HIP Medical Student Award Key Information

The ASH Hematology Inclusion Pathway (HIP) Medical Student Award provides students with 12 months left in medical school as of the award start date in the US, Canada, and Mexico with an honorarium to conduct blood science research under the mentorship of an ASH member. Medical students also receive career development mentorship from an ASH member, gain valuable hematology knowledge, and benefit from complimentary ASH membership. Recipients of this award will also receive an honorarium to attend the ASH annual meeting to present their research.

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Program Benefits

Participants conducting a flexible research project can receive up to $5,000 in total funding to complete a research project and up to $2,000 to travel to the ASH annual meeting and present their research. Participants conducting a yearlong research project can receive up to $42,000 in total funding. Additional details for each project option are outlined below:

Flexible Project	$5,000 honorarium to complete a research project, $2,000 honorarium to travel to the ASH annual meeting the year the work is presented, and $2,000 honorarium for research supplies provided to the mentor. Recipients are also eligible for a $1,000 travel honorarium annually up through residency if recipient remains engaged in hematology and with their career development mentor and attend the ASH annual meeting.
Yearlong Project	$32,000 honorarium plus $4,000 for insurance and educational expenses, $4,000 for research supplies made available through their mentor, and $2,000 to travel to the ASH annual meeting the year the work is presented. Recipients are also eligible for a $1,000 travel honorarium annually up through residency if recipient remains engaged in hematology and with their career development mentor and attend the ASH annual meeting.

Research Project Options

• Flexible project: Applicants must have at least 12 continuous months left before completion of their medical degree (must commit approximately 320-480 hours). Find the application in the Universal Medical Student Flex Award. Fill out either application to be considered for two awards if you fill out the HIP question!
  • This applies to HONORS Medical Student level and HIP Medical Student Flex.
• Yearlong project: Students are required to take a year off from medical school during what would typically be their second, third, or fourth year. Find the application in the Universal Yearlong Medical Student Award. Fill out either application to be considered for two awards if you fill out the HIP question!
  • This applies to Medical Student Physician-Scientist and HIP Medical Student Yearlong.

Please note: Conducting your research at an institution other than your home institution may involve a "visiting researcher fee." Be sure to discuss this potential fee with your research mentor to understand it fully and to arrange a plan for covering this expense if needed.

Eligibility Requirements

At the time of application, the applicant must:

• Provide a response to the HIP question articulating how the applicant advances the goals of the initiative.
• Be an ASH 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 HONORS Award application deadline to allow sufficient time for processing.
• Be actively enrolled in an MD/DO or MD/DO-PhD program in the United States, Canada, or Mexico.
• Be working on a hematology project (e.g., adult hematology, pediatric hematology/oncology, hematopathology, blood banking/transfusion medicine) in either laboratory research or clinical investigation.
• Have a research mentor at the institution where the research is being performed who is an ASH member in good standing. The mentor may be at the applicant’s home institution or from a different institution. The research mentor will assist in completing the program application, oversee the award recipient’s work, aid the recipient in his/her research, and ensure that the recipient meets all deadlines. A co-mentor is also allowed and only one mentor needs to be an ASH member.
• Have at least 12 continuous months left before completion of their medical degree at the time of award activation.
• Any visa, citizenship, and/or U.S. work authorization restrictions applicable to receiving the ASH Award are the responsibility of the applicant.

Eligible applicants may not hold other ASH awards during the HIP Medical Student Award term.

Please note: Conducting your research at an institution other than your home institution may involve a "visiting researcher fee." Be sure to discuss this potential fee with your research mentor to understand it fully and to arrange a plan for covering this expense if needed.

Supported Research

Applicants must submit proposals to conduct research in blood sciences. Proposals that fall within any of the below categories 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.

Program Mentorship

The option to be matched with a mentor is also available for applicants.

Each HIP Medical Student Award applicant must have a research mentor who is an ASH member in good standing. Once accepted to the program, participants are paired with a career-development mentor.

Research Mentors 

Research mentors are ASH members who assume the responsibilities of overseeing a participant's work and progress. Research mentors will receive the above-mentioned allowance for research supplies on behalf of their mentee ($2,000 for flexible part time projects; $4,000 for yearlong projects) and a $1,000 travel honorarium to attend the ASH annual meeting with the student in the year the work is presented at the HIP Presentations and Receptions event.   

The research mentor's responsibilities are primarily to:

• Assist the applicant with the completion of the program application 
• Support the participant in the establishment of his/her research experience following honorarium 
• Complete and submit an evaluation form describing the research experience and providing suggestions regarding program enhancements 
• Assist in the preparation of a short presentation of the participant's research which the participant will present at the ASH annual meeting 
• Attend the ASH annual meeting and the participant's presentation in the year of the participant's research experience 
• Encourage the student to continue to explore hematology as a career option

Career-Development Mentors

HIP Medical Student Award career-development mentors are ASH members available to provide professional guidance, career development, and positive role modeling to participants for the program's duration and through training and completion of residency. 

Career-development mentors receive a $1,000 travel honorarium to attend the ASH annual meeting with the student. The mentor receives this honorarium each year that they travel to the ASH annual meeting with the student during the student's remaining years of medical school and residency. 

Volunteer to Be an Award Mentor

ASH is seeking members to serve as research and career-development mentors for the HIP Medical Student Award Program. To sign up to be an award mentor visit our Get Involved page. 

Application Process and Required Materials

The HIP Medical Student Award application is part of ASH’s universal application process. This application, along with all supporting documents outlined below, must be submitted through the ASH online awards system.

All applications must include the following:

• A response to the HIP question articulating how the applicant advances the goals of the initiative
• Applicant Research Proposal
• Applicant Personal Statement
• Applicant Career Development Statement
• NIH Biographical Sketch of the research mentor(s) (SciENcv)
• Letter of recommendation submitted on official letterhead from mentor
• Letter of recommendation on official letterhead from co-mentor (if applicable)
• Institutional Commitment Letter

Full application instructions for HIP Medical Student Flex can be found here.

Full application instructions for HIP Medical Student Yearlong can be found here.

Evaluation, Selection, and Notification

Commitment to Hematology / Interest 

• Explain your interest in hematology related research and why you want to engage in this project.

Mentorship & Support

• The mentor should describe the mentoring structure that will support the applicant’s success, including the primary and/or secondary mentor’s relevant experience, approach to mentorship, and planned meeting cadence.
• The institutional letter of support should demonstrate that appropriate resources are available to support the student’s success.

Educational Value / Skills Development 

• Briefly describe what you expect to learn through this project, including the hematology knowledge, practical skills, and experiences you will develop.
• Explain how the project is structured to support your learning and how it aligns with your current career interests or exploration goals.

Feasibility and Project Value  

• The research proposal should address, as appropriate: background, significance, originality or innovation, hypothesis and specific aims, preliminary data (if available), research methods and feasibility (particularly with respect to the proposed timeline) and anticipated results and future directions.

Accepted applicants and their mentors will receive official notification of acceptance by April/May. 

There is no limit to the number of applications that an institution and its affiliates may submit. For purpose of fairness and balance, institutions will be limited in the number of awards granted. 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.).

Terms and Conditions

All awards will be activated on July 1 and will conclude on June 30 of the following year. Funds are paid directly to the awardee and are non-transferable. If the funding needs to be sent to your institution for visa or institutional rules, an exception can be requested.

As a condition of acceptance of the HIP Medical Student Award, it is required that:

• All funds must be used to provide the award recipient with an honorarium for HIP Medical Student Flex. Indirect costs (e.g., facilities and administrative costs) are not allowed. Violation will result in the revocation of the award funds.
• All funds must be used to provide the award recipient with an honorarium and any supplies for the purposes of conducting the research submitted in the application for HIP Medical Student Yearlong. Indirect costs (e.g., facilities and administrative costs) are not allowed. Violation will result in the revocation of the award funds.
• The recipient must arrange for their own health insurance either through their institution or independently. (HIP Yearlong only)
• Any visa, citizenship, and/or U.S. work authorization restrictions applicable to receiving the ASH Award are the responsibility of the applicant.
• The recipient must attend the ASH annual meeting, including Hematology Inclusion Pathway specific events (luncheon, presentation, and reception) and present their research.
• The recipient must cite support from the American Society of Hematology in any publication or poster describing research conducted during the award period.
• The recipient must respond to all requests from the Society for information about their career progress following the award period.

Changing Mentors

Please contact [email protected] if you need to change primary mentors. This must be approved by the chair of the ASH subcommittee.

Final Report

After the award period, recipients must complete a final report and survey about their award experience. The report should include a summary of research, manuscript submissions during the award period related to the funded research, presentations (locally and nationally) of the funded research during the award period, educational goals met, and a summary of the usage of funds.  

Extensions

A no-cost extension may be requested, if needed. To request an extension, the award recipient’s mentor should submit a letter to the ASH Awards Department at [email protected].

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
P.O. Box 37580 (Truist Lock box ID: 9478)
Baltimore, MD 21297-3580

Have a question?

If you have any questions,
please contact [email protected].