Awards & Fellowships

Award, Fellowship, and Grant Recipient Selection Policy and Procedures

• Introduction

  This document outlines the minimum requirements for the review and selection of all IADR/AADOCR awards, fellowships, and grants. All awards committees must have processes in place that meet these requirements, under the management of the Awards, Fellowships and Grants Coordinator.[i]

  There are more than 50 IADR/AADOCR award, fellowship, and grant opportunities. Each award/fellowship has a Committee which recommends a recipient(s) to the appropriate Board Governance Committee, then ultimately to the Board of Directors, in most instances.

• Eligibility, Criteria, and Award Description

  IADR and AADOCR wishes to recognize its members through its awards programs while also managing several awards, grants and fellowships supported by corporate sponsorships and donations. Award criteria, eligibility and application processes vary. A description of each award including scope, deadline date, frequency (annual, biennial, etc.), application process, award criteria, and past recipients, is maintained on the IADR and AADOCR award webpages above.

• Call for Applications

  A Call for applications/nominations is included in blast emails to members, on the IADR and AADOCR websites and in monthly newsletters IADR Global Research Update (GRU) and AADOCR Science Advocate (SA).

• Committees

  Committees are vital to the successful review and implementation of IADR/AADOCR awards, and each year the Associations seek a diverse and inclusive group of volunteers, representing as many geographic areas and scientific disciplines as possible, to fill committee vacancies. Committee Members serve a three-year term (unless otherwise noted), while Chairs are selected from current Committee members and serve a one-year term (usually in their last year on the Committee).

• Conflict of Interest (COI)

  1. Committee members are responsible for recognizing and disclosing to the rest of the committee any conflict of interest that could be perceived to bias their decision in reviewing and selecting recipients. Committee members must withhold their evaluation of the award candidate if a COI exists.
     1. a. Committee members will recuse themselves from judging any candidate from their own institution (i.e. University, company).
     2. b. Committee members will recuse themselves from judging any candidate with whom they have had a close personal or professional relationship.
        1. A personal relationship would include a current or past spouse/partner or a close family member.
        2. ii. A professional relationship would include any of the following in the preceding three (3) years: a mentoring relationship, a reporting relationship, a substantial working relationship, collaboration in grant applications or research projects, or co-authorship of a submitted manuscript.
  2. Members of the Award Committee are not eligible for the award being judged during their term of committee service.
  3. Committee deliberations should not be shared with anyone outside the committee, nor should the award recipient be discussed until IADR/AADOCR has notified the recipient.

• Application Deadlines

  There are three primary methods for submitting applications or nominations for IADR/AADOCR awards: via email to the Awards, Fellowships and Grants Coordinator, via the IADR/AADOCR online abstract site and via an IADR/AADOCR online awards submission site.

  Deadline dates are clearly noted on the IADR/AADOCR award webpages. Extensions may be necessary due to a lack of appropriate number of applications or nominations.

  All awards are assigned to an appropriate cycle that allows the necessary time for the selection process, recipient notification and award presentation.

  All award applications/nominations must be submitted using the three primary methods described above. All applicants for AADOCR awards are required to agree to the AADOCR Policy for Honors and Awards upon submission of an award application or nomination.

• Review and Selection Process

  [ii] Although the scoring and review processes vary for each award, the following are critical steps that are required to be completed in the selection process:

  1. Award Application/Nomination is received.
  2. Eligibility and criteria requirements are verified by Awards, Fellowships and Grants Coordinator.
  3. Application/Nomination reports are sent to the appropriate Committee Chair.
  4. The Chair determines that there are sufficient qualified candidates who meet the award criteria to proceed.
  5. On behalf of the Chair, the Awards, Fellowships and Grants Coordinator provides these instructions plus the link to the online awards submission site to all committee members.
  6. Review process is conducted [see Scoring Methods]. Preferably the full Committee must participate in the review process, but as Committee members are volunteers, it is understood that circumstances may arise that prevent the participation of some members. However, a majority of Committee members must submit a review in order for a recipient to be selected. Detailed review instructions are given to the Committee in advance.
  7. Scores are compiled by the Awards, Fellowships and Grants Coordinator and sent to the Committee. There must be a documented, quantitative grading scale included in the award process that the selection committee uses to rank the candidates. The award committee shall rank the candidates using the evaluation criteria as defined by that particular award, fellowship or grant.
  8. A Video Conference Call (Zoom or similar) is conducted to select the recipient(s) and to discuss any issues, concerns about scoring or close applicant scores.
  9. Final Committee Chair reports are submitted to the appropriate IA/AA Board Governance Committee for approval.
  10. The Board of Directors gives final approval [except in cases of onsite award competitions held at the IADR/AADOCR General Session].

• Scoring Practices

  To assure a fair and equitable review for selection of IADR/AADOCR award, fellowship and grant recipients, the following award scoring method is used for a consistent and proven approach to allow for a reliable review of award applications.  

  Scoring Method

  IADR/AADOCR uses the NIH Scoring for Grants and Funding, specifically the 9-point rating scale:

  Overall	Score	Signifier
  HIGH	1	Exceptional
  	2	Outstanding
  	3	Excellent
  MEDIUM	4	Very Good
  	5	Good
  	6	Satisfactory
  LOW	7	Fair
  	8	Marginal
  	9	Poor
  	COI	Conflict of Interest

   

  The IADR/AADOCR scoring system uses this 9-point rating scale (1 = exceptional; 9 = poor) in whole numbers only (no decimals) for most award applications.^[i]

  • It is expected that scores of 1 or 9 will be used less frequently than the other scores.
  • 5 is considered an average score.
  • Reviewers should consider the strengths and weaknesses within each criterion on the award scoresheet. (The criterion established for each award will remain the same and will be scored using the 1-9 scale).
  • The final application score is the average of all reviewer scores. Average scores will be rounded to the nearest whole number.

  Award Competition Scoring

  The scoring procedure for onsite/virtual award competitions are conducted by each Committee responsible for the onsite judging. Each Committee has thoughtfully developed these score sheets which are used in real time and time efficient review of competition presentations and winner selection held on the same day.

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  [i] There are exceptions to this policy for awards that are not competitive and are nominated and selected by Committee – e.g., Honorary Member, Gold Medal, Jack Hein, etc.

   

• Award Notification

  After approval by the Board of Directors, the following actions will take place:

  • Award recipient notification letters are sent.
  • Award recipient photos are collected.
  • Press Releases are sent/posted immediately before the IADR/AADOCR General Session.
  • Post-Presentation: Recognition of awardees will appear on the appropriate award website and in the Annual Report.

• Presentation or Announcement

  Award recipients are intended to be recognized before their peers at the IADR/AADOCR General Session Opening Ceremonies if the recipient is in attendance.