Deadline: October 15, 2021
TriCEM is currently inviting proposals to support research on evolutionary perspectives on human, animal and plant health from graduate students at Duke and NC State.
The Triangle Center for Evolutionary Medicine (TriCEM) is a nonprofit institute exploring the intersection of evolutionary science and medicine. The center is jointly operated by Duke University, North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina Central University, North Carolina State University, and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Graduate Student Awards are one-year awards for graduate students to pursue research in evolutionary medicine relevant to their graduate research. To be eligible, a student must be actively enrolled at Duke or NC State and have completed one semester of their graduate program by the time the funding commences. We expect the graduate student to lead and author aspects of the proposed research under the mentorship of their advisor. Awards will include additional funds to support an undergraduate research assistant on the project. To use these additional funds, we expect that the graduate student will participate in training on effective mentoring and play an active role in mentoring the undergraduate.
Proposed activities should focus on evolutionary medicine, broadly interpreted to involve research that uses evolutionary and ecological perspectives to understand health and disease in humans, animals, and plants. Previously funded graduate projects are provided at tricem.org/grad-students/, with topics that include: 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.
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. Additional funding for an undergraduate student will be available to successful awardees. These funds do not need to be accounted for in the Graduate Student Award budget.
Proposals are due on Friday, October 15, 2021 and should follow the below guidelines. New for this year, applicants can also opt to apply for the Steve Meshnick Travel Award; applications for this award are also due by October 15 and full guidelines can be found here.
Before You Apply
Please contact Dr. Meredith Spence Beaulieu if you have any questions about eligibility, proposal requirements, or other questions. Proposals will be evaluated in terms of both the scientific value of the project and the qualifications of the applicant. Note that TriCEM funds do not cover indirect costs or Facilities and Administrative (F&A) Costs.
Proposal Guidelines
Proposals are short, not to exceed 3 single-spaced (12-pt type) pages, and include a brief budget justification and references. References can be in an abbreviated format (e.g., Science or Nature style). In addition to the 3 page proposal, please include the applicant’s current CV. The proposal and CV should be uploaded in a single PDF. Proposals exceeding 3 pages (not including CV) will be returned without review.
All proposals must also include a single letter of support from the applicant’s faculty advisor/PI. The letter of support will be submitted separately by the faculty advisor, but must also be received by the proposal deadline of October 15, 2021. Faculty letters of support should be emailed to Meredith Spence Beaulieu at meredith.spence.beaulieu@duke.edu in PDF format by the applicant’s advisor/PI.
Proposals should be organized as follows, all within the 3 page limit:
- Program Track (please see our key research areas)
- Title (80 characters max)
- Short Title (25 characters max)
- Name and contact information for applicant and their Advisor/PI
- Project Summary (250 words max)
- Public Summary (250 words max) – This should be written for the public and will be visible on the TriCEM website if funded.
- Introduction and Goals – A statement of the outstanding question in evolutionary science being addressed and a concise review of the concept and the literature to place the project in context.
- Proposed Activities – This should include a clear statement of specific outline of hypotheses, predictions, and methods (including planned statistical analyses), as well as any data (include citations or urls) and analytical tools that will be required for the project.
- Rationale for TriCEM support – Why can this activity be most effectively conducted through TriCEM? Please explicitly address the proposal’s relevance to evolutionary medicine.
- Proposed Timetable – Include start date (month and year) and periods for data collection, analysis, and report writing. For successful fall 2021 applicants, the funding period is expected to be January 1, 2022 through January 1, 2023.
- Outcomes – Proposals should include a clear statement about the expected outcomes, including anticipated research products.
- Budget justification – Proposals must include a brief budget justification with the total amount requested and a simplified breakdown of expenses.
- References – Literature cited in the text of the proposal should be included at the end, using the abbreviated reference style of a journal such as Science or Nature. References count toward the page limit, and should be included within the 3 allowable pages.
Proposal Submission
Proposals will be accepted in digital format only as a single PDF file, including CV, with the exception of letters of support submitted as described above. Graphics should be embedded directly into the proposal document. Proposals should be submitted via this form: https://redcap.duke.edu/redcap/surveys/?s=N4DNTJRR89. For submission, please ensure that your document is named in the format “LastName_FirstName.pdf”.