A
STAR Joint Council Career Development Award
Introduction
The Career Development Award (CDA) administered by the A*STAR Joint Council Office (JCO) is aimed at providing a platform for early career development of young A*STAR researchers by enabling them to spearhead cross-council collaborative research projects. To be considered for the JCO CDA, the proposal must present a multidisciplinary plan that brings together capabilities in the biomedical sciences and physical sciences and engineering.
Applicants may apply for one of the two grants listed in the table below. Depending on the recommendation of the review panel, applicants of the JCO Research Grant may be asked to re-scope their proposal and apply for the Exploratory Grant.
| Grant Type |
Description |
Number of Years |
Max. Quantum Per Proposal |
| Exploratory Grant |
Encourages new and exploratory research by providing funding for proof-of-concept and feasibility studies. The exploratory grants are intended to provide research support for new, exciting and innovative research proposals. |
1 |
$200K |
| Full Research Grant |
Supports a distinct and well-defined research project. Sufficient background work must be demonstrated to be eligible for funding. |
3 |
$750K |
Eligibility
The CDA grant is only applicable to A*STAR researchers.
To qualify for a CDA, the Project Leader (PL) should have a PhD, with no more than 48 months of post PhD experience at the time of application, although applications from applicants with more than 48 months of post-PhD experience may also be considered in exceptional circumstances. Where it is justified, applicants without a PhD (for e.g., MDs and Vets) and who are RSE3 and below may also be considered. The PL is expected to spend at least one third of his/her time (1/3) on the JCO project and must have an appointment with an A*STAR RI / consortium.
All grant applications should involve at least two separate entities within A*STAR (i.e must be from different RIs) and must have at least one (1) Lead Investigator with BMS expertise and one (1) Lead Investigator with S&E expertise. There shall be only ONE (1) Project Leader for each application. In the context of this grant, the Project Leader is one of the intellectual drivers of the project and is responsible together with the Lead Investigators for the milestones and deliverables associated with the grant. The responsibility includes ensuring that the JCO grant is appropriately apportioned to the participating RIs / Consortia. A Lead Investigator is a researcher who makes significant contributions to the intellectual content and is responsible for the milestones and deliverables associated with a specific component(s) of the proposed research work. For the purposes of this grant, it has no reference to a particular RSE Grade. Lead Investigators must have an appointment with an A*STAR RI / consortium.
Application Procedure
Annually, there will be 1 call for proposals for the JCO CDA:
· Call opens in June and closes in Aug each year
· Results will be announced in Jan/Feb the following year
For further information on application procedure, please visit the following:
https://ku.a-star.edu.sg/JCO/STInitiativesGrants/CareerDevelopmentAwardCDA.aspx
(Link is only accessible via A*STAR's intranet or VPN connection.)
Contact Information
Queries on the JCO Career Development Award can be directed to:
Dr Edwin Liu
Senior Officer, JCO
E-mail: Edwin_Liu@a-star.edu.sg
DID: 6826 6402
Or
A-STAR_JCO@a-star.edu.sg
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