Dermatology Foundation: Career Development Awards Grant

The Dermatology Foundation offers Career Development Awards to support the academic growth of emerging investigators in various dermatologic fields. With an annual stipend of $55,000, these awards foster research addressing significant health issues, including public health, diversity, and women's health. Eligible applicants must demonstrate strong institutional support and meet specific educational requirements. The awards can be renewed for up to three years, contingent on the recipient's progress and commitment to advancing dermatological science.

NOTE:

• The CDA application deadline for new applicants is October 15th.The CDA Renewal Deadline is December 1st.
• Career Development Awards

The Dermatology Foundation offers ten categories of highly competitive Career Development Awards (CDAs). CDAs may be renewed annually for up to a total of three years of funding. Strong institutional commitment for an individual’s career development is essential for a recipient of any career development award, and must be clearly explained in the Department Chair’s form of support. Renewal of a career development award for a second and third year will depend on a recipient’s ability to provide evidence of significant progress on the research project, demonstrated institutional commitment to career development, and progress toward obtaining other funding.
Physician Scientist Career Development Award: The Physician Scientist Career Development Award supports the academic career of a physician scientist who is devoted to clinical dermatology, and assists in the transition from fellowship to established investigator.Public Health Career Development Award - The Public Health Career Development Award supports the establishment and/or development of careers in public health. Research proposals may concern health care policy, epidemiological research, outcome studies, comparative effectiveness research, information system development, teledermatology, or other topics relating to public health.Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Career Development Award: A new career development award, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Career Development Award to support research addressing issues impacting groups underrepresented or underserved in medicine, including, but not limited to:Racial and ethnic minorities
Sexual and gender minorities
Underserved/disadvantaged populationsClinical Career Development Award: The Clinical Career Development Award in Dermatologic Surgery supports clinically relevant research projects that will further the practice of dermatologic surgery and develop the teaching, research, and/or leadership abilities of dermatologic surgeons. These projects may include, but are not limited to, clinical research projects addressing severe dermatologic diseases requiring procedural interventions (including surgical, laser, and other physical interventions), patient safety, wound healing, clinical outcome measures, cosmetic dermatology, or the basic sciences. Dermatopathology Research Career Development Award: The Dermatopathology Research Career Development Award supports the academic career development of future intellectual leaders who demonstrate a strong commitment to advance the fields of dermatopathology and dermatology through research and/or education.Medical Dermatology Career Development Award: The Medical Dermatology Career Development Award provides funding for future intellectual leaders, educators, and clinical scholars in that aspect of the specialty that addresses severe dermatologic disease. The award fosters the careers of young dermatologists who will become the future role models and mentors for physicians diagnosing and treating complex skin disease. Pediatric Dermatology Career Development Award: The Pediatric Dermatology Career Development Award supports future intellectual leaders, educators, clinical scholars, and/or translational investigators in aspects of the specialty that relate to dermatologic diseases in infants and children. Women’s Health Career Development Award: The Women’s Health Career Development Award is intended to focus on women’s health issues where further research is needed. Funding is available for research in the areas of women’s health issues, which range from disorders that affect primarily women, such as lupus and scleroderma, to the effects of hormones and environmental factors on the skin and cutaneous aging.Science of Human Appearance Career Development Award: The Science of Human Appearance Career Development Award provides annual salary support for the career development of individuals who wish to understand the cell and molecular mechanisms of altered human appearance or of therapeutic interventions. This CDA recognizes the specialty’s sizeable increase in focus on human appearance and the paucity of high-quality research in the area. This award is intended to support research addressing human appearance issues caused by aging and/or environmental factors. Research Career Development Award: The Research Career Development Award assists an individual in the transition from fellowship to the established investigator. It provides career development support in skin research for a junior investigator.
Funding
All CDAs offer an annual salary stipend of $55,000 that can be supplemented from institutional sources so that salary received is commensurate with peers within the institution. A CDA recipient may seek simultaneous grant support from other agencies to provide for the non-salary components of the research being performed under the auspices of an award.

Eligibility

All DF-funded research must be conducted in the U.S. under the sponsorship of a department/division of dermatology that is ACGME-approved for training in dermatology. Applicants must meet the DF's general eligibility requirements, in addition to award-specific requirements presented on or before the time of funding.If you meet the requirements below, you may be eligible to apply for a CDA. Candidates with an M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. must be no greater than 12 years beyond their terminal degree – as of the New Year.
Candidates with a Ph.D. must be no greater than 8 years beyond their terminal degree – as of January 1, 2025.
Junior faculty member in a department or division of dermatology with an ACGME-approved dermatology residency program, through Assistant Professor level. Applicants can include instructors, postdoctoral fellows on an NIH T32 training grant and assistant professors.Strong institutional commitment for the individual’s career development.Physician Scientist Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Completed training in a U.S. dermatology residency program
Appropriate initial training in relevant research (i.e., a two- to three-year research fellowship or postdoctoral training)
Clinically oriented investigator in the early stages of academic career
Demonstrates a strong commitment to skin researchPublic Health Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
MD applicants must have completed training in a U.S. dermatology residency program
Formal relationship with a mentor who possesses recognized expertise in health policy or public health research
Clinically-oriented investigator in the early stages of academic careerDiversity, Equity and Inclusion Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Appropriate initial training in biomedical research (i.e., two- to three-year fellowship or postdoctoral training)
Junior investigator in the early stages of his/her career
Demonstrates a strong commitment to skin researchClinical Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Completed training in a U.S. dermatology residency program
Completed at least one-year post-residency surgical training in the U.S. at the time of funding
Under the mentorship of an experienced faculty member (e.g., a dermatologic surgeon, a dermatologist, or a basic or clinical investigator with experience and expertise of relevance to the proposed project)Dermatopathology Research Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Completed training in a U.S. dermatology or pathology residency program and a U.S. fellowship program in dermatopathology
Under the mentorship of an experienced investigator(s)
Mentor must have an academic appointment in dermatology or another program at the sponsoring institution that is approved by the dermatology chair
Demonstrates a strong commitment to skin research that can advance the field of dermatopathology Medical Dermatology Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Completed training in a U.S. dermatology residency program
Under the mentorship of an experienced medical dermatologistPediatric Dermatology Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Completed training in a U.S. dermatology residency program and a U.S. fellowship program in pediatric dermatology
Demonstrates a strong commitment to skin research that can advance the field of pediatric dermatology
Under the mentorship of an experienced educator, clinician, or laboratory-based investigator
Mentor must have an academic appointment in dermatology or another program that is approved by the dermatology chair Women’s Health Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Appropriate initial training in biomedical research (i.e., two- to three-year fellowship or postdoctoral training)
Proposed research focuses on women’s health issue (see above)
Junior investigator in the early stages of academic career
Demonstrates a strong commitment to skin researchScience of Human Appearance Career Development Award:M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
M.D. applicant must have completed a U.S. dermatology residency program
Ph.D. applicant must have completed at least 2 years post-doctoral training
M.D. applicant must have a strong laboratory collaborator. Ph.D. must have a strong connection with an M.D. conducting appearance work
High level of interest in the science of human skin appearanceResearch Career Development Award: M.D.; M.D., Ph.D.; Ph.D.; or D.O. degree
Appropriate initial training in biomedical research (i.e., two- to three-year fellowship or postdoctoral training)

Ineligibility

Anyone who is a prior or current principal investigator (PI) on a federal grant is not eligible to receive a DF career development award.The following two exceptions apply:CDA awardees may have an effort on an NIH grant as long as he/she is not the senior PI who initiated the application and he/she does not have direct reporting responsibilities for this or prior federal awards. Total support from all federal grants must be less than 20% of their total effort during the term of the DF award.The individual is the recipient of an NIH training grant or an equivalent grant from another granting agency.An individual who receives a federal grant that eliminates their status as a “new investigator” is not eligible to maintain/receive a CDA.  Research award recipients may not simultaneously hold a DF career development award and a grant. As a result, applicants applying for a new career development award may also apply for a grant though they cannot receive funding for both. Current CDA recipients applying for a second or third year of funding cannot also apply for a DF grant.