The NCI Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition Award (F99/K00)

Learn more about the F99/K00 Award by viewing this year’s NCI F99/K00 Predoc to Postdoc Award funding opportunity PA-27-037 -- Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Transition Award (Parent F99/K00 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed).

The F99 Research Training Plan should be developed in collaboration between the sponsor and F99 candidate. The F99 project can be within the overall scope of the sponsor’s research awards. However, NCI expects the F99 candidate to make significant intellectual contributions to the project and write the Research Training Plan. There should be no text duplication or substantial duplication of the scientific aims, and the candidate ’s application should propose a scientific research question or approach that is distinct from the specific aims of the sponsor’s pending or active research grants.

NCI will not support both a fellowship award and an active or pending research grant that propose substantially the same research.

Interested applicants should review the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), the material under Resources, and/or contact the Program Directors.

Financial Support

F99 phase: Stipend, Tuition and Fees, and Institutional Allowance

K00 phase: Salary and Fringe Benefits, Tuition and Fees, Research and Career Development Support, and Indirect Costs

Required Application Instructions

• Applications must be submitted electronically.
• To apply to the F99/K00 NOFO, it is critical that applicants follow the Fellowship (F) instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, the NOFO, as well as any program-specific instructions noted in the NCI specific webpage.

For assistance with application submission, please see the Frequently Asked Questions and/or contact eRA Commons Help Desk/Grant.gov Contact Center.

Application Receipt Date and Review Schedule

Please follow the application due dates listed in the NOFO.

Review and Selection Process

An appropriate Scientific Review Group (SRG) convened by the NIH Center for Scientific Review,  along with NCI and the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB), will evaluate applications for completeness and conformance with eligibility requirements and special provisions and requirements. Incomplete applications will be returned to the applicant without further consideration. 

For review criteria for the F99 grant mechanism, see the Section V. Review Information section of the NOFO.

K00 Transition Application

A postdoctoral position (or equivalent) must be offered and accepted. The K00 phase institution must submit an application on behalf of the candidate for the K00 Award using Career Development (K) instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide, as well as any instructions found in Section VI.2 of NOFO and the NCI specific webpage.  The NCI requires institutions  to submit the K00 application at least 6 months prior to the proposed activation date of the K00 Award to allow adequate time for review of the application.  This will also ensure the transition to the K00 phase takes place without interruption in funding.  The K00 application must include:

• A new cover page signed by the K00 phase institutional representative;
• A Final Progress Report for the F99 phase;
• A final evaluation statement by the F99 primary sponsor;
• Updated Project Summary and Abstract, Project Narrative, Bibliography & References Cited, Facilities & Other Resources, and Equipment sections;
• Biographical sketches;
• Detailed budget pages for a non-modular budget: K00 budgets consist of salary and fringe benefits, up to $30,000/year for research and career development, and indirect costs, as described in Part II, Section II of the NOFO, and the NCI specific webpage. Other costs are not allowed;
• Updated sections of the PHS Career Development Award Supplemental Form should include:
  • An updated Research Plan section: The Specific Aims should be updated to reflect current plans for the K00 phase and the updated Research Strategy should be described in 4 pages;
  • A new Mentor, Co-Mentor, Consultant, Collaborators Section that also includes a plan for transitioning the candidate to the next stage of his/her career by the end of the project award period. The mentor should describe previous experience as a mentor, including type of mentoring (e.g., graduate students, career development awardees, postdoctoral students), number of persons mentored, and career outcomes. If the primary mentor has limited training experience, a co-mentor with a strong, successful track record as a mentor should be included;
  • An updated Environment and Institutional Commitment to the Candidate Section
  • An Institutional Commitment to Candidate’s Research Career Development. 
  • Updated Other Research Plan Sections (as appropriate), including:
    • Vertebrate Animals
    • Select Agent Research
    • Resource Sharing Plans
    • Authentication of Key Biological and/or Chemical Resources;
    • Updated Biohazards section
    • Data and Management Sharing Plan
• Updated Protections for Human Subjects.

• Funding opportunity PA-27-037 Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Transition Award (Parent F99/K00 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
• Writing a Grant Application Webinar 08/11/2020
• Current List of F99 and K00 Awards
• Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Overview of the Grant Process
• NIH Grants Policy Statement (GPS)- see section 11.2

For additional information regarding policies and/or guidance in preparing an application, contact:

• F99/K00 Program Director(s)
  Email: NCIF99-K00@nih.gov

For information regarding fiscal and/or budget issues, contact:

• Office of Grants Administration
  Email: NCIFinancialContact@nih.gov

For information regarding referral issues, contact:

• Referral Officer
  Email: ncirefof@dea.nci.nih.gov

For information regarding review issues, contact:

• Center for Scientific Review, Division of Receipt & Referral
  Email: csrdrr@mail.nih.gov
• Scientific Review Officer
  Email: found in your eRA Commons account