Apply for the ASH Research Training Award for Fellows

During this transition year of eligibility changes, if you are ineligible for the Scholar Award closing on May 1, 2026, because you have four or fewer years since residency, please consider applying to the RTAF instead. While the standard eligibility for RTAF is four or fewer years since residency, we will consider exceptions for applicants who are slightly over the four-year mark for this one cycle. The RTAF application will close in January 2027 with a start date of July 2027, the same start date as the Scholar Award. All other RTAF eligibility criteria must still be met.

Second Year of RTAF Support: for current RTAF recipients who want to apply for a second year of funding

Eligibility Requirements

Staff strongly encourage all interested individuals to review this eligibility and if still unsure, email awards@hematology.org to ask about eligibility if they believe that their unique circumstance renders them ineligible. Often, individuals who opt out based on their perception of ineligibility discover, after it is too late for remediation, that they were eligible.

Applicants must meet the following criteria to qualify for the Research Training Award for Fellows by the application deadline:

• Be enrolled in an ACGME or RCPSC accredited hematology, hematology/oncology, or hematology-related training program that confers eligibility for subspecialty certification; Be enrolled in an advanced or second fellowship in hematology‑related fields or; Be an instructor.
• Be an ASH Associate member in good standing or have a membership application pending. To verify your membership status, please log in to your ASH account.
  
  Not an ASH member yet? Take the first step. Submit your membership application at least three weeks prior to the RTAF application deadline to allow sufficient time for processing.
• Possess an MD, DO, DO-PhD, or MD-PhD degree.
• Plan to pursue an investigative career in hematology research.
• Propose research focused on a hematologic condition (solid tumor projects are not eligible).
• Have clear and documented support of an established mentor who has active funding (e.g., NIH, federal, foundation, or private) and will remain funded for the duration of the award term, or who is recognized through national clinical leadership (if the project is clinical). The mentor must be an ASH member in good standing for the duration of the award term. If the mentor is not in a hematology-related field, a supporting letter from an ASH member is required. Additional mentors can be recommended by members of the RTAF study section.
• Provide documented support from the program director for dedicated research time during the award period.
• Provide a document from an institutional leader who has the authority to ensure that 50-75% of the applicant's full-time professional efforts will be devoted to research during the funded period.
• Eligible applicants may not hold other ASH awards during the RTAF term; however, ASH Hematology-Focused Fellowship Training Program (HFFTP) participants can receive this award (or similar ASH awards such as HIP Fellow) if they meet all other eligibility criteria. For guidance on which awards HFFTP participants may apply for and when, contact awards@hematology.org. RTAF is intended to be used primarily for salary support; however, an exception can be granted for those holding HFFTP.
• Eligible applicants may not hold other career-development funding during the award period, including but not limited to foundation and NIH career development awards (e.g., K12, K23, K01 K08, T32).
  • If an applicant has a T32 that will end in December, they can receive the RTAF but will have to defer it for 6 months until January.
• The RTAF is to be the recipient's main source of salary support; however, in the event that the recipient's salary is not fully covered by the RTAF, supplementary funding from non-career development awards or grants may be used to pay the balance of the recipient's salary.

Please note: assistant professors and National Institute of Health employees are not eligible to apply.

Application Process

The RTAF application, as well as all supporting documents outlined below, must be submitted through the ASH online awards system.

All applications must include the following:

• Applicant NIH Biographical Sketch
• Research Mentor NIH Biographical Sketch
• Applicant Career Development Plan
• Project Narrative
• Primary Mentor Letter of Support
• Institutional Commitment Letter from Training Program Director
• Letter(s) of Collaboration
• ASH Member Letter of Support (only necessary if research mentor is not a hematologist and not an ASH member)

For more information about the required materials, please see the For more information about the required materials, please see the Required Documents PDF.

ASH has moved to a new awards system that is attached to our member database. Please ensure that your information is up-to-date and correct, as we will email you from the primary email address in the database. You can sign in to update your information here.

Apply for a Second Year of RTAF Support

Second year of RTAF funding applications must be submitted by the award deadline of March 15. An application link will be sent to current award recipients.

The application will highlight progress made during the first year and how a second year of support will help the awardee.

Successful receipt of a second year of RTAF Support defers the $1000 travel honorarium until the conclusion of the second award.

Evaluation, Selection, and Notification

Applications submitted by the deadline will be reviewed by the RTAF study section. Applicants will be evaluated in two categories (MDs and MD-PhDs) on the following criteria:

• A focus on hematology research
• The applicant’s qualifications and experiences; factors to be considered include, but are not limited to, the potential for future independent investigation and commitment to a career in hematology research
• Quality of the mentor and the plan for mentor-applicant interaction and career development
• The significance, feasibility, and originality of the proposed hypothesis, research, and methodology
• Availability of institutional resources to support the proposed project

There is no limit to the number of applications that an institution and its affiliates may submit. However, no more than one award will be granted per a category (MD and MD-PhD) for any given institution. For this purpose, ASH’s definition of “medical school” encompasses all affiliate institutions (e.g., University of Washington would include the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle Children's Hospital, etc.).

Note: If you are transferring after the application deadline but before recipients are announced, please inform ASH prior to transferring- especially if you will have a new email address. The new institution must be an eligible institution in the US or Canada. Please note: an individual from your new institution must serve as either your primary mentor or secondary mentor on your application.

Finalist Interviews

All finalists for the award must be available for interviews with the RTAF study section. The study section will interview between 10 and 12 candidates for each category of the RTAF application (MDs and MD-PhDs). The interviews will focus on determining the applicants' commitment to hematology and potential for success.

Terms and Conditions

All awards will be activated on July 1 and will conclude on June 30 of the following year. Payment will be made to the appropriate financial officer for the institution as indicated on the proposed budget form.

As a condition of acceptance of the ASH Research Training Award for Fellows, it is required that:

• All funds must be used for the research project specified in the application submitted to ASH in strict compliance with the budget included with the application or any subsequent budget approved by the Society
• The RTAF is to be the recipient's main source of salary support. In the event that the recipient's salary is not fully covered by the RTAF, supplementary funding from non-career development awards or grants may be used to pay the balance of the recipients' salary. Monies cannot be used toward salary/benefits for the mentor or toward an institution's overhead or indirect costs.
• RTAF recipients cite support from the American Society of Hematology in any publication describing research conducted during the period of the award.
• The award recipient must dedicate at least 50-75 percent of full-time professional efforts to research during the funded period
• Award recipients complete a follow-up survey after the award period, which ASH will use to measure the effectiveness of the RTAF program

Travel Honorarium

For second year awardees, the $1,000 honorarium for travel in the subsequent year is nullified by the receipt of the new RTAF award as recipients are entitled to use up to $5,000 from their new award funds for travel. They will receive a $1,000 honorarium for travel to the ASH annual meeting in the year subsequent to their new RTAF award.

Final Report

RTAF recipients are required to submit a final written report (not to exceed four pages) within 30 days of the end of the award period. The report must detail how the funds were used over the award period and should include a summary of the work performed and reprints of publications written by the fellow during the award term. The report must be sent to awards@hematology.org.

All final reports will be evaluated by the Oversight Committee. The committee may need to follow up with a recipient after the final report has been submitted; RTAF recipients must be responsive to these requests.

Please note: Failure to submit the final report will render the applicant ineligible for the $1,000 travel award (applied to the ASH annual meeting for the year following the award period) as well as other future ASH funding.

Change Requests

The Research Training Award for Fellows is primarily for salary support . A minimum of $50,000 must be used for salary. 15% of the requested salary can be applied toward fringe benefits. A maximum of $10,000 is allowed for research supplies. A maximum of $5,000 can be used toward annual meeting travel. The remaining $5,000 can supplement salary/fringe, training opportunities, publications fees, or a computer. Indirect costs are not allowed. Any requests to reallocate monies from the original budget must fall into these funding categories.

All transfer requests must be sent to awards@hematology.org.

Requests for budget reallocation will be reviewed by the Oversight Committee and, if needed, the ASH Treasurer. The budget reallocation will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Allowability of request
• Rationale for request
• Indication that progress is being made in the research project
• Submission of request prior to need

Unused Funds

Any funding not spent by the end of the award term must be returned to the Society when submitting the final report. A check made out to “American Society of Hematology” must be sent to the address listed below:

American Society of Hematology
ASH Administration
PO Box 37580
Baltimore, MD 21297-3580

Questions?

For questions about the ASH Research Training Award for Fellows, please contact awards@hematology.org.