Principal Investigator Eligibility

This fellowship program requires collaboration between two disciplines. One of the collaborating PIs must be an AAI member in good standing. If the PI is a research immunologist, he/she must be independent. Applicants may request salary support for a maximum of one postdoctoral fellow for one year, or two postdocs for six months each. Funding mechanisms and levels must be confirmed by the applicant’s department head or dean via signature on the Funding Confirmation Form (included with application).

A PI may submit only one fellowship application per award cycle. PIs who have previously received an AAI Intersect Fellowship are not eligible to receive the award a second time (for the same or a different trainee). Scientists employed by for-profit corporations or government agencies, AAI Council members, and AAI Intersect Fellowship Committee members are ineligible to apply.

Trainee Eligibility

Trainees must be in years 1-5 of postdoctoral training in the physical/mathematical/computational sciences, immunology, or related fields. Postdoctoral fellows who have completed five years of training and transitioned into a second postdoctoral position will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Fellowship funds will be paid to the institution. Trainees funded under the fellowship program may not be supported concomitantly by other fellowships that provide salary compensation. Scientists employed by for-profit corporations or federal agencies are ineligible to apply.

AAI encourages applications from women and underrepresented minority scientists.

Award consideration is based on the merit of the PI’s proposed project, potential of the trainee, and the quality of the training environment.

Funding for successful applicants will commence in January 2021. Successful applicants will receive salary support for one trainee commensurate with the National Institutes of Health National Research Service Award (NRSA) standards in practice at the time of the award (see table below). Changes to NRSA standards after the fellowship award date will not result in additional or reduced compensation from AAI. Salary compensation levels for trainees in programs at non-US institutions will be determined according to the national salary guidelines of the country in which their institution is located but will not exceed the NRSA standard for the respective level of the trainee. No indirect costs will be made to the institution.

If successful candidates are not AAI members, they must join AAI prior to receiving fellowship funding (trainee membership not required at the time of application). Salary support will be discontinued if the Fellow terminates or suspends employment for any reason (e.g. leaves lab, leave of absence, etc.) or if the PI or Fellow fails to renew AAI membership during the award period.

PIs are required to submit a short report and accounting of the use of funds just prior to the conclusion of the funding year. Any publications or works created by the Fellow must acknowledge support by this AAI program as follows: Author X was supported by The American Association of Immunologists through an Intersect Fellowship for Computational Scientists and Immunologists.

It is the responsibility of the PI and the Fellow, in conjunction with their institution, to ensure that all academic and research activities carried out in or outside the US comply with the laws or regulations of the US and/or of the foreign country in which the academic and/or research activities are conducted.

Applicants are required to provide the following in the application package:

1. Fellowship application including research plan, PI statement, funding form, and trainee statement (Please note that the Funding Confirmation Form page must be signed by the Department Chair/Dean.)
2. Letter from collaborating PI confirming intent to partner for this postdoctoral training
3. The PI’s NIH biosketch
4. The collaborating PI’s NIH biosketch
5. The trainee’s CV or NIH biosketch

AAI members may submit the award application by logging into their AAI member accounts at https://account.aai.org/ and choosing “Apply for Intersect Fellowship” in the “Member Benefits” menu. AAI nonmember trainees must create a New User Account. The collaborating PI should create an account or login at https://account.aai.org/ to complete the Collaborator Information Form. All documents should be uploaded as a single combined PDF file with a file name of less than 25 characters. Please be aware that the single, combined PDF must be no larger than 20MB. Packages that are not complete will not be considered. Final award decisions are at the discretion of AAI.

If the application deadline falls on a weekend day or a federal holiday, applications will be due on the next regular business day.

Q: I’d like to apply for this fellowship, but am I eligible if I am not a U.S. Citizen or permanent resident?

A: Yes, you are eligible. You do not have to be a U.S. Citizen or permanent resident to apply for the Intersect Fellowship. If you are in the U.S. on a temporary worker visa, your visa must NOT expire before the application deadline. Legal visa status will be verified prior to the fellowship start date for awardees.

Q: I live and work outside of the U.S. Am I eligible to apply for the fellowship?

A: Yes, you are eligible. The Intersect Fellowship Program is open to scientists working in the U.S. and internationally.

Q: I am a Ph.D. student. Am I eligible to apply for the fellowship?

A: If you have successfully defended your dissertation by the application deadline (September 1), you are eligible to apply for the Intersect Fellowship.

Q: Can the Collaborator PI be a faculty member at the same institution as the PI?

A: Yes. Both the PI and Collaborator PI may be faculty at the same institution, as long as they are not working in the same laboratory.