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The Vanderbilt Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (VICTR) provides funding for biostatistical support of projects through a voucher system. In addition to the requirements detailed on the VICTR Funding Program webpage, these parameters pertain to applications for biostatistical support:
- The project's principal investigator must present the study design at a biostatistics clinic prior to applying for a voucher.
- Mentors are required to attend with all trainees (e.g., students, residents, postdoc fellows, etc).
- A VICTR-supported biostatistician must be present at the clinic. Thus, the appointment must take place when Bryan Blette (Mondays), Dandan Liu (Wednesdays), or Frank Harrell (Thursdays) are available.
- If attending a clinic is not feasible, a one-on-one consultation with a VICTR biostatistician may be requested. Accommodations for exceptional circumstances (such as the clinic being fully booked for months, or a PI's clinical schedule completely precluding clinic participation) will be considered on a case-by-case basis
- If a VICTR biostatistician is present at a VICTR studio or a formal work-in-progress meeting for a project, that biostatistician may provide feedback on the PI's analysis plan at that time. The requirement to attend a clinic may be waived in these instances.
- During the clinic, the VICTR biostatistician will help determine whether the project is eligible for a VICTR voucher.
- PIs are urged to present their experimental design and analysis plans as early in the process as possible, so that they can act on clinic feedback before the project has matured beyond the stage when it can be refined.
- The biostatistician may advise on project scale, as PIs attempting to combine multiple projects, undertake complex projects, or prepare multiple manuscripts within a single collaboration are likely to exceed the scope of voucher support.
- The biostatistician may provide some general guidance on drafting the application, assist with very simple sample size calculations, and/or quickly check a completed application for statistical accuracy.
- The voucher application process includes expedited review by the VICTR Scientific Review Committee. Funding notifications are typically delivered 3–4 weeks after the review.
- Vouchers for biostatistical support are for "up to $5000." This typically covers about 90 hours of collaboration (depending on the level of expertise required), which is usually sufficient for a single straightforward project.
- Only one voucher will be awarded per PI per year, and a single project can get support only once.
- VICTR vouchers are valid for one year from the date of award. If biostatistical support is needed beyond this period, the PI must apply to VICTR for an extension.
- If the amount of time spent on a collaboration exceeds 80 hours, the PI's academic unit head will be asked for a letter of support to confirm that funding will be available should the time requirement exceed 90 hours. If additional funding is not secured, the remaining effort will be applied towards documenting the analysis to date and preparing datasets, analysis code, and reports for hand-off to the PI.
The Department of Biostatistics has provided guidance and assistance to hundreds of investigators since the clinics were launched in 2005. We look forward to learning about your research and helping you accomplish its goals.