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 GUIDELINES, APPLICATION PROCESS, AND TIMELINE

 

GUIDELINES


Research Grant Rules & Criteria:

Applicants & Eligibility

  • SGO members who are early career professionals / junior investigators (i.e., generally Assistant Professors & below, within 7 years of first faculty appointment) are encouraged to apply. Full professors are not eligible for the research grant.
  • Non-SGO members may apply if:
    • A co-investigator is an SGO member. This relationship should be expressly documented in the application.
    • An SGO member agrees to sponsor them. This sponsorship should be expressly documented in the application. The sponsoring SGO member does not need to be involved in the research.
  • Priority will be given to early career professionals / junior investigators. (Early career professionals are people who have not been funded by the Department of Defense, the American Cancer Society, or the National Cancer Institute in this area of research.)
  • Only one (1) application per applicant will be accepted each year.
  • Applicants who received a grant as a resident or fellow are eligible to apply for another grant in the future.


Applications

First Round (Abstracts)

  • Only signed electronic applications submitted through the OpenWater system will be accepted.
  • All researchers must first submit a 250-word technical abstract for scientific review. Preliminary data is not required but will be considered with the application if submitted.
  • Abstracts should be written so that a reviewer in translational gynecologic research can interpret and understand the aims and methods.
  • An updated biosketch is required. The biosketch should state the total number of publications up to a maximum of fifteen (15).
  • The abstract will be reviewed and scored by the Foundation for Women’s Cancer (FWC) Research Grants Committee. Selected applicants will be invited to participate in the second round of the application process based on the strength of their submitted abstract.

The signed application, biosketch, and abstract should be submitted by October 27, 2025 (before 11:59 p.m. Central Daylight Time).


Second Round (Full-Grant Proposals)

  • The proposal should include the principal investigator's first name, last name, and credentials in the upper right corner on all pages.
  • The description of the research should be no longer than five (5) typed pages. Preliminary data is not required but will be considered with the application if submitted.
  • A budget must be submitted along with a description of any other financial support.
  • The proposal must include a short paragraph describing institutional support, career goals, and how this grant would help the applicant achieve these goals.
  • An applicant must submit a minimum of one (1), and a maximum of three (3), letters of support.
  • A 250-word public abstract using non-scientific terms and including the author's name and institution must be included in a document for donor review and press releases.
  • Note: Your proposal will be considered for all appropriate grant opportunities.

The signed application with all the components of the full proposal should be submitted by January 5, 2026 (before 11:59 p.m. Central Daylight Time).

 


Budget/Funding

  • Submit one (1) budget appropriate to your proposal. Your proposal will be considered for all appropriate grant opportunities. All research and grant proposals and submitted components are reviewed and approved by the FWC Research Grants Committee.
    • Travel expenses can be included in the proposal budget (including use of funds towards the applicant’s attendance at the SGO Annual Meeting).
    • Publication fees can be included in the proposal budget, to a maximum of $2,500.
  • Indirect costs can be included in the proposal budget, to a maximum of 10% of the total budget. (i.e., facility or administration costs, laboratory space, equipment, operations, etc.)
  • Subcontracts to community partners are allowed in the proposal budget, but justification for necessity and reasoning is required.
  • A maximum of 10% of personnel costs per investigator/co-investigator can be included in the proposal budget.
  • Mentor personnel costs capped at 5% of the total budget.
  • Personnel costs are not permitted for gynecologic oncology fellows.
  • Significant overlap with existing funding is not permitted. An application should note the existence of pending applications with potential overlap and a plan for how such overlap would be managed if both applications were funded.
  • The grant can be portable/transferred, provided a similar research environment is secured. Continued funding will be contingent upon the ability to complete the proposed work.
  • Another investigator at the institution can take over this research grant following approval from the donor and the FWC Research Grants Committee Chair.
  • At this time, research being done outside of the United States will not be considered for funding; however, a non-U.S. resident may apply for a grant for research being done at an institution in the U.S.
  • All winners are expected to present an annual update on their research.
  • All winners are expected to present information on their research to donors at donor meetings or events at least twice.

 


Reporting Requirements

  • Your team must submit both interim and final Research and Financial Reports to FWC. The interim and final Research and Financial Reports will be shared with your research grant donor.
  • Interim Research and Financial Reports are due to FWC six (6) months from the date the funds are distributed from FWC to the researcher. Interim Research and Financial Reports should include information gathered within this six-month period. Interim Report Form
  • Final Research and Financial Reports are due to FWC one (1) year from the date the funds are distributed to the Researcher by FWC. Reports should include information gathered from the six-month to end-of-grant period. Final Report Form
  • The Research and Financial Reports can be submitted in your institution’s typical format if they are submitted as a PDF file type.
  • In exceptional circumstances where additional time is needed to complete the research supported by the Research Grant, the Researcher may request a no-cost extension (“NCE”) for up to a six-month period. FWC will review, and approve or deny in its discretion, such NCE requests and notify the Donor and Researcher if the Grant Period is extended beyond the original end date. Researchers are allowed a maximum of three (3) NCEs. The grant Donor will be notified of all NCEs granted before the Final Research and Financial Report is delivered. No-Cost Extension (NCE) Request Form.

*Any funds not used by the end of the grant period must be returned to FWC, provided no NCE has been sought or granted. Please have your institution’s financial contact/accounts receivable fill out the Return of Funds Form when your team is ready to return any unused funds. After the form is completed, we will send an invoice for the funds to be returned, along with any further instructions your team will need to complete the return depending on your chosen return method.

 

-----------------------------------------Please Note-------------------------------------------  

  1. Up to three (3) grants may be awarded per institution per research cycle. This number may increase or decrease based on the number of research grants being offered during a calendar year and may be modified based on the Research Grants Committee’s discretion.
  2. If any information is missing or directions are not followed appropriately when submitting the proposal, it will be returned with an explanation, provided it is received at least seven (7) days or more prior to the application deadline. The applicant will have the opportunity to resubmit the proposal before the deadline of January 5, 2026.
  3. All grant applications will be considered for all eligible grants of a similar amount.
  4. If the applicant accepts another grant after submitting a full proposal and prior to notification from FWC, please email research@sgo.org to be removed from the list of potential winners.

Questions? Visit our FAQ page
If you still have any unanswered questions,
reach out to FWC’s Research Program staff at research@sgo.org

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