Funds for Undergraduate Thesis Grant in Natural Products is now being provided by the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD) to support to all undergraduate students who will conduct their thesis on natural products. This program aims to sustain a research culture in natural products to increase the number of research and later on build a pool of researchers/experts specializing in the field. The said program also supports the Drug Discovery and Development program of the DOST-PCHRD which aims to develop safe, effective and affordable alternative drugs from the country’s natural resources.

In order to qualify for the said project, the applicants must comply with the following requirements and procedures:

NOMINATION PROCEDURES

1.  Who can apply

All undergraduate students of Pharmacy, Chemistry, Nursing and Health and Allied Sciences who have thesis proposals on natural products may apply. The proposed thesis study must use plants indigenous in the region. The project must be completed a year after receiving the grant.

1.How to apply

Applicants should submit the following documents to the Regional Health Research and Development Consortium (RHRDC):

a) Duly accomplished prescribed research proposal form with college seal

b) Endorsement letter from the institution signed by the head of the university college dean

c) Soft copy of the proposal (word format) d) Hard copy of the proposal using A4 paper (3 copies)

e) Certificate of plant authentication

f) Appropriate clearances: Bureau of Animal Industry clearance for studies involving animal subjects Biosafety Clearance for studies involving genetic engineering and pathogenic organisms National Commission on Indigenous Peoples Clearance for studies involving Indigenous Peoples Gratuitous Permit from Biodiversity Management Bureau for studies involving the collection of flora and fauna from DENR Protected Areas Ethical clearance for studies involving human subjects

g) Curriculum vitae of the students and adviser using the prescribed form

In addition, the research proposals will be rated based on the following criteria:

Proposal evaluation

1. Technical merit

• Objectives are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound
• The study design supports the objectives
• The study sample and methodology are appropriate

2.Data management

• The plan for data collection is clearly described
• Quality control procedures for data collection are in place
• Statistical analysis is well described

3.Relevance/Significance

• The study addresses an important health problem
• The study contributes to the advancement of scientific knowledge

4.Proponent/institution’s capacity

• The investigators are qualified and appropriately trained to carry out the study
• The proposed study is appropriate to the experience level of the investigators
• The implementing/cooperating institution is capable of carrying out the proposed study

Thesis grants will be given to 2 undergraduate entries per region. After completion of the project, a competition will be held to selected qualified students to recognize innovative work on natural products.

Deliberation of thesis grantees and winners will be based on the grading/rating during the en banc meeting and oral presentation, respectively.

Members of screening committee include the Regional Health Research and Development Consortium – for prescreening, UP Institute of Chemistry, UST Research Center for the Natural Sciences, DLSHSI Center for Biopharmaceutical Research, Gruppo Medica Inc. and Herbanext Laboratories Inc.

Two (2) thesis proposals will be selected per region who will receive a grant amounting to a maximum of Fifty Thousand Pesos (P 50,000.00). The thesis fund will be deposited to the bank account of the thesis adviser and will be liquidated after the completion of the study. A Memorandum of Agreement will be signed by the students, adviser, head of the institution and DOST-PCHRD and the grant must be expended based on the approved line-item budget

After the oral presentation, fund support will be provided to the top 3 relevant and innovative thesis studies. Aside from plaque of recognition, prizes will be distributed to the finalists as follows:

The dissemination and application of entries have already started earlier January until March while the deadline of submission to the consortium and DOST-PCHRD were scheduled on the end of May and 2nd week of June, respectively. On the other hand, the selection of thesis grantees by the Selection Committee will start on June to July and the conduct of study on August to May of the succeeding year. Meanwhile, on the first week of June of the succeeding year, completed studies shall be submitted to DOST-PCHRD where the Selection Committee shall select the oral presenters until July. Finally, the oral presentation and announcement of winners will be conducted on August 2019.