TB RAMP: Tuberculosis Research and Mentoring Program

TB Research and Mentorship Program (TB RAMP)

Program Components Scholar Eligibility How to Apply Timeline FAQs

SCHOLAR LISTS
FALL 2023 FALL 2022 SPRING 2022 FALL 2021

Until the COVID-19 pandemic, tuberculosis (TB) was the leading infectious cause of death worldwide, surpassing HIV/AIDS. Momentum for tackling TB is increasing globally, with political commitments indicated at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting in 2018, and a new research and development roadmap delineated in the NIAID Strategic Plan for Tuberculosis Research. In order to meet the nation’s and global needs for conducting innovative biomedical, clinical, and epidemiologic research in TB, a significant enhancement of educational, training and mentorship opportunities focused specifically on TB is needed. UCSF and UC Berkeley have the diverse expertise and strengths in TB training and research to provide such opportunities.

With funding from the NIH/NIAID, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and University of California, Berkeley (UCB) partnered and have been selected as one of six national Tuberculosis Research Advancement Centers (TRACs). The UC TRAC will support the development of the next generation of TB researchers.

The TB RAMP Program will remain the foundational mentoring program, now housed within the UC TRAC. As the mentoring program in UC TRAC, TB RAMP is an integrated program of creative educational, training, and mentoring activities with a focus on research skills development, provision of research opportunities and experiences, and sustained mentoring activities. The TB RAMP Program will continue to grow with the greater infrastructure of the TRAC, under the guidance of Drs. Fair, Nahid, and Reingold.

The program is designed to prepare early-stage investigators (advanced doctoral students, fellows, postdocs, and junior faculty) from UCSF and UC Berkeley for successful careers in TB research. Through this research education program focused on TB, we promote and catalyze collaborations between existing faculty across disciplines spanning basic, clinical, and social and population health sciences; attract and cultivate early-stage investigators in the TB field; and strengthen TB research expertise both at UCSF and UC Berkeley.

Program Components

The TB RAMP Program is designed to engage scholars over two years, with TB RAMP Scholars dedicating ~4 hours/month to engage with faculty, refine their research ideas, and gain skills for launching independent research careers. Core components are designed to foster collaborative, transdisciplinary approach to studying TB, including:

Individual tailored research and career mentoring in TB from highly regarded UC investigators
Participation in UCSF Center for Tuberculosis research seminars with rotating schedule of didactic sessions, works in progress, and faculty panels
Professional skill development focused on grant and manuscript writing
Leadership opportunities and networking within the UCSF Center for Tuberculosis and through the annual World TB Day Symposium
Stipends to promote research activities, including fees for courses, conference registration, publication fees, etc.
Opportunity to compete for research funding, via the UCSF Resource Allocation Program (RAP) mechanism

TB RAMP Scholar Eligibility

Advanced doctoral students, fellows, post-docs, or junior faculty (assistant professor level) at UCSF or UC Berkeley.
Evidence of commitment to TB research or promising early-stage investigators seeking to transition career focus to TB.
Ability to dedicate 2-4 hours per week on TB RAMP research or mentoring activities.
Existing institutional commitment of salary support. TB RAMP provides educational and research stipends, but applicants to this program must have an existing position at UCSF or UC Berkeley.
Accepted TB RAMP Scholars must retain their position/appointment at UCSF or UC Berkeley to participate in the program, have access to its educational opportunities, and research funding mechanisms. Scholars in good standing who lose their academic position will be graduated early from the program.

Applications accepted annually in the Spring (April deadline) for a two-year commitment with the TB RAMP program.

How to Apply

Please submit your application by email to [email protected] attaching:

Application form - download it here
Single PDF including:
- Current NIH-style Biosketch
- Summary of your TB research work and interests (500 words max)
- Description about why you want to be a TB RAMP Scholar, including names of potential mentors (200 words max)
2 letters of reference from faculty who can speak to your interest/work in TB (sent separately)

Timeline

Applications open annually in early Spring
Deadline to apply: Friday, April 19, 2024

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What does it mean to be TB RAMP Scholar?

Who are the TB RAMP Mentors?

How am I matched with a mentor?

What do I gain from being a TB RAMP Scholar?

As a TB RAMP Scholar, you will gain a network of peers and multidisciplinary faculty dedicated to TB. You will be part of a close TB research community within the TRAC across UCSF and UC Berkeley. You will participate in regular research meetings, faculty panels, and an annual research symposium hosted by the UCSF Center for Tuberculosis. In addition, you will have access to monthly Professional Development Workshops in coordination with CFAR. You will receive support in developing your independent research questions and portfolio, and have the opportunity to apply for TB-specific funding mechanisms.

What home departments typically support TB RAMP Scholars?

TB RAMP Scholars can come from any Department/Division across UCSF or UC Berkeley, spanning clinical, basic, social and population sciences. Examples of departments include: infectious diseases, pulmonary medicine, experimental medicine, public health, epidemiology, systems biology, genomics, immunology, health economics, pharmacy, nursing, implementation sciences, diplomacy and policy, anthropology, global health, and more!

Can I apply for a Mentored Scientist Award in Tuberculosis through RAP and also apply to be a TB RAMP Scholar?

What is the length of the program and the time commitment?

How frequent are trainings/didactics held?

If TB is only one aspect of my work, am I still eligible to apply?

If I applied for the Mentored Under-represented Scientist Award in TB through the RAP mechanism, do I also need to submit a separate application to the TB RAMP Scholar Program?

If I applied for the Mentored Scientist Award in TB through the RAP mechanism, do I also need to send a separate application to the TB RAMP Scholar program?

Program Contact:
Should you have any questions regarding the TB RAMP Program or submission of materials, please contact: [email protected]

Funding for TB RAMP is provided by NIH/NIAID, award R25AI147375.

What is UC TRAC?

The UC TRAC aims to accelerate innovative, multidisciplinary TB research that spans a broad spectrum of disciplines. TRAC provides research resources and infrastructure to foster, elevate and support TB research and provide exceptional mentorship and training to New Investigators (NI) and established investigators new-to-TB. Administrative, Developmental, Clinical and Basic Science Cores offer operations, facilities, services, resources, pilot awards and mentoring opportunities to achieve the goals of the program.

Dr. Payam Nahid at UCSF and Dr. Jeffery Cox of UC Berkeley serve as co-Directors of the UC TRAC and Dr. Elizabeth Fair of UCSF and Dr. Art Reingold of UCB lead the Developmental Core within the TRAC, which builds and expands the existing NIAID NIH R25 TB Research and Mentoring Program (TB RAMP) led by Co-PIs, Elizabeth Fair, PhD, MPH and Payam Nahid, MD, MPH.

Search form

You are here