Generous NRC Fellowship Program Is Underutilized By U.S. Students

Godwin Ananaba says it was a chance meeting with a friend that eventually led him to become a researcher in Larry J. Anderson's lab at the Center for Infectious Diseases in Atlanta (part of the Public Health Service's Centers for Disease Control, or CDC). The friend told Ananaba about the Washington, D.C.-based National Research Council's research associateship program, a program widely known to foreign students seeking postdoctoral fellowships but underutilized by, and even unknown to, many American graduate students. Yet despite the program's relative obscurity, NRC awards 300 to 400 fellowships each year and offers a generous stipend. In 1988 Ananaba, a native of Nigeria, was finishing his doctorate in cell and molecular biology at Atlanta University and trying to plan the next step in his career. On the advice of his friend, he obtained a catalog that listed research opportunities available at United States government agencies and laboratories, among them CDC. Eventually, Ananaba met with Anderson to discuss potential research projects. Anderson helped Ananaba write a proposal to conduct research in Anderson's lab; and in 1989, Ananaba began his tenure, applying his molecular and cell biology background to the study of respiratory viruses. Ananaba had not worked with respiratory viruses before coming to Anderson's lab, but brought with him expertise in two important areas: First, he showed his new colleagues the use of the fluorescence-activated cell sorter to separate virus-infected cells from uninfected cells; and second, he had experience in providing the best conditions for growing cells so that the necessary signals will be expressed. "It's an integration with the things I had done before," he says. The NRC Research Associateship program dates to 1954, and now counts more than 7,000 scientists as alumni of the program. The majority of awards go to young scientists who have held doctorates for fewer than five years. Their projects are usually funded for two to three years, with an annual stipend of $27,150 to $40,000. Established scientists who have held doctorates for greater than five years compete for senior research associateships. Senior research associates can submit shorter-term proposals, for projects that are three months to one year in duration and can be completed during a sabbatical year. Approximately one quarter of the NRC awards go to senior scientists. NRC administers the program on behalf of some 38 federal research laboratories, which provide the funds to support researchers. NRC matches applicants with labs, coordinates the evaluation and ranking of the applicants, and administers the awards. Six panels--in chemical sciences; earth and atmospheric sciences; engineering, applied sciences, and mathematics; life sciences; space sciences; and physical sciences--review applications and rate candidates according to their proposals, letters of reference, and academic records. Scientists and engineers who sit on these panels come primarily from academia and are appointed by NRC. The panelists evaluate applications three times each year. The research proposal itself carries the most weight, according to chemical sciences panelist William Miller, chairman of the department of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. "We try to judge from their proposal if this is work that's really the best in the field," he says. Often, as in Ananaba's case, the applicant may have already been in touch with the lab to which he or she is applying. If this is so, input from the laboratory will also be considered. And finally, the panel will consider the applicant's Ph.D. thesis. One of the unique features of the program is that scientists are permitted to file applications for as many as three different laboratories, but only one to any particular agency. Thomas C. Rozzell, associate director of the program, says that only one set of reference reports and academic records need be submitted when multiple proposals are filed. The proposals are evaluated independently by three reviewers, and scientists may be recommended for awards in all three laboratories. Then the applicant may choose the laboratory in which he or she wishes to work. "It's not a global competition," says Rozzell. "In one lab they might be rated low, but in another lab they might be at the top of the heap." Since some labs get many applicants for only a few slots while others may get fewer applicants, an applicant's chances for winning an award range from zero to 100 percent, adds Rozzell. "But if you don't apply, your chances are zero." Competition for the awards is stiff. In 1991, some 1,350 applications were received. Approximately 40 percent of the awards went to non-U.S. nationals. Rozzell attributes this to a "network" among foreign students. "We don't have to market [this program] internationally," he says. "But in this country, 60 to 70 percent of graduate students haven't heard about the program." Carol Nacy, assistant chief of the department of cellular immunology at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Rockville, Md., and a former associate herself (1976-78), lauds the program for its ability to bring in scientists from foreign countries. The international researchers bring with them an influx of technical expertise, she says, and promote better global relationships. The NRC program is especially valuable for foreign postdocs because it pays travel expenses in addition to the stipend, she adds. Miller says that the relatively high stipend accounts for only part of the program's ability to attract top-level candidates. In addition, he says, the labs offer superb facilities and top people with whom associates can work. And, he adds, "The national laboratories use these postdocs for their own recruiting; a lot of labs probably recruit exclusively that way." Nacy is one scientist who benefited in this fashion. In the two years of her associateship, she broke new ground in the study of cellular immunology, and was asked to stay on as a staff member. Her tenure illustrates how essential the NRC program is for continued progress in some federal agencies: First, because at Walter Reed, unlike at the National Institutes of Health, other types of staff fellowships are not available; and second, because the program provides a way to bring new ideas into the institution. "I use NRC fellows to bring to bear creativity to solve problems," she says. For more information, contact the National Research Council, Associateship Program, 2101 Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20418; (202) 334-2767. Lisa Bain is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia.

Generous NRC Fellowship Program Is Underutilized By U.S. Students

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