NIH Releases Updated Stipend Information

[From the NIH website]

Stipends
Effective with all Kirschstein-NRSA awards made on or after October 1, 2015, the following annual stipend levels apply to all individuals receiving support through institutional research training grants or individual fellowships, including the Maximizing Access to Research Career (MARC) program.

Undergraduates in the MARC Program:  For institutional training grants (T34), one stipend level is used for undergraduates in the Junior and Senior years. 

Predoctoral:  For institutional training grants (T32, T35, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F30, F31), one stipend level is used for all predoctoral candidates, regardless of the level of experience.

Postdoctoral:  For institutional training grants, (T32, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F32), the stipend level for the entire first year of support is determined by the number of full years of relevant postdoctoral experience when the award is issued. Relevant experience may include research experience (including industrial), teaching assistantship, internship, residency, clinical duties, or other time spent in a health-related field beyond that of the qualifying doctoral degree.  Once the appropriate stipend level has been determined, the fellow must be paid at that level for the entire grant year.  The stipend for each additional year of Kirschstein-NRSA support is the next level in the stipend structure and does not change mid-year.

Senior Fellows (F33 only):  The stipend level must be commensurate with the base salary or remuneration that would have been paid by the institution with which the individual is permanently affiliated when the award is issued, but cannot exceed the current Kirschstein-NRSA stipend limit set by the NIH for those with 7 or more years of experience.  The level of Kirschstein-NRSA support will take into account concurrent salary support provided by the institution and the policy of the sponsoring institution.  NIH support does not provide fringe benefits for senior fellows.

Relevant Policies
Current stipend levels are to be used in the preparation of future competing and non-competing NRSA institutional training grant and individual fellowship applications.  They will be administratively applied to all applications currently in the review process.

NRSA support is limited to 5 years for predoctoral trainees (6 years for dual-degree training, e.g., MD/PhD, DO/PhD, DDS/PhD, AuD/PhD, DVM/PhD), and 3 years for postdoctoral fellows.  The NIH provides eight levels of postdoctoral stipends to accommodate individuals who complete other forms of health-related training prior to accepting a Kirschstein-NRSA supported position.  (The presence of eight discrete levels of experience, however, does not constitute an endorsement of extended periods of postdoctoral research training.)

It should be noted that the maximum amount that NIH will award to support the compensation package for a graduate student research assistant remains at the zero level postdoctoral stipend, as described in NOT-OD-02-017.

Tuition and Fees, Training Related Expenses, and Institutional Allowance for Kirschstein-NRSA Recipients
The NIH will provide funds for Tuition and Fees, Training Related Expenses, and Institutional Allowance as detailed below. Those amounts for tuition do not change but the Training Related Expenses and the Institutional Allowance for postdoctoral trainees and fellows are increased by $1,000 with the implementation of the FY 2016 budget in accordance with recommendations in the Biomedical Workforce Task Force Report.

A. Tuition and Fees

• Undergraduate and Predoctoral Trainees and Fellows:  For institutional training grants (T32, T34, T35, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F30, F31), an amount per predoctoral trainee equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $16,000 per year, will be provided.  If the trainee or fellow is enrolled in a program that supports formally combined, dual-degree training (e.g., MD/PhD, DO/PhD, DDS/PhD, AuD/PhD, DVM/PhD), the amount provided per trainee or fellow will be 60% of the level requested, up to $21,000 per year.
• Postdoctoral Trainees and Fellows:  For institutional training grants (T32, T90, TL1) and individual fellowships (F32, F33), an amount per postdoctoral trainee or fellow equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $4,500 per year, will be provided.  If the trainee or fellow is enrolled in a program that supports postdoctoral individuals in formal degree-granting training, an amount per postdoctoral trainee or fellow equal to 60% of the level requested by the applicant institution, up to $16,000 per year, will be provided.

B. Training Related Expenses on Institutional Training Grants

• For institutional training grants (T32, T35, T90, TL1), these expenses (including health insurance costs) for predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees will be paid at the amounts shown below for all competing and non-competing awards made with FY 2016 funds.  

• Predoctoral Trainees: $4,200
• Postdoctoral Trainees: $8,850

C. Institutional Allowance for Individual Fellows
This allowance for predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows will be paid at the amounts shown below for all competing and non-competing awards made with FY 2016 funds.

• Institutional Allowance for individual fellows (F30, F31, F32, F33) sponsored by non-Federal Public, Private, and Non-Profit Institutions (Domestic & Foreign, including health insurance):
• Predoctoral Fellows: $4,200
• Postdoctoral Fellows: $8,850
• Institutional Allowance for individual fellows (F30, F31, F32, F33) sponsored by Federal and For-Profit Institutions (including health insurance):  
• Predoctoral Fellows: $3,100
• Postdoctoral Fellows: $7,750