ASH provides many awards and programs to support hematologists in all stages of their careers. Read on for information about awards specifically geared to early-career hematologists/oncologists, and visit hematology.org/awards for more information about eligibility criteria and due dates.
Career-Enhancement Awards
ASH-AMFDP Award
Provided through a partnership between ASH and the Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program (AMFDP) of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the ASH-AMFDP Award is given to a scholar from an underrepresented minority. The award provides four years of research support, including an annual stipend of up to $75,000 and an annual grant of $30,000 toward the support of research activities
Complimentary ASH membership is provided, which includes a subscription to Blood. Recipients also have the opportunity to attend the ASH annual meeting for the four years of the award and are invited to the AMFDP annual meeting each year with travel expenses covered by the grant.
Research Training Award for Fellows
The ASH Research Training Award for Fellows (RTAF) provides up to six awards of $55,000 for a one-year period to fellows-in-training who are pursuing research. The grant is intended to be used primarily for salary support for the applicant. The salary includes benefits provided by applicant’s institution for up to 15 percent of the total award amount. Additionally, up to $5,000 of the funding may be allocated for research supplies and reagents, and up to $1,000 may be used for travel to the ASH annual meeting. Recipients also receive $1,000 outside of the award to support attendance at the ASH annual meeting for the year following their award term.
Awards are targeted to two separate groups of researchers:
- Junior Investigator RTAF for 2nd- or 3rd-year fellows whose research has been initiated but have collected no preliminary data (apply in years 1 or 2 of fellowship)
- Senior Investigator RTAF for 4th- or 5th-year fellows whose projects have been initiated and have generated data (apply in years 3 or 4 of fellowship)
Scholar Awards
The ASH Scholar Awards are designed to support hematologists who have chosen a career in research by providing partial salary or other support during that critical period required for completion of training and achievement of status as an independent investigator.
The award supports the following types of research: basic, translational, patient-oriented, and outcomes-based.
Awards are limited to a maximum of $100,000 for fellow scholars and $150,000 for junior faculty scholars over a two- to three-year period, with an annual maximum of $50,000 for fellows and $75,000 for junior faculty. Up to 15 percent of the award can be (but is not required to be) used for benefits.
ASH Annual Meeting Abstract Awards
ASH Abstract Achievement Awards and Outstanding Abstract Achievement Awards
ASH offers two types of merit-based awards of $500 to trainees with high-scoring abstracts accepted to the for presentation at the ASH annual meeting: the ASH Abstract Achievement Award and the Outstanding Abstract Achievement Award. These awards are provided to presenters in each of the following categories:
- undergraduate student
- medical student
- graduate student
- resident physician
- post-doctoral fellow (MD or PhD)
Mary Rodes Gibson Memorial Award in Hemostasis and Thrombosis
The annual Mary Rodes Gibson Memorial Award in Hemostasis and Thrombosis is granted to a trainee (undergraduate student, medical student, graduate student, resident physician, or post-doctoral fellow) who is the first author and presenter of the highest-scoring ASH annual meeting abstract submitted in the field of hemostasis and thrombosis. The recipient receives a $5,000 grant and a $1,000 allowance for travel and expense for the ASH annual meeting.
This award is presented on behalf of the Mary Rodes Gibson Hemostasis-Thrombosis Foundation, which seeks to continue the legacy of Mary Rodes Gibson who suffered from severe, type 3 von Willebrand disease.
Minority Graduate Student Abstract Achievement Award
As part of ASH’s Minority Recruitment Initiative, the Minority Graduate Student Abstract Achievement Award is provided to attract and retain minority doctorate students to the field of hematology through attendance to the ASH annual meeting.
Students who are selected for the award must already have hematology-related research in the works and must have an abstract accepted for oral or poster presentation at the ASH annual meeting.
Recipients are allotted a $1,500 stipend and complementary online subscriptions to Blood and The Hematologist during their remaining time as a graduate student.
Medical Student and Early Investigator Awards
Physician–Scientist Career Development Award
The Physician–Scientist Career Development Award is a new opportunity for medical students to gain experience in hematology research and to learn more about the specialty by immersing themselves in a year-long laboratory, translational, or clinical investigation under the mentorship of an ASH member.
Recipients of the one-year award receive $42,000 in funding, which includes $28,000 to support the trainee, $5,500 for research supplies, $5,500 for insurance and educational expenses (including one course), and $3,000 for meeting attendance.
Applicants are eligible if they are a first-, second-, or third-year medical student planning an investigative career in laboratory, translational, or clinical hematology research and agree to spend more than 80 percent of the time conducting research during the one-year experience.
HONORS (Hematology Opportunities for the Next Generation of Research Scientists)
The ASH HONORS Award supports talented medical students and residents conducting hematology research. The recipient receives a $5,000 stipend to conduct either a short- (up to three months) or long-term (between three and 12 months) hematology research project. Recipients also receive $1,000 each year for two years to support attendance at the ASH annual meeting.
Applicants are eligible if they are an ASH member (or have a membership application pending at the time the application is submitted) and are an MD or DO medical student in a Liaison Committee on Medical Education (or its equivalent) accredited institution in the United States, Canada, or Mexico.
Minority Medical Student Award Program
The Minority Medical Student Award Program (MMSAP) provides minority medical students with the opportunity to learn about the field of hematology, gain first-hand research experience in the lab of an ASH member, and receive valuable guidance from both a research and a career development mentor.
The program offers the following eight- to 12-week research options:
- A summer research experience for minority medical students between their first and second year of medical school, to be conducted during the summer break with a laboratory- or clinically based hematology investigator.
- A flexible research experience for minority medical students in their first, second, or third year of medical school, to be completed over the course of a year (approximately 320-480-hour commitment).
After the research experience, students attend the ASH annual meeting, where they present their research findings at the Promoting Minorities in Hematology Presentations and Reception. Additionally, participants may apply for a second summer research experience and are encouraged to remain involved with ASH throughout medical school and residency to continue on the path to a career in hematology.
Minority Resident Hematology Award Program
The Minority Resident Hematology Award Program (MRHAP) is designed to provide support for underrepresented minority residents to conduct hematology-focused research. The intended outcome is to increase interest in hematology research and influence fellowship choice. Individuals from the following groups are encouraged to apply:
- medical residents who are enrolled in an internal medicine, pathology, or pediatric residency program
- resident physicians who have applied to or matched into a hematology-oncology fellowship program
After the research experience, MRHAP participants attend the ASH annual meeting, where they present the results of their projects at the Promoting Minorities in Hematology Presentations and Reception. Attendance at the ASH annual meeting provides residents with outstanding opportunities to meet prominent leaders in the field of hematology, network with other MRI program participants, and hear the latest breaking news in the field.
ASH Clinical Research Training Institute
The ASH Clinical Research Training Institute (CRTI) is a year-long education and mentoring program for hematology fellows and junior faculty at academic medical centers that offers a broad education on clinical research methods, research collaborations, statistical analysis, and managing the demands of family and career.
The CRTI begins with a mandatory week-long summer workshop that focuses on the foundation, methodologies, and application of patient-oriented clinical research. Participants are matched with workshop faculty members and a small group, providing them with intensive exposure to mentorship and networking resources. Throughout the week, the participants further develop their own proposed patient-oriented clinical research projects, refining and revising their plans through interaction with faculty and peers.
In addition to the summer workshop, two subsequent mandatory sessions, the first at the ASH annual meeting in December and the second in May at ASH Headquarters in Washington, DC, provide an opportunity for further interaction and mentoring throughout the year.