Intramural Research Training Award

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) Traineeships/Fellowships are established for the principal benefit of the participants and to provide opportunities for developmental training and practical research experience in a variety of disciplines related to biomedical research, medical library research, and related fields. The IRTA components are: 1) Postdoctoral IRTA - designed to provide advanced practical research experience to physicians and other doctoral researchers who are at the beginning stages of their professional research careers; 2) Predoctoral IRTA - designed to provide practical research training and experience to students, by supplementing academic course work and/or encouraging pursuit of professional careers in biomedical research to students enrolled in doctoral degree programs in biomedical sciences; 3) Postbaccalaureate IRTA - designed to provide recent college graduates an opportunity to postpone application to graduate or medical school and to provide a means to introduce individuals early in their careers to research, encourage their pursuit of professional careers in biomedical research, and allow additional time to pursue successful application to either graduate or medical school programs; and 4) Student IRTA - designed to provide a developmental training experience to promising undergraduate, and graduate or professional students who have expressed a strong interest in or are studying disciplines related to biomedical sciences. Note: Cancer Research Training Award (CRTA) fellowships are included in the data of this listing, as well.

Candidates for the IRTA Program must be U.S. citizens or U.S. lawful permanent residents: 1) Postdoctoral IRTA participants must possess a Ph.D., M.D., D.D.S., D.M.D., D.V.M. or equivalent degree in biomedical, behavioral, or related sciences; 5 or fewer years of relevant postdoctoral experience and up to 2 additional years of experience not oriented toward research; 2) Predoctoral IRTA participants must be: a) students enrolled in Ph.D., M.D., D.D.S., D.M.D., D.V.M., or equivalent degree programs at any accredited U.S. or foreign university, which frequently involves dissertation research. The research experience is undertaken as an integral part of the student's ongoing academic preparation and is credited toward completion of degree requirements; or b) students who have been accepted medical degree programs and who have written permission from their school to interrupt their current schooling and to return within 1 year to their degree granting programs; 3) Postbaccalaureate IRTA participants are individuals who have received a bachelor's degree no more than 3 years prior to the activation date of the traineeship or a master's degree no more than 6 months prior to the activation date of the traineeship, and who intend to apply to graduate, other doctoral, or medical degree programs during the program and 4) Student IRTA participants must be 18 years old by September 30, 2026. If an individual is a graduating high school senior who will be 17 years old as of June 1, 2026, but will turn 18 by September 30, 2026, the individual's permanent home address must be located within 40 miles of an NIH campus. Student-IRTAs must also be enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student in an accredited college or university and in good academic standing.

The application procedure differs widely for the various IRTA program types. The program descriptions, eligibility requirements, and application procedures are listed on the NIH Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE) website.

Awards are made by the interested NIH ICOs based on the information provided by the applicant, the availability of NIH researchers to provide training, and the availability of financial and other resources to support the research training.

Individual NIH investigators select their own trainees. There is, thus, no firm timeline for notification.