Grants & Prizes

NARSAD is the largest non-government, donor-supported organization that distributes funds for psychiatric brain and behavior disorder research. The NARSAD Independent Investigator Award offers up to $50,000 a year for two (2) years and is intended for scientists at the associate professor level (or equivalent) with national competitive support as a principal investigator (P.I.).

The Independent Investigator Award stands between the Young and Distinguished Investigator Awards. The Young Investigator is intended to extend initial research training, or support independent scientists at the assistant professor rank. The Distinguished Investigator supports senior investigators (full professor or equivalent) pursuing innovative, new directions. Strict adherence to eligibility guidelines for the Independent Investigator will apply to prevent overlap between the programs, and to ensure that a reasonable proportion of applications judged to be excellent can be funded.

The program is intended to facilitate innovative research opportunities and supports basic, as well as translational and/or clinical investigators, however, research must be relevant to understanding, treatment and prevention of serious psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, or child/adolescent disorders.

As is well known, NARSAD is interested in supporting the full range of relevant neurobiological and psychobiological basic science. We also support clinical grants which can include careful studies using qualitative research approaches or research generating preliminary data to explore a new hypothesis generated by clinical experience or large sample studies. NARSAD awards are not sufficient to support expensive large sample patient-based studies but it may be possible to attach a study to a clinical project already under way or for which other funding has become available. Some possibilities for preliminary clinical studies include:

1. Support for an add-on study to identify a biomarker in the context of an ongoing clinical trial.
2. Determining if a computer-based cognitive or other remediation enhances effectiveness of a cognitive agent.
3. Proof of principle study in a few subjects to see if efficacy is detected with a new treatment.
4. Testing a novel hypothesis within an already established data set.
5. Research on productive work outcomes

These examples do not define specific NARSAD goals, but illustrate feasibility of expensive clinical research in the context of the NARSAD grants program.

NARSAD is committed to spending all contributions for direct research support. Administrative cost is small-reviewers are Scientific Council members and volunteer their time; therefore, no feedback can be provided.

1. Applicants must have a doctoral-level degree (M.D., Ph.D., etc.), be an associate professor (or equivalent), and have received, as P.I., competitive research support at a national level such as NIH, NSF, or foundation support;

2. Investigators that have been promoted to associate professor, but have currently active NARSAD Young Investigator awards, may not apply (NARSAD awards may not overlap in time-with the exception of no-cost extensions);

3. Independent Investigators are eligible for a maximum of two Independent Investigator Awards. Previous awardees at the associate professor level are encouraged to apply for a second award. However, awards cannot overlap in time, grant requirements from all previous awards (including Young Investigator Awards) must be met, and an applicant cannot submit more than one application per cycle;

4. Funding is for two years and is up to $50,000 per year. Funding of institutional overhead at an 8% rate (excluding equipment) is allowed and overhead must be included within the total budget request which may not exceed $100,000. Equipment, salary, and technical support are typical budget requests, but NARSAD wishes applicants to identify requirements specific to their research and setting;

5. A need for funding must be shown, and the applicant's institutional position must allow a minimum of 50% time for research. The applicant's institution must provide assurance that facilities and the investigator's time will be available to pursue the proposed work, if funded;

6. Applications must be submitted online by March 5, 2010. (Do not submit before February 1, 2010);

7. Notification of awards will be mailed in August, 2010. It is NARSAD's policy to provide no feedback on applications, other than funding notification. Earliest award start date is September 15, 2010.

Application should enable reviewers to determine eligibility; judge that independence and productivity are established; establish relevance of proposal to the NARSAD mission; and estimate originality and scientific promise of the investigator.

Applications must be submitted electronically via www.narsad.org as one document, be brief, typed in a font size no smaller than 11 pt., and include in the following order (please label each section accordingly and include applicant's name in the upper right corner, unless otherwise noted, and include a separate page for each):

(a) Institutional Assurance - statement providing institutional assurance regarding applicant's time, availability of facilities, and future position if research is funded. This page must be signed by the applicant's departmental chair or equivalent and include institutional signatures (i.e., Grants & Contracts/Sponsored Research Office), thereby signifying the institution's acceptance of these terms. The page must also state that applicant is an associate professor, or if not, specify how the current position is the associate professor equivalent in the host institution. This rank must be held at the time of the application (promotion will not negate the award);

(b) Abstract - a less than 500 word description of the research on a separate page written in terms understandable to lay people. Center the project title over the text. (Please be sure to place your name in the upper right hand corner). If the proposal is funded, this material may be used in NARSAD announcements;

(c) Proposal - a maximum of two pages to describe the project background and progress to date, clearly specify hypotheses, and outline the research plan. An absolute maximum of two pages standard type, with no appendices, is required (figures, tables, diagrams, et. al.., must be included within this page limit);

(d) References (optional) - a separate page listing up to 10 bibliographical references;

(e) Budget - a separate page of the budget description specifying the amount requested with a brief justification. Requests must not exceed $50,000 per year. Specific assurance that receipt of this award will not result in duplication of funding is required. Other support (received or pending) must be included;

(f) Collaborator Letter (optional) - letters of commitment from essential project collaborators (not solely letters of reference), addressed to the applicant briefly explaining the specific contribution and confirming a willingness to collaborate (only necessary if applicant will utilize collaborators). The scanned document/s depicting a signature should be submitted electronically;

(g) CV - NIH-style biosketch or biography portion of the CV and bibliography. The "Grant Support" section of the CV must specify competitive funding which meets eligibility requirements for this Award.

** IRB approval for human and animal subjects must be verified at time of award (do not include with application), as well as institutional acceptance of the NARSAD Terms of Award.

** In fairness to all applicants, supplemental material and material exceeding the specified length will not be considered in the review process. Letters of reference/support will be treated as supplemental material.

An automatic e-mail is generated upon submission of the electronic application. If you do not receive a confirmation, please contact grants@narsad.org.

E-mailed, faxed, or mailed applications will NOT be accepted.

If the Institutional Assurance or collaborator letter(s) cannot be scanned with signature(s), send to:

NARSAD, Research Grants (II 2010)
60 Cutter Mill Road, Suite 404
Great Neck, New York 11021