Budget

• Determine number of slots
• Two NRSA stipend levels may be used

• Determine number of slots

• Determine number of slots
• Determine appropriate NRSA trainee stipend level (0-7).
• Determine length of training if able.
• Determine postdoc status - degree seeking (MHS or PhD) with a previous advanced degree.
• Be aggressive with your stipend level estimates. Estimating too low may result in a stipend shortfall.
• Stipend level for the entire first year of support is determined by the number of full years of relevant postdoc experience when the award is issued.
  • Relevant experience may include research experience (including industry), TA, internship, residency, clinical duties, etc.
• Once the appropriate stipend level has been determined, the fellow must be paid at that level for the entire grant year.
  • The stipend for each additional year of NRSA support is the next level in the stipend structure and does not change mid-year.
  • In subsequent years based on initial level + 1 year

• An amount per trainee equal to 60% of the actual tuition level at the applicant institution, up to $16,000 per year, will be provided by NIH.
• Request full tuition needs of all the trainees less health insurance.
  • NIH will apply the appropriate cuts when issuing an award.
    • Do not estimate and apply the cuts yourself.
      • NIH may in-turn cut the amounts that you have already reduced.
      • It could diminish the amount received if the NIH raises the tuition limit per student in a successive fiscal year.

• Escalate tuition/fees by 10% in subsequent years.
• Use the current Tuition/Fees rates; i.e. UCSD Graduate, non- professional degree. rates:  https://grad.ucsd.edu/financial/tuition-fees.html
• For School of Medicine Students:
  https://students.ucsd.edu/finances/fees/registration/

• Predocs and postdocs will be paid at the amounts shown below for all awards made with FY 2024 funds.

  • Predoctoral Trainees: $4,750 
  • Postdoctoral Trainees: $12,400

• Health insurance
• Speaker Fees
• Meeting Meals
• Supplies
• HSIT and NGN
• Admin salary

• Consult respective agency contacts to get a proper sense of what each institute would permit.
• Keep the request per student within reason and identical unless instructed otherwise by the NIH.
• Some agencie​s permit different ranges for pre and postdoc fellows.  

• NRSA awards usually do not permit standard direct requests for faculty salary and fringe benefits.
  
• The PD/PI is required to state their proposed effort in the proposed Program Plan in order to justify the program.
• Effort should be incorporated into the institutional amounts provided for teaching and mentorship activities.
• NIH FAQ

• When a portion of the training program takes place at a site other than the grantee institution via a collaborative or consortium arrangement.
• Make sure the proper name for collaborative or consortium institution is used as well as correct institutional identifying numbers.
• Currently, UCSD has only one training grant with a subaward, so it's quite uncommon.

• This is a required component of the grant application.
  
• Justify the number of training slots (e.g., predoc and or/postdoc) requested.
  
  • For postdocs, justify the specific stipend levels requested.
    
• Stipulate the duration of the proposed program (e.g., 2 years for each trainee).
  
• Justify the training related expenses amounts.
• Justify any request for postdoc tuition by describing the specific course(s) each trainee will take and the cost.
  
• Justify predoc tuition/fees.
• Justify trainee travel amounts.
• No need to justify childcare costs since it is automatically sent from the agency.

Budget Justification Sample

• If the PO determines that they wish to receive the request through an electronic process, they will initiate an invitation to the PI which will open up a request in the Prior Approval module.