Career Awards for Medical Scientists

The Career Awards for Medical Scientists (CAMS) is a highly competitive program that provides $700,000 awards over five years for physician-scientists who are committed to an academic career. The award is designed to bridge advanced postdoctoral/fellowship training and the early years of faculty service. The program supports individuals conducting basic biomedical, disease-oriented, or translational research at North American degree-granting institutions, research institutes, or teaching hospitals affiliated with academic institutions. Awardees may utilize up to two years of postdoctoral support before transitioning to the faculty portion of the award. During the postdoctoral phase, salary and fringe benefits are capped at $90,000 in year one and $95,000 in year two. During the faculty phase, up to $59,500 annually may be used towards salary and fringe benefits. The program also provides up to $5,000 per year for caregiving expenses throughout the award period. Recipients must maintain 75% protected research time and cannot hold concurrent NIH K99/R00 or DP5 Early Independence awards, though other NIH K awards are permitted.