Preterm Birth Initiative

Application Deadlines:

The application deadline for the Planning Grant/Letter of Intent ended  June 1, 2009.  Approved LOIs will be notified and invited to submit a full research grant.  Additional instructions will be provided to those invitees.

Institutional and PI Requirements

Application Instructions
Troubleshooting Applications
BWF Forms and Instructions

Proposals must be submitted from degree-granting institutions in the United States or Canada.  The principal investigator must have a faculty appointment at a degree-granting institution in the U.S. or Canada. 

View the eligibility requirements and terms of the grant for additional information. 

The Principal Investigator Should:

• Complete the Grant Application/Signature Page Form on proposalCENTRAL with appropriate signatures and upload this document as a PDF to be part of the proposal.
•  Include a Scientific Abstract (one-page maximum).
• Prepare a five-page summary describing the interdisciplinary nature of the proposal, the research plan, and the impact of the work on preterm birth or parturition.
• Complete the budget template on proposalCENTRAL. The amount requested for the planning grant cannot exceed $50,000.
• Include the biosketch of the principal investigator and of at least one scientist who is currently working outside of the area of preterm birth or parturition. The biosketch should include the principal investigator’s current funding.
• Attach the biosketch of no more than eight additional partners or collaborators.

Burroughs Wellcome Fund (BWF) requires all applications for this program to be submitted electronically through proposalCENTRAL, a web-based grant application system, using links provided below.  Applications not submitted electronically will be returned and not reviewed. 

The Planning Grant/LOI Signature Page Form and other attachments must be submitted electronically through proposalCENTRAL by 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, June 1, 2009.

Start early.  Applications that are not in compliance with BWF instructions will be rejected out of fairness to other applicants.  All pieces of the application must be submitted prior to the application deadline.  No exceptions.

All applicants must first apply for a Planning Grant/LOI.  Only approved LOIs will be invited to apply for the full research grant.  If invited, you will be notified and additional instructions will be provided at that time.

Instructions for submitting a BWF online application, along with the required templates, can be found on proposalCENTRAL in either the "Download Templates & Instructions" section or the "Attachments" section of the application. 

All required documents must be submitted and uploaded to proposalCENTRAL as Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files. Standard word processing software (e.g., MS WORD, WordPerfect) can be used to prepare the attachments; however, all documents must be converted from standard word processing format to Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files prior to being uploaded to proposalCENTRAL.

The principal investigator must create a professional profile on proposalCENTRAL.  If a professional profile has already been created, then the applicant must verify the information for accuracy.  Demographic data is for statistical use only.

The application may be accessed and changed multiple times prior to the application deadline.  The application cannot be changed once the deadline has passed.

Applications must be completed electronically via proposalCENTRAL and include the sections below. For more descriptive information on these requirements, see Sections of the Grant Proposal.

Sections of the application requiring data entry on proposalCENTRAL:

• Title Page
• Principal Investigator Applicant Information
• Primary Institution and Partners/Collaborators

Attachments that must be uploaded as PDF files on proposalCENTRAL (templates provided where indicated):

• Biosketches (four-page limit; template provided) of the principal investigator, at least one scientist working outside the area of preterm birth or parturition, and collaborators/partners (10 maximum)
• Scientific Abstract (one-page limit; template provided)
• Research Summary (five-page limit)
• Budget (template provided)

Section of the application that must be printed and uploaded:

• Signature Page Form

Applicants are strongly encouraged to read the descriptive program, eligibility requirements, and instructions above before completing the application.  If there are remaining questions, BWF staff is available to assist you.  For questions regarding eligibility, policies, and terms and conditions for this program, please contact:

Rolly Simpson, Program Officer
Phone: 919/991-5110

or

Debra Holmes, Program Associate
Phone: 919/991-5134

For help with the electronic application process, please contact:
proposalCENTRAL Help Desk
Phone: 1-800-875-2562

By clicking the proposalCENTRAL link, you will be redirected to proposalCENTRAL’s web site which hosts BWF’s electronic application.