CALL FOR NOMINATIONS: 2015 Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences

UCI is among a select number of institutions invited to nominate a candidate for the Pew Scholars Program in the Biomedical Sciences.  The award supports independent young investigators of outstanding promise in basic and clinical sciences relevant to the advancement of human health.  It is intended to provide assured support for successful applicants as they establish their laboratories, thereby encouraging them to be more venturesome in their research and future applications for support.

Pew Scholars receive $60,000 in annual support for four years ($240,000 in total). The funds may be used, at the scholar’s discretion, for personnel, equipment, supplies or research-related travel. Not more than $10,000 of the annual award may be used for the Scholar’s salary and fringe benefits.

Candidates must have a doctorate in medicine, other health related profession or biomedical sciences, and must hold a full-time appointment as assistant professor or the equivalent as of November 1, 2014.  As of July 1, 2014, candidates cannot have been in such an appointment for more than three years, whether or not such appointments were on a tenure track or at more than one institution.  Time spent in clinical internships, residencies, or in work towards board certification does not count as part of the three-year limit.  In addition, similar private scholar awards (in excess of $50K) may not simultaneously support candidates during the first two years of the scholarship (beginning August 2015).  Candidates receiving awards primarily for salary from institutional endowments, research societies and associations, and federal sources, are not precluded from receiving a Pew Award.

The Chancellor may nominate one candidate; therefore, please submit internal nominations to the Office of Research (via electronic submission to or@research.uci.edu), by June 13, 2014.

To assist in the review process, I am requesting that each department submit only one nomination for consideration. Therefore interested applicants should coordinate with their Department Chair prior to starting the internal submission process. The internal nomination should contain:

  • Synopsis of the candidate’s proposed research (up to three pages describing the project to be undertaken, its aims and objectives, the methods to be used, and the potential significance of the research);
  • Description of most significant research to date (one or two paragraphs, emphasizing creativity and risk-taking);
  • Nominee’s CV or bio sketch (two pages max), including current and pending support;
  • List of three references, to include (a) the candidate’s thesis advisor, or for other than Ph.D. candidates, a member of the professional school faculty; (b) the individual(s) under whose auspices the candidate was a Research Fellow; and (c) a scientific reference from the applicant’s field who is not a current collaborator, not at UCI, and not a former fellowship advisor; and
  • Support letter from the Dean (or the equivalent in units without a Dean).
    Deans: Please use this letter to evaluate the applicant’s skills and knowledge for this project, and if there is more than one applicant from your unit, please rank them.

Following receipt of the internal nominations, an ad hoc committee will be convened to review the proposals.  The selected candidate will be notified prior to the July 15th deadline for the institutional nomination form. Full proposals are due on or before October 1, 2014 at 9:00a.m. PDT.

For further information, visit http://www.pewhealth.org/biomedical-research/pew-biomedical-scholars-327805/program-details. Questions about the internal review process may be directed to Greg Ruth at greg.ruth@uci.edu or x4-0372.

John C. Hemminger
Vice Chancellor for Research

Scroll to Top