COPCORD Grant

(Application for the COPCORD Grant is now opened till 31 March 2022)

INVITATION

The Asia Pacific League of Associations for Rheumatology (APLAR) invites applications from physicians from APLAR member societies for its APLAR Community Oriented Program for Control of Rheumatic Diseases (COPCORD) research grant. Up to three (3) grants of up to USD 14,000 will be awarded to doctors striving to study rheumatic disease in the community.

The aims of the grant are to give the researcher an opportunity to study rheumatic disease in the community of their own country of residence. This grant is to be used for consumables required for the research, including salaries of assistant(s), but not for fixed costs. It is expected that the research will be completed within one (1) year of its initiation.

All successful awardees are required to submit a full report to the APLAR Executive Committee upon the completion of their research. Additionally, they are required to submit the results of the research carried out for presentation at a subsequent APLAR Congress, and for publication as a full scientific article in an international peer-reviewed journal, preferably the International Journal of the Rheumatic Diseases. An acknowledgement of the APLAR grant must be included in the manuscript.

Applicants should demonstrate that how their research will impact improvements in rheumatology care in their community. Only complete applications with the correct supporting documents will be accepted. The decision of the APLAR Executive Committee on the award of these grants is final.

For more information on COPCORD please visit www.copcord.org

APPLICATION 

The grant is valid only for

• Nationals of countries who are members of APLAR (clear of arrears for membership dues)

The following documents should be enclosed with the application:

1. A curriculum vitae with a recent 2×2 inch photograph.
2. A reference of good standing from the Dean of the candidate’s medical school / university.
3. A summary of the project with the significance of the expected results in the context of current knowledge (maximum 500 words).
4. A grant proposal of the project detailing the background, aims, methodology (using the COPCORD questionnaire) and expected results (see below).
5. Ethics Committee approval of the study.
6. A detailed budget with costings in USD. It is expected that the budget is to be used specifically for the research project, and not to be used to pay for salaries of permanent staff, not to be used to purchase equipment that would be otherwise be available in a clinical rheumatology department or used to pay any fixed costs associated with the normal running of a rheumatology unit.
7. A timeline of the research project.

Outline of the proposal for applying APLAR COPCORD grants.

Please study the template below for proposal development and submission it along with the application form.

DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS

At the start of the project, USD 5,000 will be transferred to the investigator’s account, preferably their University’s research account. But if that would incur an administrative charge, then the investigator can request to use their personal account.

Following the first transfer, the investigator will be required to provide receipts for the expenditure as the project progresses. If any individual item costs are more than USD 1,000, then 3 separate quotations are required, and the cheapest quotation will usually be accepted. Once the expenditure has exceeded the first USD 5,000, there can be 2 further disbursements at Month 3 and Month 6, depending on the proposed budget, supported by receipts, of up to USD 4,000 each.

The last USD 1,000 will be transferred once the completed research report and the final draft of the manuscript of the research project been received by the APLAR Executive Committee. In addition, awardees should submit their work for publication in an international peer-reviewed journal, preferably to the International Journal of the Rheumatic Diseases.

The APLAR Executive Committee reserves the right to adjust the amount of grant awarded depending on the proposed budget expenditure. Any such decision taken by the APLAR Executive Committee is final.

APPLICATION PERIOD

Application for grant will open from 15 January 2022 to 31 March 2022

To download the invitation and application form, click here!

COPCORD GRANT RECIPIENTS