Apply for the ASH Scholar Award

Eligibility Requirements

Scholar Award eligibility is evaluated as of the date of the letter of intent deadline. Please read the FAQs for additional information.

Applicants must meet the following criteria in order to qualify:

• Planning to conduct research in the U.S. or Canada.
  • Any visa, citizenship and/or U.S./Canada work authorization restrictions applicable to recieving the ASH Award are the responsibility of the applicant.
  • U.S. or Candian citizens outside of the U.S. or Canada may apply to the ASH Scholar Award.
  • Non-U.S. or Canadian citizens conducting research outside the U.S. or Canada should consider the Global Research Award.
• Hold an MD, MD-PhD, PhD, or PharmD (or equivalent).
  • If the MD and PhD were earned separately, the completion date of the second degree establishes eligibility.
• Be an ASH member in good standing at the time of the letter of intent deadline and plan to maintain membership for the duration of the award term. Not an ASH member yet? Take the first step. Please note that your membership application may be pending at the application deadline but must be approved by the award activation date.
• Have confirmation from the applicant’s institution that at least 75 percent of the applicant’s full-time professional effort is devoted to research.
  • Applicants with less than 75% protected research time may now apply, provided these circumstances are well justified, as they will be critically evaluated during the application review process.
• If you have successfully competed for a substantial award (e.g. NIH R01 or equivalent grant) as the PI or co-PI before the application (not LOI) deadline, you are no longer eligible for the Scholar Award. For guidance on what constitutes the scope of a substantial award, see the descriptions of such awards.
• Your primary mentor may be the primary mentor to one applicant per level/category (for example, one basic/translational fellow, one clinical fellow, one basic/translational junior faculty etc.)
• You cannot hold multiple ASH awards. For example, if you receive the Scholar Award, you cannot hold CRTI until your award concludes. You can apply to an award as long as your first award will end before the new award begins.

Additional requirements vary based on the award level.

Supported Research

Applicants must submit proposals to conduct research in hematology. Proposals that fall within any of the categories discussed below are encouraged:

• Basic Research
• Translational Research
• Patient-Oriented Clinical Research
• Outcomes-Based Research

For additional details on eligible research categories, please consult the Research Definitions page.

Fellow Scholar Award

Provides up to $100,000 over a two- to three-year period in equal quarterly payments over the award term.

• Applicants must be in mentored, postdoctoral training positions to be eligible to apply for a Scholar Award. While most applicants may hold the title of fellow, holding that title is not required. Applicants with titles including, but not limited to, instructor, research associate, or staff scientist are also eligible to apply. Two mentors are required.
• MD/DO or MD/DO-PhD applicants must have completed residency at least 4 years but less than 6 years prior to the letter-of-intent deadline.
  • MD/DO or MD/DO-PhD who don't qualify for Scholar Fellow should apply to RTAF.
  • 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 Research Training Award for Fellows (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.
• PhD or PharmD applicants must have completed their terminal doctoral degree less than 6 years prior to the letter-of-intent deadline.
• Applicants who hold independent faculty level positions (Assistant Professor, or equivalent – which may be indicated by having achieved the appointment after an external search and/or if the individual has voting rights as a member of the faculty) must apply for the Junior Faculty Award, even if they are below 11 years since residency or degree. Individuals serving as an ‘acting’ faculty member may be excluded from this requirement.  

Fellow to Faculty Scholar Award

Provides up to $125,000 over a two- to three-year period in equal quarterly payments over the award term.

• While some applicants may hold the title of fellow, holding that title is not required. Applicants with titles including, but not limited to, instructor, research associate, or staff scientist are also eligible to apply. Two mentors are required. The applicant should demonstrate early progress toward establishing an independent line of research beyond their mentor's guidance.
• MD/DO, PhD or MD/DO-PhD applicants must have completed residency at least 6 years but less than 11 years prior to the letter-of-intent deadline.
• PhD or PharmD applicants must have completed their terminal doctoral degree at least 6 years but less than 11 years prior to the letter-of-intent deadline.
• At the time of award acceptance, applicants must have available no more than $150,000 annually in research funding, not including the applicant's salary/fringe or funding from within the institution.
• Applicants that have completed a Fellow Scholar Award but have not met the minimum year requirements for Fellow to Faculty are eligible to apply for the Fellow to Faculty Scholar Award.
• Additionally, applicants who are found to be ineligible for the Fellow to Faculty award might be moved to the Junior Faculty category.
• Applicants who hold independent faculty level positions (Assistant Professor, or equivalent – which may be indicated by having achieved the appointment after an external search and/or if the individual has voting rights as a member of the faculty) must apply for the Junior Faculty Award, even if they are below 11 years since residency or degree. Individuals serving as an ‘acting’ faculty member may be excluded from this requirement.  

Junior Faculty Scholar Award

Provides up to $150,000 over a two- to three-year period in equal quarterly payments over the award term.

• The applicant should have an established independent research program and be guided by two mentors who provide advice on research and career development.
• MD/DO or MD/DO-PhD applicants must have completed residency at least 11 years but no more than 13 years prior to the letter of intent deadline.
• PhD or PharmD applicants must have completed their terminal doctoral degree at least 11 years but no more than 13 years prior to the letter of intent deadline.
• Applicants that have completed a Fellow to Faculty Scholar Award but have not met the minimum year requirements for the Junior Faculty level are eligible to apply for the Junior Faculty Scholar Award.
• At the time of award acceptance, typical Fellow to Faculty applicants who will have more than $150,000 annually in research funding, not including the applicant's salary/fringe or funding from within the institution, should apply to the Junior Faculty level.
• Applicants who hold independent faculty level positions (Assistant Professor, or equivalent – which may be indicated by having achieved the appointment after an external search and/or if the individual has voting rights as a member of the faculty) must apply for the Junior Faculty Award, even if they are below 11 years since residency or degree. Individuals serving as an ‘acting’ faculty member may be excluded from this requirement.

An individual cannot hold concurrent ASH awards.

Application Process

The Scholar Award letter of intent (LOI) and the supporting documents outlined below must be submitted through the ASH online awards system. The LOI is mandatory and will be reviewed for eligibility to submit a full proposal. In addition to the letter of intent, the applicant must submit the following:

• Abstract of proposed project (350 words maximum)
• Applicant's NIH Biographical Sketch
• Fellow to Faculty applicants will need to submit the Supplemental Budget Form. Please see the instruction in the online award system.

ASH will perform a preliminary review of these materials to confirm eligibility and the appropriateness of the selected research category. If additional information is required, ASH staff will contact the applicant prior to June.

Eligible applicants will be invited in early June to submit the full application.

ASH-Peter Steelman Scholar Award

During the LOI, there is a checkbox asking if the applicant would like to be considered for the ASH-Peter Steelman Scholar Award. Peter Steelman was a partner at Deerfield Management Company who passed away after a 17-month battle with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 2021. The grant supporting this award is made possible by the Deerfield Foundation to honor the memory of Peter’s life and continue his legacy of kindness, respect, and hard work.

Scholar Award applicants with AML focused projects are eligible to be considered. The benefits of this award include offerings from the Deerfield Foundation such as funding and invitations to attend relevant scientific summits and lecture series. This may include opportunities for the recipient to present their work and meet with key opinion leaders. Additionally, awardee names will be highlighted on the ASH award recipients webpage and annual meeting materials for additional exposure. The award does not include additional research funding beyond the traditional ASH Scholar Award.

Evaluation, Selection, and Notification

The review of the Scholar Award applications is based on the scientific merit and quality of the applicant. However, in fairness to programmatic balance, no more than two awards will be granted per category (basic/translational fellow, basic/translational junior faculty, clinical fellow, clinical fellow-to-faculty, etc.) per medical school. For this purpose, ASH defines medical school so that it encompasses all sub-institutions (e.g., University of Washington would include the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Children's Hospital, etc.).

Individuals selected to receive this award will be notified in January, with the award commencing in July. 

Terms and Conditions

Transfers
In the event the scholar transfers to another institution during the funding period, continuation of the funding at the new institution may be allowed with prior approval from ASH. To obtain permission, the scholar must make a request in writing to the Society before the transfer occurs.

Reallocation
Scholars may request a reallocation of funds from one expense category to another by submitting the request in writing to the Treasurer at the Society's headquarters. This written request must specify the dollar amount, which categories are impacted, and a justification as to why this change is necessary.

All transfer and/or reallocation requests must be sent to awards@hematology.org. ASH staff will work with the ASH Treasurer to make final determinations.

Changing Mentors
Please contact awards@hematology.org if you need to change primary mentors. This must be approved by the Awards Committee chair.

Progress Reports
Scholar Award recipients are required to submit to ASH a letter from a division head or department chair requesting second year funding. It should also provide assurances that the scholar’s work has progressed and that both appropriate facilities and the mentor will continue to be available.

Scholars with two-year awards will need to submit a letter at the end of the first year of their award. Scholars whose award is spread over three years should submit a letter at the end of both the first and second year.

Failure to submit the letter after the first and/or second year will render the scholar ineligible for the second or third year of funding.

Final Reports
A final written report (not to exceed four pages) is expected within 60 days of the end of the award period.

Scholar Award recipients, along with the financial officers from their institutions, must also submit a financial report detailing how the funds were used over the two- or three-year period. This report must be submitted within 60 days of the end of the award period.

Both final reports must be sent to awards@hematology.org.

Benefits
Any benefits associated with the ASH Scholar Award are for two years, even if payments are spread over three years.

Questions?

For questions about the ASH Scholar Award, please contact awards@hematology.org.

Related Items

• ASH Scholar Award Support Information
  ASH Scholar Awards are limited to a maximum of $100,000 for Fellow Scholars, $125,000 for the new Fellow to Faculty Scholars, and $150,000 for Junior Faculty Scholars, to be spread evenly over the two- to three-year period of the award.
• Scholar Award Frequently Asked Questions
  Answers to frequently asked questions about the Scholar Award.