Student Research Fellowship Awards

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Awards are offered to support high school and undergraduate students performing digestive disease or nutrition research for a minimum of 10 weeks. High school awards are supported by the Eli & Edythe Broad Foundation.

AT A GLANCE

Eligibility: High School and Undergraduate Students
Amount/year: $2,500
Duration: 10 weeks
Deadline: March 22
Start Date: July 1

DESCRIPTION

This award program offers $2,500 stipends for 10 high school students and 24 undergradate students to spend time performing research in digestive diseases or nutrition for a minimum of 10 weeks. The research may take place at any time during the year.

OBJECTIVE 

The overall objective of this award is to stimulate interest in research careers in digestive diseases by providing monetary support for research projects.

ELIGIBILITY

  • Candidate must be a high school or undergraduate student attending an accredited North American institution.
  • Candidates may not hold similar salary support awards from other agencies (such as the American Liver Foundation, Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America).
  • The award is not intended to provide salary for laboratory technicians.
  • Past recipients of the Student Research Fellowship Award may reapply for continuous funding provided they submit a progress report indicating how this funding will further his/her research.
  • Ten awards will be designated for underrepresented/underprivileged undergraduate students who are interested in digestive diseases research. Those with a possible career interest in this field are particularly encouraged to apply. Eligible candidates will include, but are not limited to, Black Americans, Hispanic or Latino Americans, Native Americans, and Pacific Islanders.

REQUIREMENTS

  • The awards are provided to students performing research supervised by a preceptor for a minimum of 10 weeks.
  • A letter of recommendation from a past or current teacher or supervisor is required.
  • Indirect costs are not allowed. The award is paid directly to the student and is to be used as a stipend. 
  • A scientific progress report is required upon completion of the fellowship.
  • High school students, Broad Scholars, must acknowledge the AGA-Broad Foundation Student Research Fellowship Award in all testimonials and works that may result from this award, to include all publications, abstracts and presentations. Undergraduate students are required to acknowledge the AGA Research Foundation in all testimonials and in the event that publications, abstracts and/or presentations result from this award.

PRECEPTOR

The preceptor must be a full-time faculty member who directs a research program in a gastroenterology-related area at an accredited North American institution. The preceptor must provide a statement indicating his/her involvement in the completion of the application, his/her training record and the student's role in the study. In addition, the preceptor must be an AGA member at the time of the candidate’s application submission.

SELECTION CRITERIA AND REVIEW PROCESS

Members of the AGA Research Award Panel will facilitate the grant review and select the award recipients. Award recipient selection will be based upon novelty, feasibility and significance of the proposal, attributes of the candidate, the record of the preceptor, evidence of institutional commitment, and the laboratory environment.

ABSTRACT SUBMISSION

Students who receive an award are encouraged (but not required) to submit abstracts for presentation at DDW®, the world’s largest gathering of clinicians, educators and researchers in gastrointestinal and hepatic disease and function. If a recipient’s abstract is accepted for presentation,he/she will be eligible to apply for the AGA Research Foundation Student Abstract Prize, a $500 travel award to cover expenses to attend DDW. To submit an abstract for consideration, go to www.ddw.org and click on "Abstract Submission."

APPLICATION PROCESS

The application deadline date for this award is March 22. If submitting an application as an underrepresented/underprivileged minority, please include a paragraph in the Student’s Statement section of the application that will fully explain eligibility for this category (e.g., grew up and went to high school in rural underserved area, both parents are economically disadvantaged, etc). The completed application, letters of support or commitment, and other documents, as required, must be combined into and submitted as one PDF file. The document must be titled by the applicant’s last name and first initial only. Hard copies will not be accepted. Please e-mail the application document to awards@gastro.org. The applicant's full name and project title are to be included in the submission e-mail. Direct all questions to the Research Awards Manager via telephone at 301-222-4012 or e-mail at awards@gastro.org.

Support of this program by The Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.