Apply for BBRF Young Investigator Grant Program

In addition to supporting the full ranges of relevant neurobiological and psychobiological basic science, they also support clinical science, which can include careful studies using qualitative research approaches or research generating preliminary data to explore a new hypothesis generated by clinical experience or large sample studies.

The BBRF Young Investigator Grant is not sufficient to support expensive large sample patient-based studies, but it may be possible to attach a study to a clinical project already under way or for which other funding has become available. Some examples of preliminary clinical studies include:

• Support for an add-on study that would probe a potential mechanism or circuit underlying a new treatment in the context of drug discovery.
• Determining if a computer-based cognitive or other remediation enhances effectiveness of cognitive agents.
• Proof of principle study to see if efficacy is detected with a new treatment.
• Testing a novel hypothesis within an already established data set.

Areas of Research

• All research must be relevant to their understanding, treatment and prevention of serious psychiatric disorders such as: schizophrenia; bipolar; mood and anxiety disorders or early onset brain and behavior disorders.

Funding Information

• Funding is for one or two years and is up to $35,000 per year. The Foundation does not pay institutional overhead on the BBRF Young Investigator Grant Program.

Eligibility Criteria

• BBRF welcomes diversity with BBRF grant applications including gender, race, ethnicity, and culture of the applicant, and geographic location for their proposed work.
• Applicants must have a doctoral level degree (e.g., M.D. with [minimum PGY-IV training, Ph.D., Psy.D., Pharm.D., etc.) and already be employed in research training or a faculty research position. The YI Grant is intended to support advanced post-doctoral fellows, instructors and assistant professors (or equivalent). Anyone who has served, or is serving, as a principal investigator (PI) on a NIH R01 grant or the equivalent (e.g., VA Merit Review grant) is not eligible. Investigators at the rank of associate professor or equivalent are also not eligible.
• Applicants must have an on-site mentor or senior collaborator who is an established investigator in areas relevant to psychiatric disorders. The mentor/sponsor role is usually extensive for fellowship extension (mentor), and more senior colleague/advisor (sponsor) for an applicant prepared to initiate independent science.
• Applicants may only apply twice for an initial BBRF Young Investigator Grant.
• Applicants are eligible for a maximum of two BBRF Young Investigator Grants. Prior grantees who are currently advanced post-doctoral, instructor or assistant professor can apply for a second grant. However, grants cannot overlap in time, only one application for a second BBRF YI Grant is permitted, and substantial productivity on the first grant must be documented and the applicant must show how a second grant will facilitate competition for a NIH R01 grant or equivalent.
• Only one principal investigator is allowed per application.

For more information, visit BBRF.