Supporting Statement A for
National Cancer Institute (NCI) Future Fellows Resume Databank
Date: December 11, 2018
Name: Angela R. Jones
Address: 9609 Medical Center Drive, Room 2W-236, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-9776
Telephone: 240-276-5631
Fax: 240-276-5659
Email: jonesangel@mail.nih.gov
Check off which applies:
New
Revision
Reinstatement with Change
Reinstatement without Change
Extension
Emergency
X Existing Collection Without an OMB Number
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. JUSTIFICATION 1
A.1 Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary 1
A.2 Purpose and Use of the Information Collection 1
A.3 Use of Improved Information Technology and Burden Reduction 3
A.4 Efforts to Identify Duplication and Use Similar Information 3
A.5 Impact on Small Businesses or Other Small Entities 4
A.6 Consequences of Collecting the Information Less Frequently 4
A.7 Special Circumstances Relating to the Guidelines of 5 CFR 1320.5 4
A.8 Comments in Response to Federal Register Notice and Efforts To
Consult Outside the Agency 4
A.9 Explanation of Any Payment or Gift to Respondents 4
A.10 Assurance of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents 5
A.11 Justification for Sensitive Questions 5
A.12 Estimates of Annualized Burden Hours and Costs 5
A.13 Estimate of Other Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents and Record keepers 6
A.14 Annualized Cost to the Federal Government 6
A.15 Explanation for Program Changes or Adjustments 7
A.16 Plans for Tabulation and Publication and Project Time Schedule 7
A.17 Reason(s) Display of OMB Expiration Date in Inappropriate 7
A.18 Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submission 7
List of Attachments
Attachment 1: Screenshots of Future Fellows Website
Attachment 2: Privacy Impact Assessment
Attachment 3: Privacy Act Memo
A. Justification
This is a request for approval of an “Existing Collection in Use Without an OMB Control Number” for three years. The National Cancer Institute, Center for Cancer Training mission is to catalyze the development of the 21st century workforce capable of advancing cancer research through a scientifically integrated approach. This is accomplished by, 1) coordinating and providing research training and career development activities for fellows and trainees in NCI's laboratories, clinics, and other research groups, 2) developing, coordinating, and implementing opportunities in support of cancer research training, career development, and education at institutions nationwide, and 3) identifying workforce needs in cancer research and adapting NCI's training and career development programs and funding opportunities to address these needs. The proposed information collection involves a website to collect and maintain resumes of interested candidates to be considered for postdoctoral fellowships and internships in science. After posting their resume in the database, NCI Scientists can view and select candidates for current fellowship and internship opportunities offered at NCI.
A.1 Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary
The purpose of the NCI Future Fellows website is to assure that prospective trainees to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) meet basic eligibility requirements; to assess their potential as future scientists; to determine where mutual research interests exist; and to make decisions regarding which candidates will be eligible and invited to attend program positions that may have future openings. Though a candidate could apply directly for fellowship positions through the Center for Cancer Research, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, and Division of Cancer Prevention websites, by answering these questions and uploading a resume this allows NCI to pre-screen and match potential candidates based on the experience and interests. Should a position open up at NCI that fits this match, then the candidate is contacted, and a formal interview is requested. In addition, candidates are able to submit their resumes to this databank year-round whereas other areas in NCI, resumes can only be submitted during specific times. This resume databank will also benefit all the National Cancer Institute organizations that do not have a specific resume collection process.
NCI has been using the website to collect information since 2013. During a routine audit of all websites, the NCI Office of Communication and Public Liaison contacted us and made us aware that PRA OMB Clearance was required for the collection of information. We immediately started the process for obtaining clearance. For this reason, we are submitting an Existing Collection without an OMB Number ICR.
The resumes are used to recruit prospective candidates to the National Cancer Institute’s Intramural and Extramural Programs. The Future Fellows website has received approximately 825 resumes over the last five years.
The Future Fellows website collects contact information, job category (Postdoctoral Fellowship, Postdoctoral Fellowship (Foreign Visiting Fellow), citizenship, undergraduate Degree, and Grade Point Average (GPA), and completed education levels (DDS, DO, DSc, DVM, JD, MD, MPH, PhD, PharmD, ScD) (Attachment 1). All this information is collected to verify eligibility for specific programs. Some fellowships only accept fellows with a certain citizenship and GPA. The website also requests information about research interests, title of positions held, length of time employed, availability date, reason for seeking a fellowship, and how they heard about the NCI fellowship. In addition to the above information and their resume, the potential candidate is requested to select up to five scientific focus areas from the following list:
Biomedical Engineering/Biophysics/Physics,
Cancer Biology,
Chemistry/Chemical Biology,
Chromosome Biology/Epigenetics,
Clinical Research,
Computational Biology/Bioinformatics/Biostatistics/Mathematics,
Developmental Biology,
Epidemiology/Population Sciences,
Genetics/Genomics,
Health Disparities,
Immunology,
Microbiology/Infectious diseases (non-viral),
Molecular Biology/Biochemistry,
Molecular Pharmacology/Toxicology,
Neuroscience/Neurophysiology/Neurodevelopment,
Social and Behavioral Sciences,
Stem Cells/Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells, and
Structural Biology
The candidate’s contact information and resume are kept on file for six months from the date the resume is posted then the information is deleted.
A.3 Use of Information Technology and Burden Reduction
Prospective trainees for can apply directly to NCI Future Fellows website by uploading their resume, completing basic fields and answering four questions. The submissions are web based and accessible through the web site https://futurefellows.cancer.gov/ under the “Apply” tab. This online resume databank will enhance a previous hard copy resume system that included either college career fairs or receiving unsolicited resumes by mail. In addition, once the resume is electronically captured, the resume information and keywords will be searchable.
The NCI Privacy Act Coordinator was consulted, and it was determined that a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) is needed. A PIA has been submitted and approved by NIH (Attachment 2).
This information is similar to other information collections that exist, however this website acts as a single porthole and consolidates all the fellowship options for NCI. This resume databank will benefit all of the National Cancer Institute organizations that do not have a specific resume collection process. Though NCI’s Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG) (OMB No. 0925-0716, Expiration Date 5/31/2021) and Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program and Summer Curriculum Applicants (CPFP) (OMB No. 0925-0749, Expiration Date 12/31/2019) also ask research interests and similar questions of their candidates, this is a broader application that will encompass many different trainings and fellowships at NCI. There have been discussions that in the future, this resume databank may replace other existing resume collections and application systems at NCI.
Though the NIH Office of Intramural Training and Education (OITE), which is part of the NIH Office of the Director, Office of Intramural Research, (NIH/OD/OIR/OITE) (OMB No. 0925-0299 Expiration Date 06/30/2019) has a fellowship application and review process, the OITE application does not target candidates interested in cancer fellowships, and it also does not include research interest questions designed to match a candidate to an open position.
No Small businesses or other small entities are affected.
This information will be collected when a candidate is interested in posting their resume on the website. The resume is available to NCI for review for six months then it is deleted. So, a candidate could potentially submit their information and resume twice per year.
The resumes are only kept for a period of six months so that the database holds current candidate information, GPA, and status of degrees, as well as making the system more accurate and efficient.
This information collection is consistent with the 5 CRF 1320.5 guidelines.
The 60-day Federal Register Notice was published on August 13, 2018 (83 FR 40071). No public comments were received.
A.8.2 No outside agency has been consulted.
A.9 Explanation of Any Payment of Gift to Respondents
Neither payments nor gifts will be provided to respondents.
A.10 Assurance of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents
All information will be kept private to the extent allowable by law. Additionally, principal investigators of the NCI will have access to the applications. These individuals are assigned login credentials, including "strong" passwords that conform to standards used by the NIH Center for Information Technology, and the online tools these individuals use to access candidate’s data are restricted to NCI approved users.
The Privacy Act is applicable as determined by the NIH Privacy Officer in the Privacy Act Memo (Attachment 3). The applicable SORN is NIH Privacy Act System of Record 09-25-0158; “Administration: Records of Applicants and Awardees of the NIH Intramural Research Training Awards Program, HHS/NIH/OD/OIR/OE.”
A.11 Justification for Sensitive Questions
There are no sensitive questions asked in this information collection. Personal Identifiable Information (PII) is collected including: name, contact information, education, and employment history. Federal regulations for the protection of human subjects does not apply to this activity.
A.12 Estimates of Annualized Burden Hours and Costs
The Future Fellows website is a database for storing prospective trainees resumes, contact information, research interests, and education background. The Future Fellows website receives about 150 to 200 resumes every year and the process for uploading the resume and completing the fields on the site will take about 30 minutes. A post doctorate candidate, should they be interested, could apply twice per year, since resumes and information are only retained for six months. The annual estimate of burden is expected to be 200 hours for 200 post doctorate candidates (Table A.12-1). This averages to 600 hours over a three-year information collection period.
A.12-1 Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
Type of Respondent |
Number of Respondents |
Number of Responses per Respondent |
Average Time Per Response (in hours) |
Total Annual Burden Hours |
Individuals |
200 |
2 |
30/60 |
200 |
Totals |
200 |
400 |
|
200 |
A.12-2 Annualized Cost to Respondents
The average of lowest and highest stipend levels for post doctorate candidates was calculated and then divided for the candidate’s average hourly rate ($36.13). The annual respondent costs are estimated to be $7,226 (Table A.12-2), or approximately $21,678 over a three-year information collection period.
Type of Respondent |
Total Annual Burden Hours |
Hourly Wage Rate* |
Respondent Cost |
Individuals |
200 |
$36.13 |
$7,226.00 |
Total |
200 |
|
$7,226.00 |
* Hourly wage rates are based on the NCI Cancer Research Training (CRTA) stipend charts (https://www.cancer.gov/grants-training/training/at-nci/crta/crta.pdf) (Appendix 1, Category 5) to estimate respondent costs.
A.13 Estimate of Other Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents or Record Keepers
There are no capital costs, operating costs, or maintenance costs to report.
The annualized cost to the government is $18,633.80. CCT works with a contractor on setting up and managing the application system for the resumes and candidate’s information. The contractor is responsible for setting up and managing the web-based system. The NCI staff person manages the review and distribution of the applications. The annual contractor cost to the Federal government is estimated at $4,500 (Table A.14-1).
Table A14-1. Annualized Cost to the Federal Government
Cost Descriptions |
Grade/Step |
Salary** |
Percent Effort |
Fringe (if applicable) |
Total Cost to Gov’t |
Federal Oversight |
|
|
|
|
|
Program Analyst |
13/10 |
$126,062 |
10% |
|
$12,606.20 |
Program Director |
15/5 |
$152,760 |
1% |
|
$1,527.60 |
Contractor Cost |
|
|
|
|
$4,500.00 |
Travel |
|
|
|
|
$0 |
Other Cost |
|
|
|
|
$0 |
Total |
|
|
|
|
$18,633.80 |
A.15 Explanation for Program Changes or Adjustments
This is an Existing Collection in Use Without an OMB Control Number. During a routine audit by NCI, the Center for Cancer Training was made aware that PRA OMB Clearance was required for the collection of information and a clearance was immediately started. The Future Fellows website has received approximately 825 resumes over the last five years. The website stopped collecting information once CCT was notified OMB clearance was needed.
There are no plans for tabulation since this is an application. Since this project has already been completed. When OMB review is complete and approved, the website will be reinstated and begin collecting resumes and information.
A.17 Reason(s) Display of OMB Expiration Date is Inappropriate
There is no request for exemption from displaying the expiration date for OMB approval
A.18 Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions
There are no exceptions to the Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Subject | Supporting Statement A |
| Author | Lopez, Maria (NIH/NICHD) [E] |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-15 |