Transition Awards: SfN 2026
Resources from the Society for Neuroscience 2026 Professional Development Workshop Making the Leap: Using Transition Awards as a Launchpad for Advancing Your Career Toward Independence (PDW02, Saturday, November 14, 2026).
Transition awards fund the move from graduate student to postdoc, or from postdoc to faculty. They work best as part of a career plan: start with the science you want to do, identify the training you still need, then find the award that fits your stage.
Workshop materials
- Slides (PDF)
- Worksheets (fillable PDF)
- Worksheets (Word)
Graduate students: moving to a postdoc
- Award
- NIH F99/K00 Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Transition Award
- Deadlines
- December 8, April 8, August 8
- Eligibility
- 1–2 years of PhD training left at award start (about 7 months after submission)
- International applicants eligible?
- No (U.S. citizens and permanent residents)
- Award
- HHMI Gilliam Fellows Program
- Deadlines
- Late October (next competition opens September 1, 2027)
- Eligibility
- Second- or third-year PhD students in the basic biological or biomedical sciences; student and PhD advisor apply together; includes an optional postdoctoral phase
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes
Postdocs: moving to a faculty position
- Award
- NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
- Deadlines
- February 12, June 12, October 12
- Eligibility
- No more than 4 years of postdoctoral research experience at the due date
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes
- Award
- HHMI Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program
- Deadlines
- Mid-December, every other year (next: December 15, 2026)
- Eligibility
- No more than 7 years of postdoctoral experience, including gaps between positions; 1–3 original research articles or preprints as first, co-first, corresponding or co-corresponding author; up to 2 years of support, with a pathway to the Freeman Hrabowski Scholars Program
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes
- Award
- Simons Foundation Fellows-to-Faculty Awards
- Deadlines
- Mid-January (next: January 13, 2027)
- Eligibility
- In a mentored position and going on the faculty job market in the coming cycle; applicants may apply in at most two years
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes
- Award
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Awards at the Scientific Interface
- Deadlines
- Letter of intent in August; invited full proposal in January
- Eligibility
- 12–60 months of postdoctoral research; background in the physical, mathematical or computational sciences or engineering, applied to biological questions
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes (U.S. and Canadian citizens, permanent residents and temporary residents)
- Award
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Awards for Medical Scientists
- Deadlines
- Eligibility check mid-September; full proposal late September (the 2027 cycle closed September 30, 2026)
- Eligibility
- M.D., D.O., D.D.S., D.V.M. or V.M.D. degree (a PhD alone is not eligible); clinical training (residency or fellowship) completed and board-eligible by the award start date; cannot hold or have accepted a tenure-track faculty position. Competitive applicants have at least 2 years of research experience and at least one first-author publication
- International applicants eligible?
- Yes (U.S. and Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and temporary residents with an eligible visa)
Upcoming NIH changes
For due dates on or after October 12, 2027, NIH will combine the K99/R00 and K22 into a new KT1/R00 NIH Career Transition to Research Independence Award (NOT-OD-26-098). Eligibility rules for the KT1/R00 have not been released and may differ from the K99/R00, including for international postdocs. The February 12 and June 12, 2027 K99/R00 due dates use the current rules.
Work backward from the deadline
- 8+ weeks before: contact the program officer
- 8+ weeks before: contact your institution’s pre-award office
- 8–10 weeks before: send specific aims to mentors
- 4–6 weeks before: send a full draft to mentors
- 2–3 weeks before: have letters in hand
- 1–2 weeks before: meet the institutional deadline
- Deadline: submit, and plan for a possible resubmission in the next cycle
Who to ask
- Program officer: whether your science fits the institute, and eligibility questions the funding notice does not answer
- Your mentor and your institution’s pre-award office: administrative questions, internal deadlines and forms
Information current as of November 2026. Always confirm deadlines and eligibility in the current funding announcement.