Research Opportunities

Available Grant Programs

For Fiscal Year 2024-2025

APDA proudly invests in the most promising clinicians and scientific projects focused on the discovery of the cause(s) and finding the cure for Parkinson’s disease. APDA is committed to scientific research and has been a funding partner in most major Parkinson’s disease scientific breakthroughs investing nearly $60 million in research since 1961. Many APDA funded researchers have successfully leveraged pilot data to secure multimillion-dollar grants through the National Institutes of Health.

Available Grant Programs

APDA’s focus is to bring the best new talent to the field of Parkinson’s disease research through the following grant programs:


Center For Advanced Research (CAR)

Letter of Intent due: Dec 16, 2023.

Invitation for full application: Early February 2024

Full application due: April 2024

APDA Centers for Advanced Research (CARs) are located in major academic and medical centers across the country intended to strengthen and help to integrate already existing investigative teams. These Centers receive funding from APDA to support programming that includes: research training; fellowship programs; early stage discovery programs and later stage clinical translational research. These Centers facilitate research which is at the forefront of investigation into the causes, treatments and ultimately the cure(s) for Parkinson’s disease.

This year, APDA is looking to fund one additional CAR. Research institutions, including universities, medical schools, and independent research institutes in the United States are eligible to apply.

The new CAR funding will commence in September 2024. The awardee institution will receive an annual award of $100,000, subject to satisfactory progress and adherence to reporting obligations.

The awardee institution will receive notification of the decision in June 2024.


George C. Cotzias, MD, Memorial Fellowships:
Academic Year 2024-2025

Letter of Intent due: Dec 16, 2023.

Invitation for full application: Early February 2024

Full Application due: April 2024

Dr. George C. Cotzias was a pathfinder in the pharmacologic exploration of brain function and in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease with levodopa. The American Parkinson Disease Association established the George C. Cotzias Memorial Fellowship to honor the memory of the late Dr. Cotzias and to stimulate young neurologists to follow his leadership.

A Cotzias applicant must be a physician who is licensed to practice medicine in the US and who is completing, or has completed, training in a clinical discipline concerned with disorders of the nervous system (i.e. adult neurology, child neurology, neurosurgery, neuropathology).

One hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) will be awarded each year for salary and research expenses for three consecutive years (totaling $300,000), provided that the required conditions are met to the satisfaction of the APDA Scientific Advisory Board and the APDA Board of Directors.

The applicants will receive notification of the decision in June 2024. The APDA grant year runs from September 1 to August 31, 2024-2025.


Research Grants: Academic Year 2024-2025

Letter of Intent due: Dec 16, 2023.

Invitation for full application: Early February 2024

Full Application due: April 2024

One-year grants up to a maximum of $75,000 will be awarded to research scientists (MD, MD/PhD, or PhD).

APDA Research Grants are intended to support research aimed at developing new insights into the pathophysiology, etiology, and/or treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Grant proposals can address research questions anywhere along the pipeline from basic science to rehabilitation-focused projects. APDA seeks to promote the entry of new investigators into the field of Parkinson research, as well as to support important new ideas in the field.

The applicants will receive notification of the decision in June 2024. The APDA grant year runs from September 1 to August 31, 2024-2025.


APDA Diversity in Parkinson’s Disease Research Grant:
Academic Year 2024-2025

Letter of Intent due: Dec 16, 2023.

Invitation for full application: Early February 2024

Full Application due: April 2024

One-year grant up to a maximum of $75,000 will be awarded to research scientists (MD, MD/PhD, or PhD).

The APDA Diversity in PD Research Grant is a one-year grant to study the health inequities and/or differences among under-studied PD communities, across the spectrum of ethnicity, ancestry, geography, socioeconomic conditions, and gender.  This award is open to all researchers.

Current research has established the following:

  1. Diagnosis of PD among some under-studied communities is delayed.
  2. Some under-studied communities are less likely to receive quality PD care.
  3. Clinical trial enrollment among certain under-studied communities does not match their representation in the population.
  4. Differences in clinical features, response to treatment, co-morbidities, prevalence, natural history, genetics, and biomarkers among various under-studied PD populations have not been fully explored.

Projects should address one of these four issues. Projects can be designed to detect inequities or differences, understand the reasons for the inequities or differences, or test an intervention to improve disparities.

The applicants will receive notification of the decision in June 2024. The APDA grant year runs from September 1 to August 31, 2024-2025.


Post-Doctoral Fellowships: Academic Year 2024-2026

Letter of Intent due: Dec 16, 2023.

Invitation for full application: Early February 2024

Full Application due: April 2024

Two-year fellowships up to a maximum of $50,000 per year will be awarded to post-doctoral (MD, MD/PhD, or PhD) research trainees.

APDA Post-doc Fellowships are intended to support post-doctoral trainees at U.S. research institutions whose research training focuses on new insights into the pathophysiology, etiology, and/or treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Proposals can address research questions anywhere along the pipeline from basic science to rehabilitation-focused projects.

The applicants will receive notification of the decision in June 2024. The APDA grant year runs from September 1 to August 31, 2024-2026.


Review Process and the APDA Scientific Advisory Board

American Parkinson Disease Association grants are awarded through a competitive application process and reviewed by APDA’s Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The SAB is comprised of scientists with nationally recognized expertise in a variety of leading-edge research areas within the field of Parkinson’s disease. A rigorous review and scoring process of the applications is conducted by the SAB when it convenes annually to review the proposals.

More Information

For further information please contact Elvin Yao, Programs and Research Manager at eyao@apdaparkinson.org