Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Cancer Center at Illinois

CCIL Postdoctoral Fellowship

The Cancer Center at Illinois (CCIL) Postdoctoral Fellowship provides one year of funding for postdoctoral fellows conducting cancer-focused research. The short-term funding is designed to support fellows during their development of an NIH F32 proposal which must be submitted within eight months of receiving the fellowship.

Submit proposals here.
Student sitting at lab bench working on tissue microenvironment project

Proposal Instructions

Dates and Deadlines

  • Proposal Due Date: Rolling, submit any time
  • Award Notification: Most decisions will be made two weeks after submission of the application
  • Funding Release Date: Within two weeks of award

Eligibility

Eligibility requirements for this award  are the same as those for F32 awards and may be found here.

Funding Levels and Restrictions

This one-time support provides $50,000 in funding to fellowship awardees. Awardees must commit to submitting an NIH F32 proposal within eight months of receiving the fellowship and submitting an annual report; mentors must commit to supporting the postdoctoral fellow for two additional years.

Proposal Preparation

The applicant should submit (1) an NIH biosketch, (2) an NIH biosketch for mentor and co-mentors, (3) a statement of when the full F32 proposal will be submitted, and (4) an NIH F32 “preproposal” consisting of the following:

  • Project Summary/Abstract: Thirty Lines of Text
  • Project Narrative: Three Sentences
  • Introduction to Submission: One Page
  • Applicant’s Background and Goals for Training: One Page
  • Specific Aims: One Page
  • Research Strategy: Three Pages
  • Sponsor and Co-Sponsor Statements: Six Pages
  • Letters of Support from Collaborators, Contributors, and Consultants: Six Pages

Review Criteria

  • Significant priority will be given to proposals submitted to the NCI
  • Significant priority will be given to projects aligning with the CCIL Strategic Plan
  • Significant priority will be given to collaborative projects between current CCIL members, translational research between CCIL members and physicians from our clinical partner organizations, or research that utilizes CCIL Shared Resources

Award Expectation

Awardees are expected to submit an F32 proposal within eight months of receiving the award and provide a one-page annual report regarding the outcomes of their project, highlighting external funding received, patents, awards, and publications accepted. Details on NCI F32 application requirements can be found here.

Questions? Contact Us!

If you have questions, please email cancercenter@illinois.edu.