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College of Medicine: Office of Research

Pilot Project Award

Letter of Intent due: 5:00pm, Friday, November 15, 2024
Applications due: 5:00pm, Friday, December 20, 2024

The UAMS College of Medicine (COM) Office of Research provides Pilot Project Awards for COM faculty pursuing laboratory-based research focused on new avenues of biomedical research, which will accelerate the collection of data for extramural grant submissions and peer-reviewed publications. Support will not supplement already funded research. Applications across the entire biomedical research spectrum are encouraged.
Eligibility: The applicant must be a UAMS COM faculty member performing all research on a UAMS campus. An awardee with current COM intramural funding must exhaust current funding before any new awards are activated. An applicant is not eligible to apply if the same proposed research in under review for another UAMS intramural funding opportunity. An applicant may submit only one resubmission of a given proposal.
Letter of Intent: A letter of intent is required for submission of a full application. Letters of intent should be submitted by 5:00pm on 11/15/2024 using the following portal: https://redcap.link/ux3ys5ms. Letters should
be limited to 500 words. In addition to a letter of intent, submissions will also need to include:

  • An NIH biosketch (PI only)
  • NIH Other Support (PI only)
  • Prior intramural funding (PI only). Provide a list of pending, current and past intramural funding from COM or other UAMS sources over the last 3 years. For past awards, list outcomes of funding (publications, grants submitted and/or funded, patents, etc.). Past productivity will be critically
    evaluated during review and will significantly impact funding decisions.
    A link for submission of a full application will be provided following approval of the letter of intent.
    Award: The maximum 1-year budget is $50,000 with a funding cycle of 03/01/2025 – 02/28/2026. Funds are expected to be spent within the funding period. Funds may not be used for faculty salary support.
    Subawards are not allowed. Applicants are encouraged to utilize and budget appropriately for use of COM Core Facilities. Indirect costs are not allowed.
    Review: Proposals will be peer-reviewed. The Executive Associate Dean for Basic Research will make final funding decisions.
    Expectations: To be eligible for future COM intramural support, award recipients will be expected to complete annual surveys to collect funding outcome metrics, demonstrate that funding enabled extramural grant submissions and publications, and complete work within the given funding period.
    Contacts: For general questions, contact Dr. Alan Tackett (AJTackett@uams.edu). For administrative questions, contact Ms. Sonet Weed (SWeed@uams.edu).

Application Instructions

Following receipt and approval of a letter of intent, applicants will be invited to provide the following documents. Do not submit any application components with the letter of intent. Incomplete applications or those that do not comply with the instructions will not be reviewed. Applicants should use Arial font with a minimum 11-point font size. Page margins should be 0.5” all around. Applications must be compiled as a single PDF document prior to submission.

  1. Cover page to include the following (1 page):
    a. Title of project
    b. Principal Investigator’s name, department and contact information
  2. Specific aims (1 page)
  3. Research strategy (3 pages). The following sections are required: Significance, Innovation, Approach, and Plan for Extramural Funding and Publication. A section on preliminary studies can be included, if relevant.
  4. References cited (no page limit)
  5. Detailed budget form (1 page)
  6. Budget justification (no page limit)
  7. Facilities and other resources (no page limit)
  8. Equipment (no page limit)
  9. NIH Biosketch for the PI (5 page maximum for each)
  10. Letters of Support (no page limit). A letter of support from your department chair is required and should indicate that time will be made available for the outlined research. Additional letters of support may be submitted with the application if appropriate to confirm support for the proposed work. As relevant, letters should be provided from directors of COM Core Facilities that indicate costs for services.
  11. IACUC and/or IRB approval (no page limit). If approval is still pending at time of submission, your application will still be reviewed. However, documentation of IACUC and/or IRB approval will be required for all awarded proposals involving animals or human subjects. No award funds will be allocated without these approvals.