How to Apply
Stipends and Benefits: Fellowship stipends will be competitive with federal guidelines as set by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), with annual increases as allowed by these guidelines. Health insurance will also be provided. In addition, each fellowship includes an allowance for research and teaching activities, travel, support for mentoring an undergraduate student, workshops on workplace skills, and participation in annual SPIRE events. Each fellowship is three years.

SPIRE Fellows are eligible for all other benefits provided to traditional UNC-Chapel Hill postdocs (Office of Postdoctoral Affairs) including sick leave and vacation. SPIRE policy provides maternity/paternity leave.

Eligibility: Applicants can be either new Ph.Ds or postdocs with up to two years postgraduate training at the time of appointment. Underrepresented candidates are strongly urged to apply. According to the NIH regulations for postdoctoral training grant eligibility: Applicants must be US citizens or non-citizen nationals, or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence and possess an Alien Registration Receipt Card or some other verification of legal status as a permanent resident. Non-citizen nationals, although not US citizens, owe permanent allegiance to the US. They are generally born in lands, which are not states but are under US sovereignty, jurisdiction, or administration. Individuals on temporary or student visas are not eligible for SPIRE fellowships.

Finding a Research Lab: SPIRE applicants identify potential research labs based on their graduate training, research interests and specific career goals, much as traditional postdocs do. Applicants can contact potential research mentors for acceptance into a laboratory at any time during the application process. A research lab and mentor do not need to be identified prior to applying to the program. Once accepted into the SPIRE Program, the fellowship can not be activated until the Fellow is ready to join a lab. The Director is available to assist in the identification of potential research labs should applicants have questions pertaining to the specific research environments available for SPIRE Fellows.

Application Review: Applications are reviewed by the SPIRE Academic Program Committee comprised of faculty at UNC Chapel Hill and our partner MSIs.

Application Deadline: WE ARE NOT CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS
The next application deadline will be February 1, 2009 for a September 1, 2009 start.
Fellowships are offered subject to availability.

A complete application package consists of:

· Personal Data Form
· Cover letter stating how the SPIRE Program will help you achieve your career goals, a brief description of your research interests, your commitment to an academic career in research and teaching, and how you would integrate your research interests during your teaching internship at our minority serving institution partners.
· Current curriculum vitae
· Three letters of reference

You may be contacted for a phone interview during the application process.

Please submit all application material electronically to Dr. Brian Rybarczyk at brybar@unc.edu. Microsoft Word or PDF are the preferred formats. Please also have signed hardcopy letters of references mailed to Dr. Rybarczyk at the following address:

Dr. Brian Rybarczyk
SPIRE Postdoctoral Fellowship Program
211A West Cameron Ave.
CB#5492
UNC-Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-5492

Please contact the SPIRE office directly at (919) 962-2505 for more information.