Pilot Funding Information

Clinical and Translational Science Institute

Latest CTSI Funding Opportunities

The lastest CTSI funding opportunities can be found on the CTSI site.

The University of Rochester Clinical and Translational Science Institute offers a number of pilot funding opportunities to help faculty and trainees initiate new projects and new research endeavors. Click on the links below to learn more about each program.

EHSC Pilot Projects (Jack Finkelstein, PhD)

The Enrichment Program of the Environmental Health Sciences Center (EHSC) has funds to support a limited number of Pilot Projects.


"Environmental Agents as Modulators of Human Disease and Dysfunction"

This pilot program is looking to encourage and facilitate collaborations among EHSC, as well as non-EHSC investigators, attract new faculty to the Center, assist junior faculty to develop productive research programs, provide a vehicle for investigators to develop preliminary data for extramural funding applications, and develop innovative research initiatives within the Center.

CBARMFI Pilots (Jack Finkelstein, PhD)

These pilot programs are looking for research relevant to the Center on biological risk assessment, dosimetry, and mitigation of the effects of a nuclear or radiological event.

EPA Particulate Matter Center (Judy Havalack/Bill Beckett, MD)

This pilot program is just getting starting for this year and Dr. Beckett will be updating the web-site within the next few days.

Schmitt Foundation (Gary Paige)

Interdisciplinary Research Project and Technique Development Grants

    • For Research Projects and Pre- and Post-Doctoral Fellowships submission deadline for submission dates was February 12, 2007.
    • Funding requests up to $40,000
    • More information

The Schmitt Program supports new research projects, postdoctoral and summer research fellows, visiting colloquium professors and symposia that fall within three areas of focus:

The Schmitt Program is intended to catalyze and promote new directions of neuroscience research within the three target areas, and to encourage interdisciplinary and collaborative research, spanning cognitive through systems to cellular and molecular approaches.

Rochester Center for Mind-Body Research (RCMBE) -- (Jan Moynihan, PhD & Paul Duberstein, PhD,)

These pilot programs are related to immune-mediated chronic diseases of aging, particularly heart disease and autoimmune diseases. They are looking for projects that have the potential to generate data that will lead to larger grant submissions that aim to deepen understanding of the contribution of psychosocial variables to pathophysiology or disease onset, expression, course, and outcome and decrease morbidity associated with chronic diseases of aging. Special emphasis is placed on research that has the potential to address health disparities. Pilot funds are used to address at least one of the following: 1) The effects of emotions, social support, communication processes, personality, and cognitive function on physical health and immune function, 2) Individual differences in immune function and the biology of stress, 3) Implications of psychosocial interventions for physical illness and/or biological functioning.

Edelman Gardner Fund -- Cancer Center (Richard Fisher, MD)

Recipients are required to attend one Edelman/Gardner fundraising event and make a lay presentation regarding the funded research project in the year of their grant.

Wilmot Cancer Research Fellowship Program

This fellowship program prepares physicians for careers in investigation of the causes, behavior, diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of cancer providing postdoctoral total research training of the highest quality in disciplines related to cancer.
This research fellowship program provides up to three years of research training in laboratories of senior basic or clinical science faculty who provide in-depth experience in cancer-related biomedical research.

Faculty Development Grant Awards -- Dept. of Psychiatry (Yeates Conwell, MD)

Leonard Salzman, MD Research Development Award

This faculty development grant program is given to faculty members at an Asst. Professor and Senior Instructor level aiming to develop a program of extramurally support, grant funded research.

Otto Thaler, MD Teacher Development Award

This faculty development award is designed to support the development of department faculty members and as master educators.

Rochester Center for Brain Imaging (Richard Aslin, MD - RCBI Director)

This pilot program is done three times per year to support MRI research for faculty seeking to use the Siemens 3T magnet. Conducting research with the 3T magnet requires a considerable investment and significant amount of training in data analysis techniques for six months or more. The general criteria for evaluation includes scientific merit of the proposed research, the ability of the PI and colleagues to successfully conduct an imaging study (including technical experience), and the likelihood that internally funded projects will generate external funding in the future.

Business Opportunities

Facilitating the transfer of URMC science and technology from the laboratory to the realm of medical advancement.