The goal of these mentored awards is to invest in promising early career researchers and assist with their transition into independence as junior investigators. The awards will be funded up to $50,000. The awards will provide one year of support for up to four SRS Members. Recipients are expected to apply for a mentored or independent federal research award within the funding period.

Scope of Research Supported

The awards are intended to further our understanding of sleep, circadian rhythms and sleep/circadian rhythm disorders. Submitted proposals will need to be considered cutting edge sleep/circadian research.

Up to four awards will be chosen under the broad topic of sleep/circadian research.

Requirements for Applicants

• Doctoral level degree, such as MD, PhD, DO and/or comparable degree.
• Applicants must be early career investigators within 10 years of receiving their doctoral degree who are at the post-doctoral, instructor, or assistant professor level. Applicants should not have received tenure, and should not have received grant funding in excess of $75,000 per year serving as a PI or co-PI.  If an applicant is uncertain regarding eligibility, please contact the SRS Awards Department for approval prior to submission of the application.  This communication should describe the circumstances, such as time spent in clinical training or other extenuating circumstances (e.g. maternity/paternity leave or care of dependents). The request will be reviewed to determine if an application will be accepted.
• Documented history of commitment to sleep/circadian research – publications, other grants (not to have exceeded $75,000 per year serving as a PI or co-PI), service to the field, etc.
• Current or prior federally funded career development award (CDA) recipients are not eligible to apply for this award. If a federally funded CDA or other federally funded grant is awarded during the funding period, the recipient can submit a revised budget and request continued support through the end of the original funding period. The revised budget must not overlap with the federally funded grant budget.
• Complete Application, including all components noted on the 2027 Application packet, submitted via the Reviewr platform.
• Mentor’s Letter (see section G of the application packet for details of what must be included in the mentor’s letter). Two mentors may be appropriate if they provide complementary expertise.
• SRS membership in good standing.

Award Notification

Award recipients will be notified late November 2026.