Co-Directors

Joya Chandra, PhD 
Professor
Department of Pediatrics Research and Department of Epigenetics and Molecular Carcinogenesis
Co-Director, Center for Energy Balance in Cancer Prevention and Survivorship
MD Anderson Cancer Center

Jeffery A. Frost, PhD 
Associate Dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs, ad interim, MD Anderson UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Professor, Integrative Biology & Pharmacology
Director, UTHealth Houston GradSURP
Director, Molecular and Translational Medicine Scholar Concentration, McGovern Medical School

Co-Investigators

Shervin Assassi, MD, MS
Professor, Division Director, Division Of Rheumatology
McGovern Medical School at UTHealth

Robert C. Bast, MD 
Vice President for Translational Research
Internist and Professor of Medicine, Department of Experimental Therapeutics
Harry Carothers Wiess Distinguished University Chair for Cancer Research
MD Anderson Cancer Center

The TL1 is an enrichment pathway for highly qualified predoctoral students and postdoctoral fellows.  It prepares them to rapidly integrate their skills into the clinical and translational sciences workforce. 

We accomplish this by targeting stage-specific (pre- versus post-doctoral) training that comprises a competency-based curriculum along with career development enrichment pertinent to the translational workforce.  

Core Competencies in Translational Research

Our competency-based curriculum encompasses fundamental, thematic areas of clinical and translational sciences but also allows considerable flexibility in how each competency is achieved to fit each trainee’s research interests and career stage-specific goals.

Clinical & Community Engagement

All TL1 trainees are required to have a clinical mentor and obtain compliance and other training to undertake shadowing every month. This opportunity not only allows exposure to a clinical setting but also community (patient) engagement to increase their understanding of the population most immediately affected by their research (T1/T2 translation) and to promote understanding and awareness of the public population that will benefit from translational research (T3/T4).

Translational Science Seminar Series

The TL1 Core Monthly Seminar Series promotes peer and near-peer education, discussion, and debate about translational science and enhances research communication skills and career development.

Training Plan Agreement

Upon acceptance into the TL1 Program, Trainees are expected to confer with their mentors to devise a customized Training Plan outlining proposed coursework and clinical shadowing. Once approved by the TL1 Co-Directors, the Training Plan is signed by the Trainee, Mentor, and Co-Directors. For competitive renewal of the TL1, Trainees must show regular participation in TL1 Program activities, progress along their TL1 Training Plan, and progress within their home degree program.

National TL1 Predoctoral Meeting

All trainees are required to attend and present their work at the annual meeting of the Association for Clinical and Translational Science at least once during their TL1 training period. At the meeting, TL1 programs from across the country convene with opportunities to gain advocacy experience by visiting Congress on Capitol Hill and to network with translational scientists from around the country. 

Questions about the TL1 Training Curriculum should be addressed to Jewel Elliott (713-500-9886).

Research Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the TL1 Program, an applicant's research must be broadly categorized as clinical or translational science.

• Clinical Research involves direct human subject interaction.
• Translational Research may:
  • improve human health by reducing incidence, morbidity, or mortality of disease
  • make discoveries in the research laboratory and/or preclinical study, which are readily developed into studies in humans
  • enhance the adoption of best practices in the community; comparative effectiveness of prevention and treatment

Trainee Eligibility Criteria

The CCTS TL1 Program supports a total of 11 predoctoral and 4 postdoctoral trainee slots that provide up to two (2) years of full stipends, tuition, health insurance, and modest travel funds.

The TL1 Program is open to:

• PhD Students:
  • Full-time, good academic standing at the MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School, UTHealth School of Biomedical Informatics, UTHealth School of Public Health or Cizik School of Nursing.
  • 2nd or 3rd year
•  MD/PhD Students:
  • Full-time, good academic standing at the MD Anderson UTHealth Graduate School, and McGovern Medical School.
  • 1st or 2nd year of the PhD portion of training
• Postdoctoral Scholars:
  • PhD degree with 0-1 years of postdoctoral training at any institution
  • Postdoctoral appointment at UTHealth or MD Anderson Cancer Center

* All applicants must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.*

 Awardees are expected to devote 100% professional effort to this award; no other grant salary support or outside employment is permitted.

Please note: No trainee may have a cumulative total of more than 5 years of NRSA support, including other training grant (T32) appointments and individual Fellowships (i.e. F30, F31, F32)

NIH regulations do not permit the provision of stipends for students pursuing a professional degree or for students in dual-degree programs (e.g., MD/PhD) while they are enrolled in the professional school portion of their training.

The 2024 Application period is now closed.  

 KEY DATES:

September 29, 2023, 5PM	Applications Due
Early October	Application Review
Early November	Candidate Selection
January 1, 2023	Appointments Begin

Applying to the TL1 Program

Appointments to the training grant are for 12 months with the option of competitive renewal for an additional 12-month appointment for a maximum of 2 years.  Renewal of appointment is contingent upon annual evaluation of performance metrics and full participation in the program.

All TL1 Trainees are expected to develop a curriculum/training plan that will enable them to achieve core competencies in clinical and translational research. These competencies are fulfilled by conducting research, clinical shadowing, completing clinical and translational courses offered by participating CCTS schools and institutions, and participating in seminars, research retreats, and other activities that provide training in clinical and translational research.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the TL1 Program, applicants must be predoctoral student or postdoctoral trainee currently conducting a clinical or translational research project.  Additional eligibility criteria can be found above.

Application Materials

Applications are to be submitted online: TL1 Application Portal. All supporting documents should be uploaded as individual PDF files.  Text is single spaced, 11pt Arial font, with ½-inch margins on all sides.

1. Cover Form (download here)
2. Trainee Biosketch (5 pages)
   1. Please include an NIH-formatted Fellowship Applicant Biosketch
   2. NIH Biosketch Instructions along with examples can be found at: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/forms/biosketch.htm
3. Mentor Biosketch (5 pages)
   1. Please include an NIH-formatted Biosketch
4. Co-Mentor Biosketch (if applicable) (5 pages)
   1. Please include an NIH formatted Biosketch
5. Clinical Mentor Biosketch (5 pages)
   1. Please include an NIH-formatted Biosketch
6. Career Goals and Training Plan (2 pages)
   1. Describe your long-term career goals and how the combination of past research experiences and the TL1 training program will contribute to achieving these goals
   2. Summarize the scientific and professional development activities you will undertake, including plans for clinical shadowing/activities, and explain how these activities will facilitate the transition to each subsequent career stage
7. Research Proposal
   1. Specific Aims (1 page)
      1. A summary of the proposed project (rationale/background, gap in knowledge), hypothesis statement, and 2-3 specific aims that briefly outline how each aim will address the hypothesis
      2. The clinical and/or translational significance to human health must be clearly outlined
   2. Research Strategy (5 pages)
      1. Research proposal detailing the research project, specific aims, experimental approaches, anticipated outcomes, potential pitfalls and alternative approaches
      2. Proposals will be evaluated for
         1. Clinical and/or translational significance to human health
         2. Approach
         3. Innovation
   3. Literature Cited (no page limit)
8. Letters of Support (2 pages each)
   1. Please provide letters of support from your Mentor, Co-mentor (if applicable), and clinical mentor who you plan to shadow
   2. Letters should demonstrate the candidate’s commitment to a career in clinical/translational sciences and how the trainee will benefit from training in the TL1 program

Review Criteria

Applications are reviewed by the TL1 Leadership and Internal Advisory Board. Appointments are made based on the scientific merit of the proposal including: the student's accomplishments; the mentor's accomplishments and ability to support the student's clinical/translational research; and the presence or potential for clinical and basic science collaborations.

For more information on trainee eligibility or application, please contact Jewel Elliott (713.500.9886).

To Scientific Meetings

There are modest travel funds available to CCTS TL1 Trainees.  Travel fund requests must be made at least two (2) months in advance of proposed travel and must include:

• Meeting website
• First-author abstract to be presented by the Trainee at the meeting
• Letter of support from the Mentor, outlining the educational relevance of the proposed travel

For all travel, Trainees are asked to seek travel funds from their School, Program, or Department in addition to TL1 travel funds.

 

TL1 National Meeting

Trainees are encouraged to attend the National TL1 Predoctoral Meeting as it is an opportunity to network with diverse translational scientists around the country. 

Questions regarding TL1 Travel should be directed to Jewel Elliott (713-500-9886).