a brief budget justification and bibliography. If applying for the supplemental NC Museum of Natural Sciences stipend, proposals will be allowed an additional 250 words over the 3-page limit. References can be in an abbreviated format (e.g., Science or Nature style). In addition to the 3-page proposal, please include a current CV. The proposal and CV should be uploaded in a single PDF. Proposals exceeding 3 pages (not including CVs and an additional 250 words for NC Museum funds) will be returned without review.

Graduate Student Award proposals must also include a single letter of recommendation from the applicant’s faculty advisor/PI. The letter must include a complete list of active and pending funding available to the PI’s research program, and any potential overlap between the advisor/PI’s funding and the student’s proposed studies must be addressed. The letter of recommendation will be submitted separately by the faculty advisor, but must also be received by the proposal deadline of Friday, March 22, 2024. Faculty letters of recommendation should be emailed to Johnny Uelmen in PDF format by the applicant’s advisor/PI.

Proposal Submission

Proposals will be accepted as a single PDF file, including CV(s), with the exception of Graduate Student Award letters of recommendation submitted as described above. Graphics should be embedded directly into the proposal document. For submission, please ensure that your document is named in the format “LastName_FirstName.pdf”.

Proposals are due by 5 pm EST on Friday, March 22, 2024 and should follow the guidelines below. For questions, please contact Dr. Johnny Uelmen.

 

Apply for the 2024 Spring TriCEM Grad Student Awards Here