Top 10 Immunotherapy Fellowships and Grants to Watch in 2025

Immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment, ushering in a new era of precision medicine that mobilizes the immune system to fight tumors. From immune checkpoint inhibitors to CAR-T therapies and neoantigen vaccines, rapid progress in the field has been driven not only by brilliant minds but also by competitive funding. For young investigators, physician-scientists, and data-driven innovators, fellowships and research grants are critical launchpads. In 2025, several prestigious opportunities are open across the globe to support immunotherapy research and clinical development.

Below, we present 10 highly competitive, career-defining fellowships and grants in cancer immunotherapy that are open to international applicants or U.S.-based scientists. This list is designed to help early-career professionals find impactful funding while advancing science that could save lives.

• SITC-Merck Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship

• Adult Cancer Immunotherapy Fellowship – Parker Institute / MSK

• AACR-Kure It Research Grant for Immunotherapy in Kidney Cancer

• Cancer Immunotherapy Response Research Platform – MRC (UK)

• MRFF Stem Cell Therapies Mission Grant (Australia)

• AACR Immuno-Oncology Research Fellowship

• CRI Immuno-Informatics Postdoctoral Fellowship

• High-Risk, High-Reward Immunology Innovation (ExCITe NOSI) – NCI/NIH

• NIH Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship

• ASCO Career Development Award (CDA)

SITC-Merck Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship

The SITC-Merck Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship is a prestigious one-year program designed to accelerate the careers of early-stage physician-scientists focused on the clinical translation of cancer immunotherapy. Sponsored by the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) in partnership with Merck, this fellowship is highly competitive and supports innovative clinical or translational research that addresses critical challenges in immune-oncology.

Typical projects funded under this program include:

• Early-phase clinical trials of immune checkpoint inhibitors or combination immunotherapies
• Investigation of resistance mechanisms in immunotherapy
• Development of novel cell-based therapies, including CAR-T or NK cell strategies
• Studies exploring the tumor microenvironment and immune evasion
• Translational biomarker research for patient stratification and response prediction

The program aims to support researchers at the transition point between mentored training and independent research leadership. The emphasis is on advancing therapies that can be translated into improved patient outcomes.

SITC 2024 Fellowship Recipients Recipients: Source SITC

Key Details

• Organization: Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC)
• Award: $100,000 (1-year duration)

Eligibility Criteria: Applicants must meet the following requirements:

• Hold an MD or MD/PhD degree
• Be a current SITC member in good standing
• Occupy a position such as postdoctoral fellow, resident, or early-career research scientist (before faculty appointment)
• Be within 4 years of completing postdoctoral or clinical training
• Have a designated mentor with a formal letter of recommendation
• Domestic and international applicants are eligible to apply

Fellowship Benefits

• $100,000 unrestricted award for salary or research support
• Complimentary registration and travel to SITC’s 39th Annual Meeting
• Recognition at the SITC Annual Award Ceremony
• Structured mentorship and professional development throughout the fellowship year

This award is ideal for candidates who are highly motivated to lead the next wave of innovations in cancer immunotherapy and are seeking a bridge to independent research careers.

Adult Cancer Immunotherapy Fellowship – Parker Institute / Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

This fellowship offers intensive training in clinical and laboratory immunotherapy, covering areas like CAR-T cells, NK cells, checkpoint inhibitors, and cancer vaccines. Fellows are embedded within MSK’s multidisciplinary teams and participate in rotations across key services.

Award: 1-year fellowship

Eligibility:

• Board-eligible/certified graduates of a U.S. Hematology/Oncology fellowship program
• Commitment to academic medicine and research
• Deadline: March 1 annually

Highlights:

• Access to cutting-edge trials and platforms at MSK
• Joint support from the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy
• Mentorship and participation in disease-specific conferences

For More Information visit Official Website

AACR-Kure It Research Grant for Immunotherapy in Kidney Cancer

The AACR-Kure It Research Grant supports innovative, immunologically driven research in kidney cancer, with an emphasis on bold, translational ideas that can lead to new therapies or deeper understanding of immune mechanisms in renal malignancies. Jointly funded by the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and Kure It, this grant offers generous support for both junior and senior investigators worldwide.

Ideal projects include:

• Mechanistic studies of immune recognition, regulation, and tumor immune escape in renal cancer
• Development of new immunotherapy strategies such as vaccines, T-cell therapies, or checkpoint modulation
• Clinical or epidemiological research investigating immune response variability in kidney cancer patients
• Application of novel immunology concepts from other cancers to renal tumor biology

This grant is a rare opportunity for immunologists and oncologists, even those with limited prior kidney cancer experience, to pivot into the field if they demonstrate a clearly articulated and impactful approach.

Key Details

• Organization: American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
• Award: $250,000 over 2 years ($125,000/year)

Eligibility Criteria

• Open to independent investigators worldwide at any academic, medical, or research institution
• Must hold a doctoral degree (PhD, MD, DO, DDS, DVM, etc.) in a relevant discipline
• Not currently holding an active AACR or Kure It grant
• Employees of U.S. government or for-profit industry may not receive funding but may collaborate
• One application per investigator; AACR members preferred but not required

Funding Scope

Grant funds may be used for:\n- Investigator and collaborator salaries (up to 25% of budget)\n- Postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and research assistants\n- Lab supplies, equipment, publication fees, and travel\n- Institutional indirect costs as permitted

Highlights

• Welcomes applicants with innovative approaches from outside the kidney cancer field
• Emphasizes novel immunological strategies to treat or prevent kidney cancer
• Applicants must ensure projects are not duplicative of existing Kure It-funded research
• This grant encourages the exploration of immune dynamics in kidney cancer. Eligible projects may range from basic immunology and tumor microenvironment studies to novel immunotherapeutics or combination approaches.

Website: AACR Grants

Cancer Immunotherapy Response Research Platform – MRC (UK)

A strategic opportunity for UK-based consortia to develop a broad-scale genotyping and phenotyping platform. Projects should capture immunotherapy response/resistance in real-world cohorts and support biomarker development or new diagnostic algorithms.

Funders: Medical Research Council, Office for Life Sciences

Award: Up to £9 million

Eligibility:

• UK-based consortia with at least one industry partner
• International co-leads allowed for specialized expertise

Deadline: May 9, 2024
More Information Can Be found on Official Website

MRFF Stem Cell Therapies Mission Grant (Australia)

Australia’s Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) is offering a major funding opportunity in 2025 to advance safe, effective, and ethical stem cell therapies. The program is divided into two focused streams:

• Stream 1 supports early-stage clinical trials (Phase I/IIa) of novel stem cell–based treatments, including pilot studies to assess safety and initial efficacy.
• Stream 2 funds research into regulatory frameworks, ethics, community engagement, and health economics to support responsible integration of stem cell therapies into healthcare.

Eligibility is limited to MRFF-eligible institutions in Australia. Projects must align with national priorities for translational research and public trust-building in regenerative medicine.

• Deadline: August 20, 2025
• Award: Variable, based on project scope and stream
• Administered by: NHMRC, on behalf of the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

AACR Immuno-Oncology Research Fellowship

This fellowship provides critical support to postdoctoral fellows working on basic or clinical immuno-oncology. Projects may include antigen discovery, immune profiling, or early-stage therapeutic testing.

Award: $130,000 over 2 years

Eligibility:

• PhD, MD, or equivalent awarded after Nov 1, 2020
• Must be AACR member or endorsed
• Currently in a mentored postdoctoral position

Highlights:

• 50% of funding must be allocated to salary
• Focus on career development

CRI Immuno-Informatics Postdoctoral Fellowship

With the convergence of data science and immunotherapy, this fellowship supports hypothesis-driven, informatics-based projects. Applicants are encouraged to form dual-mentored training environments that span computational biology and experimental immunology.

Funder: Cancer Research Institute (CRI)

Award: $74,000 to $78,000/year + $5,000 allowance (3 years)

Deadline: March 1 and September 1 annually

Eligibility:

• Global applicants
• Must be based at non-profit research institutions

Highlights:

Participation in CRI International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference

Focus on genomics, AI, omics integration

High-Risk, High-Reward Immunology Innovation (ExCITe NOSI) – NCI/NIH

The ExCITe initiative funds exploratory projects in early discovery immunology. Ideal for researchers investigating underexplored mechanisms of immune regulation, metastasis, or immune evasion.

Mechanism: R21 exploratory grant

Award: ~$275,000 over 2 years

Eligibility:

• U.S.-based researchers at NIH-eligible institutions
• Proposals must be distinct from standard FOAs
• Deadline: Active through November 17, 2026

Focus

• Tumor-immune interactions
• Development of new models

NIH Immunotherapy Clinical Fellowship

Offered through the Center for Cancer Research (CCR) at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), this one-year fellowship provides physicians with hands-on, in-depth training in the design, execution, and management of clinical immunotherapy trials. With access to cutting-edge programs in therapeutic cancer vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors, adoptive cellular therapies (CAR-T and TCR), and antibody-based immunotherapies, fellows gain a comprehensive view of modern cancer immunotherapy in practice.

Designed for oncology-trained physicians, the program emphasizes real-world clinical trial development, management of immune-related toxicities, and exposure to diverse experimental immunotherapies. Fellows are also mentored by leaders in the field and encouraged to contribute to national and international research forums.

Key Program Features

• Full-time clinical exposure to checkpoint inhibitors, therapeutic vaccines, CAR-T, TCR therapies, and immunocytokines
• Intensive training in clinical trial design, regulatory processes, and toxicity management
• Opportunities to present at NIH and major immunotherapy conferences
• Jointly supported by NCI and SITC, with partial funding from EMD Serono

Eligibility

• U.S. board-eligible or board-certified physicians in medical oncology
• Completion of an accredited medical oncology fellowship in the U.S.
• Strong interest in immunotherapy research and clinical application

Program Details

• Location: NIH Campus, Bethesda, MD
• Duration: 1 year
• Salary: Based on federal policy
• Application Window: July 8 – August 12, 2024
• Notification Date: October 7–11, 2024
• Apply: Send CV, statement of purpose, 3 references, and board certification status to: [email protected]

This fellowship is a unique chance to work at the intersection of patient care and clinical research in the world’s largest hospital dedicated exclusively to biomedical research.

ASCO Career Development Award (CDA)

The Career Development Award (CDA) from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), administered through the Conquer Cancer® Foundation, is one of the most prestigious mid-career grants for early-career clinical investigators pursuing impactful, patient-oriented cancer research. With a clear focus on developing academic independence, this award supports clinician-scientists at a pivotal point in their research careers—bridging the gap between mentored training and independent leadership.

While not exclusive to immunotherapy, the CDA is especially relevant for immuno-oncology researchers working on biomarker-driven studies, early-phase clinical trials, or translational immunotherapeutic strategies. It’s a launchpad for those aiming to lead research in areas such as immune checkpoint inhibitors, CAR-T therapies, or combination regimens for solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.

Common Project Areas

• Early-phase clinical trials involving immune checkpoint inhibitors, biomarker-guided immunotherapy, or CAR-T trials
• Correlative science studies embedded within immunotherapy trials
• Projects investigating resistance mechanisms or toxicity management in immunotherapy
• Patient-focused outcomes research related to immunotherapy delivery

Key Details

• Organization: American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) / Conquer Cancer® Foundation
• Award: $200,000 over 3 years
• Use of Funds: Salary support (50–70%), research costs, and limited institutional overhead

Eligibility

• Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Hold a full-time faculty appointment at a U.S. academic institution
• Have completed postdoctoral or fellowship training
• Must not already have independent R01 or equivalent funding
• Clinical focus with protected time for research required

Application Highlights

• Applications typically open each fall, with funding beginning the following July
• Requires a detailed research proposal, biosketch, budget justification, and institutional commitment letter
• Strong emphasis on mentorship and career development plan

Whether your interest lies in computational biology, translational science, early-phase clinical trials, or the intersection of immunology and public policy, there’s a program tailored to your path. For application timelines, detailed instructions, and eligibility updates, visit the respective program websites. Most programs open annually, so prepare early and connect with potential mentors to align your research goals with funding priorities.

Where to find more Grants and Opportunities for Oncology?

OncoDaily OncoGrants is a dedicated platform within the OncoDaily ecosystem that curates the latest fellowships, research grants, and funding calls in oncology. It’s designed to help researchers, clinicians, and trainees easily discover opportunities tailored to cancer science, including immunotherapy, precision medicine, and early-career development. With regularly updated listings, deadlines, and direct application links, OncoGrants serves as a go-to resource for navigating the competitive funding landscape in oncology research.