The Association for Surgical Education

Impacting Surgical Education Globally

Grants Availability Announcement

INTRODUCTION
The Association for Surgical Education Foundation was established by the Association for Surgical Education (ASE) as a non-profit foundation in 1993. Its mission is to raise and disseminate funds to support innovative research and education projects and programs which will advance surgical education in North America. The Association and the ASE Foundation are separately-incorporated organizations.

 

2021 ASE FOUNDATION RESEARCH GRANT PROGRAM

The Association for Surgical Education Foundation (ASEF) is pleased to offer a series of education research grants to start July 1, 2021.  Grant proposals that focus on the theme of virtual (either synchronous or asynchronous) instruction or assessment topics will receive special priority.

The Gold, Diamond, Platinum and Giant Robotic grants are described below:

 

 

Gold level grants are $500 USD each and ideally suited to fund small surgery education projects such as survey research projects. The timeline for these projects should be within one academic year.

Diamond level grants are well-suited for mixed methods surgery education projects. The timeline for these projects should be within one to two academic years.

The Platinum level grant is designed to support multi-institutional research projects. The timeline for these projects should be two academic years.

The Giant Robot grant will be funded as one grant of $25,000 USD. It is designed to support research projects that focus on robotic surgery research questions including curriculum design, training programs, assessment metrics, and patient outcomes. Research projects that focus on other technological applications to surgical education including electronic health records and machine learning are also welcome in this category. The timeline for these projects should be two academic years.

For all grants funds must be used for direct costs or to support a research assistant, statistician, or other study staff. Funds cannot be used for indirect costs, administrative or travel costs, publication costs, or salary support for the Principal Investigator, Co-PIs, or collaborators.

APPLICATION PROCESS

All applications are due on March 1, 2021 and must be formatted in Arial or Times New Roman font of at least 11 font size, single-spaced, and at least half-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right) for all pages.  Initial applications will be reviewed by members of the ASEF Research Committee and all awards will be announced at the 2021 Surgical Education Week.

All applications must include the following components:

  1. Research plan (2 pages maximum)
    1. Background and Aims
    2. Research strategy with summary of proposed analytic strategy
    3. 12- 24 month timetable depending on grant level (Projected start date is July 1, 2021)
    4. References (ICMJE formatting, no limit)
  2. Budget (1 page)
    1. Grant monies can be used for salary support of research assistants or other study staff.
    2. Please note that the budget cannot be used for indirect costs, administrative or travel costs, publication costs, or salary support for the Principal Investigator, Co-PIs, or collaborators.
  3. NIH-formatted biographical sketch
    1. Please attach NIH-formatted biographical sketches for the Principal Investigator (PI) and any co-Principal
    2. Please note that the PI must be an ASE member in good standing.
  4. Letters of Support
    1. All research sites should have one designated champion with a corresponding letter of support from the champion’s institution.
    2. Please also provide one letter of support from any applicable groups that will be studied in this project (i.e. medical student clerkship or residency program director).
  5. Appendices (no limit)
    1. Please use this section to attach any research or survey instruments that will be used in the proposed study.

 

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Applicants must be an MD/DO, Masters or Doctorate (PhD) with a full-time clinical or research position in an academic medical institution where the research will be conducted.  If the applicant is currently in residency training, they must obtain a sponsor letter from an Active ASE member at their primary research institution.

 

DELIVERABLES

Progress reports (technical and financial) are due to the ASEF Research Committee at quarterly intervals and final reports are due one month after completion of the project. The ASEF Research Committee will pass along all summary details of the research projects to the ASE Foundation and Executive Board at its regular meetings.  Two-year grant awardees may be asked to present their progress to the ASE Foundation directly.  Further details on reporting requirements and templates will be sent to the PI once awarded. Failure to submit the reports on-time may result in forfeiture of a portion of the research grant. All projects funded with this ASE Grant must be submitted for presentation at the ASE Annual Meeting.

 

SPECIAL SITUATIONS/CIRCUMSTANCES

No-cost extensions:  Six month to one-year no-cost extensions may be given for unexpected situations.  Written requests for extensions must be received ninety (90) days before the expiration of the original grant period and are subject to approval by the Chair of the ASEF Research Committee and the ASE Executive Board.

Additional Funding: The Principal Investigator is encouraged to apply for additional funding from other sources besides this ASEF Grant.

Transferring Institutions: This grant is NOT transferable to another individual within the Institution and NOT transferable to another institution OR to operating funds. If the Principal Investigator leaves their Institution, all unused funds MUST be returned.

Budget Changes: A certain degree of latitude may be given to revise the original budget to meet any unexpected needs.  All budget revisions must be submitted in writing to the Chair of ASEF Research Committee and are subject to approval by the ASEF.

 

DEADLINE

Grants must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on or before March 1, 2021. No late submissions will be accepted. Corrections of oversights/errors discovered after the deadline will not be allowed. All applications should be emailed to Dr. Roy Phitayakorn ([email protected]) and Lois Ehrlich ([email protected]).  Please let them know if there are any questions or concerns about your grant proposal or the grant review process.

 

MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS

Applicants may submit more than one grant application as principal investigators if they are substantially different projects.  Only one research project may be funded.