Grant Information
The Collaborative Research Travel Grant (CRTG) program provides up to $15,000 in support for relatively unrestricted travel funds to academic scientists (faculty and postdocs) at U.S. or Canadian degree-granting institutions. Grants must be used for domestic or international travel to another lab to learn new research techniques or begin or continue a collaboration to address biomedical questions. All proposals must be cross-disciplinary.
Applicants with a doctoral degree in the physical, mathematical, or engineering sciences working on a biological problem are encouraged to apply. Conversely, proposals from biological scientists who desire to collaborate with a physical scientist, mathematician, or engineer are also encouraged to apply.
Advisory Committee
Matthew Redinbo, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Chemistry
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
BWF Career Awardee in the Biomedical Sciences - 1999
Keith Weninger, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Physics
North Carolina State University
BWF Career Awardee at the Scientific Interface - 2001
John York, Ph.D.
Natalie Overall Warren Professor of Biochemistry
Chair, Department of Biochemistry
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
BWF Career Awardee in Biomedical Sciences - 1995
Additional members may be added to the committee.
Progress Reporting
Due Date: February 25 of the year following completion of travel
Progress and financial reports are required of all BWF grants and are due by February 25 of the year following completion of travel.
BWF has provided progress report guidelines to assist in the preparation and submission of Progress Reports in an acceptable manner. Award recipients must provide BWF with a progress report detailing outcomes as well as a financial report.
Progress Report
A Progress Report must be completed and should contain the following information:
- By February 25 (of the year following completion of travel), the awardee must submit a one to two-page PDF progress report (no form or template) describing the travel activity and what was accomplished via email to progress@bwfund.org. Include any scientific publications or presentations that result from the CRTG award. Scientific publications or presentations that result from the CRTG must acknowledge the awardee's receipt of a Burroughs Wellcome Fund Collaborative Research Travel Grant.
Financial Report
A Financial Report must be completed (form accessible below) and should contain the following information:
- By February 25 (of the year following completion of travel), the recipient’s home institution must complete and submit a financial report in PDF via email to progress@bwfund.org. A balance of $500 or less may be kept by the recipient's home institution.
*Please note: Recipients of the BWF Collaborative Research Travel Grant program are expected to participate in surveys and outcome evaluations. Contact from BWF staff or contractors who are conducting outcome evaluations of BWF grant programs may continue for a number of years after the grant has terminated.
Instructions for completing the on-line forms:
Determine your system software. Adobe Reader is widely used because it is free software (easily downloadable from http://www.adobe.com) that allows you to complete the form online, print the form, convert it to PDF format, and email it to BWF. Adobe Acrobat is purchased software required to save PDF files. “Acrobat” allows you to complete the form online, save the form and data to your system, and immediately email the PDF form to BWF.
With "Reader" software, print the form you just completed (do not use the Email button on the form). Convert the paper form to a PDF file by some electronic means and submit the PDF file.
With "Acrobat" software, after completing the form, click the Email button and you will be prompted to save your file to your system. If you are not prompted, it is likely that you do not have the required software, must print the form and follow step 2 above. If you email this form without Acrobat software, it will email a blank form and you will lose your data.
To complete the on-line forms, click on the first blank line and begin typing. To advance to the next line, press the keyboard "Tab" key until the form is completely filled out. Be sure to press the return key after the last entry to complete the process.
Submit one copy of the Progress and Financial Report by February 25 of the year following completion of travel to travel.progress@bwfund.org.
Troubleshooting PDFs
Portable Document Format (PDF) is a standard ISO format for sharing data across multiple platforms. Our most common questions and answers are provided below. For additional help with Adobe products and questions, visit: http://www.adobe.com.
I can complete the interactive PDF form, but I can’t save it.
You do not have the necessary software to save PDF documents. Adobe Reader software will only allow you to read PDF documents, it will not save the document. You will need to complete the form, print it, scan the document, and upload it to your application as a PDF file.
What is Adobe Reader?
With Adobe Reader you can open, read, search, and print PDFs, and fill out PDF forms. To edit a PDF, converting a document to PDF, or to perform any other task requires that you purchase or subscribe to Adobe Acrobat.com or Adobe Acrobat. If you only downloaded the “free” Adobe Reader software, you will need to complete the form online print it, scan the document, and upload it to your application as a PDF file. Reader software will not “save” the document to your system.
What is PDF/A?
PDF/A is a viewing mode which means “PDF for Archiving.” PDF/A view mode in Acrobat will not allow you to do many of the day-to-day edits, insert pages, or man other commonly used features. Fillable designed forms are not able to be completed online if they are opened in the PDF/A view mode. You should change this view mode to complete the forms online. Note that documents you scan to PDF are PDF/A-compliant, so it is easy to conform later to PDF/A if desired.
To change the view mode and enter text:
- Choose Edit > Preferences
- Select “Documents” under “Categories”
- Change the option for “View Documents in PDF/A” to never.
I downloaded the interactive PDF version of a form. How do I complete it?
- Click in the first field on the form and begin typing, or if a checkbox, click to check the box and advance to the next line by pressing the keyboard “Tab” key.
- Press the return key after the last entry on the form.
- Save the PDF form on your system to be uploaded/attached to the application.
I downloaded the MS Word version of a form. How do I convert the completed document to Portable Document Format (PDF)?
There are various ways to convert a document to PDF including "Print to PDF," if you have the Adobe Acrobat software, "Scan to PDF," a feature on certain copy/print equipment, or you can utilize software or PDF generators available on the internet.
To print to PDF from your system:
- Open the document.
- Select File, Print from the menu (a Print dialog box will appear).
- Click on the drop-down list arrow for the printer Name field (to view your list of available printers).
- Choose "Adobe PDF" as the printer.
- Click the "Print" button. The document automatically converts to PDF. In the "Save PDF File As" dialog box, type in a name for the PDF file (file name should have no extraneous characters, e.g., no brackets, hyphens, underscores, commas, quotes, etc.) and verify the location to which the document will be saved, click Save (the document will be saved as a PDF file).
- Close the file
What is a PDF Generator and what do I need to know about it?
- It is possible to convert many common file formats (Microsoft Word, Corel WordPerfect, etc.) to PDF using a wide variety of PDF-generators, sometimes called distillers. PDF conversion is also built into Microsoft Office 2007. Some third-party PDF converters are free, many are inexpensive—and some are better than others. If you use one of these applications, be sure to test the results to ensure that you and others can open and view the resulting PDF files using the free Adobe Reader software.
- If you scan a document to create a PDF file, avoid scanning it at a high resolution. Typically, applications are read online by reviewers, so an image scanned at 100 dpi (dots or pixels per inch) will display very clearly on a computer monitor. An image scanned at higher resolution (300+ dpi) will result in a very large file, and it will usually not result in a better-quality display when viewed on a monitor. Large files can also cause problems with viewing or downloading your application. If your image must be seen at very high resolution, consider posting it to a website and embedding a link to it in a PDF file.
- If you scan text—e.g. a letter or résumé or curriculum vitae—do not scan it as an image, even a relatively low-resolution image. Text should be scanned as text, using an optical character recognition (OCR) application. Scanning text with OCR software allows you to edit the text after it has been scanned, and allows you (and those reading your application) to search for text within the document. Neither of these things can be done if you scan the text and save it as an image.
- When creating PDFs, do not create PDF files that can only be read with the most recent version(s) of the free Acrobat Reader. The better PDF-generators allow you to specify which PDF version to produce. We recommend that you specify that your PDFs should be read by Acrobat Reader 6.x and higher (PDF standard 1.5). This will ensure that your files can be viewed by older versions of Acrobat Reader.
- Do not include any security or encryption in your PDF files. Make sure that the files are not read-only and that they are not password-protected.
- Do not include attachments within your PDF files.
PDF GENERATORS
Due to the vast number of PDF generators on the market and your individual system requirements, you should search the internet for the PDF generator that works best for you. Search: pdf generator free. BWF does not endorse any particular software.
After I convert the document to PDF, then what?
Once you have converted the document to a PDF file, the next step is to upload/attach the file to your online application.
Can I use a WORD version of the form?
Yes, if you are unable to complete the PDF forms, you may use the MS Word version of the form. The word document will lose some of its formatting in the process which might require editing. You are responsible for correcting any changes to MS Word forms resulting from input of data. Once the document is finalized, convert it to a PDF file (see Convert a document to PDF) and upload the PDF file to your application. BWF will only accept documents as PDF files.
General
Can I submit a paper application?
No. BWF requires that all applications for this program be submitted electronically. Paper applications will not be accepted.
Can I change my application once submitted?
No. Once your application is submitted, it cannot be changed.
Can Letters of Collaboration be included in the application?
No. Collaborative situations can be described in the five-page Project Plan - there is no need for individual collaborative letters.
How serious are you about the page limit on the project plan?
All applicants must stay within the set five-page limit or the application will be rejected.
Does the bibliography count toward the five-page maximum Research Plan?
No. It is considered part of the required supporting materials. Abbreviations should be limited in the text.
Is there a font or margin requirement for the research plan?
Use standard 11- or 12-point type for the text. The text must be single-spaced, with a one-half inch or larger margins on all sides.
Accessing the Application
Do I need to complete my application in one session?
No, you can start an application and return at a later time to complete the application. When beginning a new application, you are required to establish a ProposalCentral log-in and password if you do not already have one. At any time during the application process, you may click the "save" button, exit the application, and return at a later time.
Logistics
I forgot my user id and/or password. What should I do?
For a forgotten password or user ID, visit the BWF grant application system and click the forgotten password link.
I completed my application. How do I submit it?
Once the application is complete, proceed with the following steps:
- Click “Validate” on the sidebar to see if any errors are identified. All information must be provided prior to application submission.
- If there are no missing items in the application, click on the SUBMIT link on the sidebar. Click the blue SUBMIT button. The application is NOT submitted until you complete this step.
- Applications submissions must occur prior to 3:00 pm (EST) on the day of the deadline. The submit button will disappear after that time. Applicants should receive a confirmation email once your application is submitted. If you do not receive this email, please reach out to BWF.
If I’m having trouble with the electronic application, whom can I contact for help?
For questions about the electronic application, please contact Darcy Lewandowski via email or by phone at 919-991-5132.
No recipients at this time.
Award Timeline
Program Contacts
