Grants in Aid for Early Career Professionals

The AP-LS Committee on Early Career Professionals (ECPs) was formed in 2007 to initiate programs geared toward issues commonly faced by ECPs. ECPs face a number of unique challenges and issues when making the transition from graduate study to professional life. More than ever, today’s ECPs are likely to struggle with juggling multiple roles. Challenges faced by ECPs include financial concerns or strains, meeting licensure requirements, developing a professional identify, obtaining tenure, and enhancement of health and wellness, among other issues (Green & Hawley, 2009).

The purpose of this award is to support AP-LS members who are ECPs in conducting research related to psychology and law. It is the committee’s desire that these awards are not limited only to members who are psychologists, but instead open to AP-LS members from all backgrounds.

Award Amounts

Funding up to $5,000 per award is available for expenses associated with conducting the research (e.g., equipment, participant payments, software, data transcription, research assistants, and expenses incurred at sites away from the home institution while collecting data). Travel to conferences and salary expenses are not eligible costs. Only direct costs are available for funding; no indirect costs will be paid. AP-LS requests that applicants attempt to secure matched funding from their employer.

To receive an award, the applicant must be an Early Career Professional, defined by APA as those within seven years of receiving their last degree. Applicants must be classified as ECPs upon the application deadline for that year. Applicants may submit only one award proposal per funding cycle. In addition, to maximize the impact of the program, a strong preference will be given to those applicants who never have received an AP-LS ECP Grants-in-Aid. Under exceptional circumstances, the committee may consider a second award. The possibility of a second award will be a rare occurrence, and the previous award must be completed prior to submitting a second proposal. Proposals that represent "seed money" for larger projects and proposals that are for "stand alone" projects will be accepted. Applicants are encouraged but not required to secure matched funding from employers to support the proposed research.

Annual deadline: Oct. 15

Applications should include the following five documents/files submitted at the same time, but as separate attachments:

• Applicant Summary Information: please download this Excel file from the AP-LS website, complete the indicated fields and submit with your application.
• Cover letter that includes:
  1. Contact information (e.g., address, phone number, e-mail address)
  2. Proposal title
  3. Status of the human subjects review for the project (approval must be obtained prior to disbursement of the award)
  4. Explanation regarding attempts to secure matched funding from employer (please contact the ECP Committee Chair with any questions)
• Project Application Package prepared for blind review that includes:

1. An abstract (up to 150 words) describing the proposed research.
2. A project description (up to five pages; any legible formatting accepted) that includes the following four sections:
   • Statement of the problem. A clear statement of the research problem and its significance to psychology and law.    
   • Overview of the relation of the problem to the state of the field. A concise overview of the relevant empirical literature, theoretical background, and/or law related to the research problem.
   • Project method. A detailed description of the methodology and analytical strategies to be used.
   • Anticipated contribution. A brief description of the significance of the project within the field of psychology and law.
3. Project timeline.
4. Proposed budget with budget justifications. If the applicant has secured additional funding for the proposed research from another funding source, please provide an explanation of how the external funds will be used (additional funding is not required and is not considered among the evaluation criteria).

• Curriculum vitae.
• A list of at least five suggested reviewers for the project with expertise in the content area of the proposal. External reviewer suggestions must exclude those with a potential conflict of interest (e.g., former advisors, collaborators).

Evaluation

Applications first will be reviewed by at least two external reviewers; proposals will be subject to blind review. After receiving external reviews, the ECP Committee will meet to evaluate the proposals and to make funding decisions. Both the external reviews and a panel summary will be provided to the applicant, regardless of award decision. 

In evaluating each proposal, outside reviewers and the panel will evaluate and provide feedback about the intellectual merit of the project using the following criteria:  

1. What is the quality of the proposed project? Is it methodologically rigorous? Is the method thorough and complete?
2. What is the potential contribution of the proposal to the field of psychology and law? Does it have potential to contribute to advancing knowledge in the field?
3. Does the proposal present an original idea in psychology and law? Does the proposal use new or creative methods or viewpoints to address old problems?

Application deadline, notification of award and ending the award  

Applications will be accepted annually until Oct. 15. Please submit the 5 documents/files described above via email as separate attachments to the ECP Committee Chair.

Late applications will be held until the next award date. Applicants will be notified of the status of their submission by Nov. 15. Award recipients will be announced at the AP-LS Conference. Awardees must submit yearly progress reports on Nov. 15 of each year until the project is complete. Upon completion of the project, awardees must submit an end-of-project report (to be displayed on our website) and must present the results of their research at either a subsequent AP-LS conference or in the division’s APA program (applicant’s choice). 

We are looking forward to reviewing your application. If you have questions about the grant-in-aid, please contact the ECP Committee Chair.