Fellows-to-Faculty Award

Eligibility

Applicants must hold at least one of the following degrees or equivalent: Ph.D., M.D., M.D./Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. Applicants must be in a non-independent, mentored research training position in a faculty member’s research lab, e.g., postdoctoral position, physician-scientist research fellowship position. Applicants must not accept a formal offer for a tenure-track faculty position or equivalent before award notification. Applicants may not simultaneously hold other career development awards that facilitate a transition to an independent research career.

There are no citizenship requirements.

Simons Foundation employees who receive a W-2 (Wage and Tax Statement) from the Simons Foundation, including employees of the Flatiron Institute, may not apply as a principal investigator (PI) to any Simons Foundation or Simons Foundation International Requests for Applications (RFAs) released by the Simons Foundation. PIs and any project personnel listed on the application who will receive funding for salary, travel, support for students, postdocs or research staff, lab equipment, computing time or other individual expenses may not be employees of the Simons Foundation, which includes the Flatiron Institute.

SF and SFI do not provide funding to institutions in China or to fiscal sponsors or agents of institutions in China. This includes funding to support subcontracts at institutions in China or consultants residing or working for institutions in China.

Summary

The Fellows-to-Faculty Award program supports talented early career scientists by facilitating their transition into tenure-track faculty positions. The focus of this program is the $600,000 USD three-year faculty research grant. Additionally, fellows engage with a community of investigators and receive mentoring and peer support during their transition.

The Simons Foundation’s Autism & Neuroscience division offers the program to nurture new talent and to broaden the community of scientists contributing to the scientific missions of our programs. We drive innovation and collaboration by supporting scientists with a diverse mix of minds, backgrounds and experiences.

This request for applications (RFA) is intended for Ph.D. and/or M.D.-holding scientists currently in mentored research training positions who intend to seek tenure-track research faculty positions during the upcoming academic job cycle. Applicants must have a scientific vision for their future independent laboratory that advances the mission of the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) or Simons Collaboration on Plasticity and the Aging Brain (SCPAB).

Each fellow is provided up to five (5) years of financial support, split into a faculty research award over three (3) years, and an optional, preceding postdoctoral award for a maximum of two (2) years. Fellows may activate awards at research institutions within or outside of the United States.

Please note that in the event of budgetary or other considerations, The Simons Foundation, Inc. (“the Foundation” or “SF”) reserves the right to refer an application to The Simons Foundation International, Ltd. (“SFI”) for consideration and funding. SFI and SF have entered into an agreement pursuant to which SF provides program operations and grant administration services, including payment processing, to SFI. SFI grant recipients are subject to SF Policies and Procedures.

Faculty Research Award

The Faculty Research Award includes $200,000 USD, inclusive of 20 percent indirect costs, per year for three (3) years, intended as a supplement to a full, institution-provided start-up package. Funds may be used for reasonable costs related to the fellow’s scientific research.

The grant must be activated within the first 12 months of the fellow starting their faculty position.

Postdoctoral Award - Please contact the Postdoc Team (RSO)

The Postdoctoral Award is intended to support the fellow while on the faculty job market during their transition to the faculty position. To hold this award, the fellow must be a postdoctoral researcher or hold an equivalent non-independent, mentored research training position. Fellows are not required to accept the Postdoctoral Award.

If accepted, the Postdoctoral Award must be activated on September 1, 2026. The end date of the Postdoctoral Award is the date the fellow departs from their postdoctoral position or August 31, 2028, whichever occurs first. The Postdoctoral Award includes the following, annually:

• $85,000 USD stipend
• $10,000 USD career development allowance
• $15,000 USD health insurance & other benefits allowance

No indirect or overhead costs may be charged to the postdoctoral award.

The award may be supplemented by other sources of funding.

Overhead

Indirect costs to the primary institution are limited to 20 percent of direct costs for the Faculty Research Award.

No indirect or overhead costs may be charged to the postdoctoral award.

Application deadlines

RSO detailed review deadline

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

RESOURCES

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be!

Contact the following Research Service units for support with:

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:

Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST).

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.

For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage.

Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.

EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Research Security:

The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

Pre-Award Submissions:
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application