The Society for Pediatric and Perinatal Epidemiologic Research (SPER) invites manuscripts for consideration for the Student Prize Paper Award. The deadline for submission is January 29, 2024 at 11:59 PM PT.
This competition is open to graduate and medical students, postdoctoral fellows, medical residents, research trainees, and clinical fellows. To be eligible for the award, the work must have been completed in the prior year while the applicant was a student or trainee. The paper should represent work in the field of reproductive, perinatal, or pediatric epidemiology.
To be considered for the award, the following documents must be submitted in a single PDF file named as the applicant’s last name with the initials SPP appended at the beginning (i.e., SPP_lastname):
- Cover letter from the applicant including the following information: name, address, telephone number, email address, current position, name of the supervisor under which the work was completed, and when and where the work was completed
- Completed manuscript
- Letter of support from the mentor under which the work was completed that addresses all of the evaluation criteria
While the paper must be unpublished when submitted for consideration for the award, it may be under review. Authors do not have to be SPER members to apply but will be asked to join SPER if selected for the award. Applicants may also submit the paper simultaneously to the Tyroler or Lilienfeld Prize competitions of the Society for Epidemiologic Research (SER); however if the paper is accepted for either of those awards, it will not be eligible for the SPER award. Incomplete applications will not be considered. The winner is also expected to have an active Society membership at the time of meeting registration.
The submission will be evaluated according to six review criteria: (1) originality, (2) soundness of analytical methods, (3) rationale, (4) involvement of the student in the project, (5) potential impact of the work on the field, and (6) letter of support from the mentor.
The winner of the award will present the selected paper at the SPER Annual Meeting and will receive a $500 award plus two-night hotel stay, economy flight reimbursement, and SPER Meeting registration.
Important note: Applicants must submit the abstract of their paper via the regular Annual Meeting call for abstracts if they wish to have the paper considered for the meeting in the event they do not receive the Student Prize Paper Award.