The J. Andrew McKee Fellowship Program in Type 1 Diabetes, supported by SCN & Breakthrough T1D (formerly known as JDRF)

The objective of the J. Andrew McKee Fellowship Program in Type 1 Diabetes, supported by SCN & Breakthrough T1D (formerly known as JDRF) is to attract new qualified, promising post-doctoral scientists entering their professional career in the T1D research field to join the Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at UBC. The Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at the University of British Columbia (UBC) launched in November, 2021 with the goal of accelerating novel type 1 diabetes (T1D) cure research towards clinical translation.

One award will be provided through the program each year in 2022-2026 for the successful applicant to take up at UBC as part of the Centre team. This award is 1 year in duration and is intended for those in a relatively early stage in their career. The supervisors at the Centre of Excellence have committed an additional 2 years of funding support for each recruited Fellow, as such, the successful candidate should anticipate their time at the Centre to be at least 3 years in length.

Congratulations to the J. Andrew McKee Fellowship in Type 1 Diabetes Award Winners

2024-2025

Alyssa Weinrauch, Ph.D.
PI: Dr. Dan Luciani, Dr. Francis Lynn, and Dr. James Johnson (co-supervisors)
University of British Columbia
Project Title: Characterizing the role of lipids in stem cell derived beta-cell maturation

Stem cell replacement therapy of insulin producing beta cells is a promising avenue for treatment of Type 1 diabetes (T1D). However, stem cell derived beta cells do not work as well as human islets. Dr. Weinrauch’s project aims to investigate the role of fats in stem cell maturation and full insulin responsiveness. By understanding how fats contribute to cell development and function, this work will contribute to the production of improved stem cell derived beta cells for T1D therapy.

Alyssa Weinrauch blog

2023-2024

Sing-Young Chen, Ph.D.
PI: Elizabeth Rideout, Ph.D. (Primary Supervisor) and James Johnson, Ph.D. (Co-Supervisor)
University of British Columbia
Project Title: Sex differences in beta cell identity during maturation and stresses associated with type 1 diabetes

Dr. Chen’s research is focused on investigating sex differences in insulin producing beta cell responses to stresses associated with type 1 diabetes (T1D). T1D is more common in males than females, and female beta cells are less susceptible to stress-related cell death and can survive to keep making insulin. Understanding and leveraging these differences will support the development of new T1D therapies that will thrive in a T1D environment. Dr. Chen’s yearlong fellowship is valued at $60,000 and will take place at the JDRF Centre of Excellence, located at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

View announcement here
Sing-Young Chen blog

2022-2023

Karoliina Tuomela, Ph.D.
PI: Megan Levings, Ph.D. (Primary Supervisor) and James Johnson, Ph.D. (Co-Supervisor)
University of British Columbia
Project Title: Tailoring regulatory T cells for the islet environment in order to support stem-cell derived beta-cell transplant

Under the supervision of Dr. Megan Levings, Dr. Karoliina Tuomela’s research project focused on the metabolism of regulatory T cells (Tregs) and engineering Tregs to respond better in the pancreatic microenvironment. The goal of Dr. Tuomela’s research is to use Tregs to suppress the autoimmune response in type 1 diabetes, including in the context of stem cell-based therapies as a cure for the condition.

Karoliina Tuomela blog

2025-2026 Application Information

The application process is now closed.

Apply here

Application instructions

Applicant Eligibility

Required: MD, DMD, DVM, PhD, or equivalent received at least two months prior to the commencement of the fellowship. Must not be simultaneously serving an internship or residency. Individuals that already hold a position as a student, fellow or staff member in a lab affiliated with the Centre of Excellence at UBC are not eligible to apply.

Application Process

• All interested applicants must access and submit full applications to Stem Cell Network via ProposalCentral by February 27, 2025, at 17:00 ET.

Terms
$60,000 per year, of which $57,500 is stipend and $2,500 is research allowance.

Timeline

Description
The objective of the J. Andrew McKee Fellowship Program in Type 1 Diabetes, supported by SCN & Breakthrough T1D is to attract new qualified, promising scientists entering their professional career in the T1D research field to join the Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at UBC as a trainee. The launched in November 2021 with the goal of accelerating novel type 1 diabetes (T1D) cure research towards clinical translation. Successful applicants will pursue research, including stem cell and regenerative medicine approaches, that can be used to treat and/or cure T1D. One award will be provided through the program each year in 2022-2026 for the successful applicant to take up at UBC as part of the Centre team. Awards are 1 year in duration and are intended for those in a relatively early stage in their career. Applicants are not required to present a research proposal as part of the application; a list of potential supervisors and possible projects is available and the successful candidate will be able to explore these or other projects with the Centre teams. (See project areas below).

The applicant must have a doctoral degree (PhD, MD, DMD, DVM), or the equivalent from an accredited institution by at least two months prior to the commencement of the Fellowship, and must not be simultaneously serving an internship or residency.

Applications can be made in English or French, but applicants should note that the primary language of communication at the Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at UBC is English.

Project Areas
Upon receipt of the award, the successful applicant will work with a UBC laboratory affiliated with the Centre on a specific project of interest in an area of T1D research of relevance to regenerative medicine and/or stem cells.

A list of potential projects and supervisors is appended to this call. The best fit for the successful Fellow’s supervisor and project will be explored during application review and confirmed upon receipt of the award. The Fellow’s project may or may not be among those listed with this opportunity.

Project descriptions

Eligibility

Applicant
This opportunity is open to applicants based in Canada or internationally. There are no citizenship requirements for this program. Applicants must be legally permitted to reside and work in Canada to take up the award. For international applicants, if a work permit is required, the successful candidate must seek an expedited process to obtain their permit and relocate no later than October 15, 2025, where possible. Neither SCN nor Breakthrough T1D will provide assistance with the immigration process for international applicants. For assistance with work permit related questions, contact immigration.help@ubc.ca. To assure continued excellence and diversity among applicants and awardees, Breakthrough T1D and SCN welcome applications from all qualified individuals and encourage applications from persons with disabilities or members of minority groups underrepresented in the sciences.

This Fellowship is intended for those at a relatively early stage of their career. Ordinarily, the most recent doctoral degree (PhD, MD, DMD, DVM, or equivalent) will have been received no more than 5 years before the application is submitted. Individuals that already hold a position as a student, fellow or staff member in a lab affiliated with the Centre of Excellence at UBC are not eligible to apply.

Breakthrough T1D and SCN are sensitive to personal and COVID-related matters that impact career trajectories. Applicants who have taken leave from their career (e.g. parenting of a child, childbirth, long-term care of a parent/spouse/child/dependent, personal health issues), or experienced a delay in their training due to COVID shutdowns that put them outside of the eligibility time frame for the award mechanism should feel free to reach out ahead of their application submission. Breakthrough T1D and SCN aim to be flexible and adjust these time frames if necessary and appropriate.

Location
The award will be taken up at UBC in Vancouver, BC, Canada no later than October 15, 2025. Exceptions may be possible in the case that a successful candidate has an outstanding application for a work permit.

Application Components

Applicants must submit a full applications to Stem Cell Network via SCN’s ProposalCentral application portal by the application deadline of February 27, 2025 at 17:00 ET. An application will consist of:

• Completed application form in ProposalCentral, which will include completion of a written section:
  • Applicant expertise
  • Research contributions and impacts
  • Career development plan
  • T1D challenges and knowledge question
• Canadian Common CV, in CIHR academic format
• Up to three (3) letters of support (minimum 1, maximum 3) must be submitted that assess the applicant’s scientific abilities and contributions, as well as the potential of the applicant.
  • Note: The letter(s) of support should come from the individual(s) under whom the applicant has trained, who are familiar with the candidate’s characteristics and abilities and/or who have had a good opportunity to assess their potential for research.

Applicants may apply in English or French.

Evaluation Process

Applications will be reviewed jointly by Breakthrough T1D and SCN through a two-phase process as follows:

• Phase 1: All applications received through ProposalCentral will be reviewed by Breakthrough T1D and SCN’s Training and Education Committee (TEC)
• Phase 2: The top ranked 2-4 applications from Phase 1 review will be invited to participate in virtual interviews with a panel of investigators from the UBC Centre during the month of April 2025.
• The selected candidate will be notified of their award in May 2025.

Applicants will be evaluated on:

• Candidate expertise and CV (weighting: 25%)
• Contributions and research impacts (weighting: 25%)
• Career development plan (weighting: 10%)
• T1D challenges (weighting: 20%)
• Letter(s) of support (weighting: 20%)

Terms of Award & Stipend

• The Fellowship term is 12 months. Follow-on funding for a minimum of 2 years after the Fellowship will be provided by the Fellow’s supervisor at the Centre.
• The award is $60,000 per year, of which $57,500 is stipend and $2,500 is research allowance.
  • The research allowance of $2,500 CAD is aimed at providing the Fellow with funds to enrich their training experience (travel to scientific meetings, journal subscriptions, books, training courses). The research allowance cannot be used to purchase research supplies or equipment, including laptops.
  • Travel stipend can only support travel at economy level, accommodations, and meals. Purchase of alcohol or cannabis is not an allowable expense.
  • SCN will also provide the Fellow with a registration fee and travel support to attend SCN’s annual scientific meeting, the Till & McCulloch Meetings (TMM), during the year the award is held. This is an additional, non-transferrable, value of up to $1500.00. SCN will coordinate this support directly with the Fellow.
• The Fellow will be eligible to participate in the TMM abstract and poster competitions. The Fellow will also be eligible to apply for other training opportunities offered by SCN or Breakthrough T1D during the duration of the Fellowship, including technical skills, industry prep, clinical translation and EDI training.
• Fellows must devote at least 75% of their effort to the project assigned by the Centre upon receipt of the award.
• Fellows must undertake two rotations of at least 2 weeks in Centre laboratories other than that of their appointed supervisor; if the project undertaken by the Fellow does not directly involve stem cell work, at least one of these rotations must be done in a lab working on stem cells.
• Recipients of the award cannot hold another postdoctoral fellowship at the same time.
• There are no indirect costs allowed for fellowships and Breakthrough T1D will make no deductions for income tax, etc.
• Please contact Breakthrough T1D with specific enquiries about allowable costs.
• It is expected that during the Fellowship period the PDF will engage in knowledge mobilization activities, including with patient communities, and be available to support either Breakthrough T1D, SCN or the Centre in communication and outreach initiatives.
• A final report using a standard template must be submitted to Breakthrough T1D no later than 75 days after the end date of the Fellowship.