Foundation of the ASNR Grant Program

Previous Recipients

BIG NEWS: Funding amounts for the Foundation of the ASNR Grant Program have increased! We anticipate that four grants, in the amount of up to $150,000 each, will be funded in the coming year.

The Foundation of the ASNR Grant Program is presented annually to support members of the ASNR who demonstrate great promise for future contributions to the field of neuroradiology and whose proposed project best embodies the goals of the Foundation of the ASNR, namely: “to promote research, education, and innovation in neuroradiology that will advance clinical practice and improve patient outcomes.” The program is open to a broad range of research approaches, including artificial intelligence, clinical data analysis, comparative effectiveness research, and the development or application of novel imaging methods.

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The application cycle for this grant is now open! Applications due by October 30, 2026, at 9:00 am CT. Applications should be submitted via https://asnr.smapply.io/.

Download the full Grant Prospectus and Application Scoring Scale here

  1. Candidates must be North American members of ASNR in good standing with an MD, PhD, DO, or equivalent degree.
    • MD or DO candidates must be board-certified or board-eligible in Radiology by either the American Board of Radiology (ABR) or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RSPSC). Physician candidates must have completed a residency in Diagnostic Radiology and completed at least 1 year of an ACGME-approved or equivalent fellowship in Neuroradiology or Pediatric Neuroradiology by the beginning of the award period.
    • PhD candidates should have an active or imminent academic appointment, such as faculty, instructor, research staff, or post-doctoral student, within a Radiology department.

  2. Applications from investigators at all career stages are welcome, but preference will be given to early-stage investigators or those who have not previously performed funded research in the area relevant to their grant application.

  3. An applicant can only submit one application as Primary Investigator (PI) per cycle but can be a Co-PI on more than one grant per cycle.

  4. More than one applicant from the same institution may submit a separate application within the same grant cycle.

  5. Applicants who have held any of the Foundation of the ASNR Grants, the RSNA Research Scholar, GERRAF, or ARRS Grant Award in the past must declare their previous grants on the application. The applicant is considered ineligible if they are or will concurrently be holding any of the previously mentioned grants, while applying to or holding a grant from the Foundation of the ASNR. Concurrent Seed grants and prior Trainee (resident and fellow) grants do not disqualify an applicant.

The research proposal must have a clearly stated, testable hypothesis and well-developed aims. Applicants are highly encouraged to address their plan for overcoming barriers to the enrollment of individuals from populations experiencing health disparities in their study.

Mentor: A mentor is required for junior investigators (e.g., trainees, fellows, and early-career faculty) applying for this award. The ASNR Senior Member serving as mentor should be an individual with expertise in areas related to the proposed project, will guide the project, and must be willing to take responsibility for its performance and completion. A letter of support from the mentor detailing the program and mentorship plan should be submitted with the application. Applicants at the professor level or beyond are encouraged, but not required, to identify a mentor.

Research Methods: While the Research Committee seeks to support researchers using a variety of different research methods, projects may or may not be funded in each of the categories below every year:

  • Technical translation/translational research/technical development
  • Artificial intelligence
  • Clinical data analysis (retrospective or prospective)
  • Comparative effectiveness
  • Development, refinement, or application of novel imaging methods

Application Schedule

  1. The deadline for application receipt is 9:00 AM CT, Friday, October 30, 2026. Applications should be submitted via https://asnr.smapply.io/. Applicants will need to create an account and log in to select the award for which you would like to apply. All formatting requirements outlined in this prospectus, including word and page limits, will be strictly enforced; applications that do not conform may be disqualified at the discretion of the Research Committee.

  2.  Grant recipients will be selected in early 2027, with subsequent notification of the recipient and institution.

Formatting Requirements

  1. All application materials must use a minimum 11-point font (Arial or Times New Roman) and a minimum 0.5-inch margin. All sections must be double-spaced, except the References and Biographical Sketch sections, which may be single-spaced.

  2. Listed publications should be limited to those relevant to the proposed research from the past three years, plus up to two earlier representative publications. No appendix materials will be accepted.

  3. The complete application, including all components and letters of support, must not exceed seventeen pages in total.

  4. Applications that do not follow the page limits and formatting requirements below will be disqualified or truncated, at the discretion of ASNR and the Foundation of the ASNR.

Application Components

All components must be combined into a single PDF document, in the order listed, and uploaded as one file via https://asnr.smapply.io/. Page limits are noted with each component and are enforced as described above.

Separately from this document, applicants will be required to upload a current CV and to respond to a set of demographic questions within the online application. These items are not counted toward the seventeen-page limit.

  1. Cover Page (no page limit)
    Include the project title; applicant name, degrees, and academic rank; institution and department; the award for which you are applying; the name and institution of your ASNR senior mentor (if applicable); and applicant contact information, including mailing address, telephone number, and email address. Date the page as of submission.

  2. Table of Content
    List each component of the application in the order below, with the page number on which it begins.

  3. Personal Statement (1 page)
    Use this section to address:
    • Your qualifications for this grant
    • Why your background and interests are a good fit
    • How the project relates to your future career goals
    • How the grant would support and advance those goals

  4. Project Description and Research Plan (10 pages)
    Organize this section under the following headings:
    • Specific Aims
    • Background and Significance
    • Preliminary Studies
    • Research Design and Methods (not to exceed 5 pages)
    • Human Subjects (if applicable)
    • Animal Care and Approval (if applicable)
    • References (not included in the page limit)

  5. Impact Statement (1 page)
    If your project is successful, how will you demonstrate the impact on our ability to “advance clinical practice and improve patient outcomes”?

  6. Proposed Next Steps (1 page)
    If your project is successful, what next steps do you anticipate taking by year 1 and by year 2 following the grant, including specifics regarding sources of funding?

  7. Budget and Budget Justification (1 page)
    An itemized budget is required as part of the grant proposal submission. List itemized expenses that will be incurred in this project, grouped into the main categories of Personnel, Equipment, and Other (including, for example, scanner time costs). Provide justification for all budget expenses. No indirect costs will be awarded.

  8. ASNR Senior Mentor Letter of Support (1 page)
    A letter of support from the mentor, who must be an ASNR Senior Member, detailing the program and a mentorship plan should be submitted with the application.

  9. Letter of Nomination, Chair or Program Director (1 page)
    A letter from the Chair or Program Director confirming that the applicant is the candidate endorsed by the institution for the award chosen.

  10. Letters of Support/Collaboration (1 page)
    Multi-disciplinary collaboration, including collaboration with PhD researchers or MD clinicians (as appropriate), is important to the success of certain projects in neuroradiology and is indispensable for research in technical translation. Please indicate the most important collaborator(s) or other mentors for this project, their role, and whether this is a new or previously established collaboration.

Applications from senior and junior scientists will not be reviewed separately, but special consideration will be given to applicants who are within 5 years of completing their post-graduate training.

All those with interest in the award, or employees of an institution that may be involved in the award, shall recuse themselves from voting on such applications. If applications are received from the institutions of the Foundation of the ASNR and Research Committee Co-Chair(s) will recuse themselves the responsibility of coordinating review of the applications from their home institution.

The ASNR Research Committee, or its delegate, reviews applications and provides recommendations to the Foundation of the ASNR for the grant recipients.

Grants will be designated and administered by the Foundation of the ASNR. The Foundation of the ASNR Grant Program Review Scoring Scale can be found at the end of the downloadable prospectus.

Funding & Budget

  1. The total funding amount is up to $150,000 per grant, which will be paid for in two equal installments on July 15, 2027, and January 15, 2028. Any unused portion must be returned to the Foundation of the ASNR. The proposed allocation of funds (salary support and other research costs) should be specified in a detailed line-item budget submitted with the full proposal.

  2.  The funding will go directly to the Institution or the department of Radiology as direct costs only. No overhead or indirect costs are provided. An itemized budget is required as part of the award proposal submission. Funds (up to $75,000 per year) may be allocated as the investigator sees fit but must be justified in the application. Examples of fund use might include:
    • Salary support for the investigator and/or associated staff (e.g., research assistants, clinical coordinator, statistical support, and/or MD or PhD collaborators)
    • Appropriate scanner time access
    • Processing software and other types of software, and combinations of the above
    • Costs related to attending conferences, workshop courses or training courses (e.g., computer programming courses, specialized image analysis courses, or any other workshops)

  3. Expenses for physical infrastructure to support the proposed research (for example, desktop or laptop computers, monitors, GPU cards, memory, or other physical devices) are considered indirect and supported by the host institution and should not be included in the budget.

Institutional Compliance

  1. Institutional IRB approval is not required at the time of proposal submission but either approval or a waiver must be submitted to ASNR before fund disbursement and grant announcement can be made.

  2. No grant will be made without prior confirmation from the Program Director or Department Chair that the applicant’s proposal will be supported in full by the host institution.

Transfer, Duration & Extensions

  1. This grant may be transferred to another institution, following approval by The Foundation of the ASNR, for the designated individual, provided the new institution abides by the original agreement and the awardee can conduct the proposed work in the new setting. This request must be submitted in writing to The Foundation of the ASNR at least 30 days prior to the transfer. Each institution sponsoring the recipient will receive a portion of the funding that is in proportion to the length of time that research was performed at their institution. If a decision is made by The Foundation of the ASNR not to allow transfer of the grant to another institution, the original institution sponsoring the recipient will receive only the funds that are proportionate to the length of time the research project was performed at that institution.

  2. The grant is not transferable to another individual.

  3. Grants will be approved for one year. A No Cost Extension of the terms of the grant may be requested to extend the research period to 12 months beyond the original ending date. Approval of an extension does not include the awarding of additional funds. To request an extension, the grantee must complete a request form to be reviewed by the Co-Chairs of the Foundation of the ASNR and Research Committee. Requests must be submitted at least 30 days prior to the original ending date. Please note that only one No Cost Extension request will be considered per project.

Recognition & Dissemination

  1. In May 2027, Foundation of the ASNR Grant Program recipients will be announced at the Foundation Awards Session during the ASHNR/ASNR 2027 Joint Annual Meeting (May 14–19), on the Foundation’s website, and via E-News to ASNR membership. Recipients will also receive an invitation to the 2027 President’s Gala.

  2. The recipient will be invited to present their research at the 68th ASNR Annual Meeting in Toronto in May 2028.

Publication Expectations

The American Journal of Neuroradiology (AJNR) welcomes the best science and encourages authors to submit publications to AJNR before considering other journals.

To ensure accountability and track the progress and outcomes of funded research, all recipients are required to submit three reports over the course of the grant: an impact statement, an interim progress report, and a final report. These reports allow the Foundation of the ASNR to monitor how funds are being used, understand the scientific and clinical impact of the research, and inform the continued development of the grant program. Recipients will be provided with a template for each report. Below is a list of the required reports and other reporting obligations, with their due dates:

  1. A brief impact statement on the research’s broader impact and outcome is due approximately 6 months into the grant period (December 31, 2027).

  2. An interim progress summarizing progress against specific aims, expenditures to date, and any changes in direction is due approximately 9 months into the grant period (April 30, 2027).

  3. The final report building on the progress report with a summary of clinical impact, publications/patents, and program feedback will be due 90 days after project completion (September 30, 2027).

  4. Two return-on-investment surveys will be conducted 3 and 5 years after receiving the grant.