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The National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR) is the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s own research center, located in Jefferson, Arkansas. It is an intramural laboratory, not a grant-making agency: people who search for NCTR “funding” will not find an open grant competition on its official page. What the page does describe is research that supports FDA decisions and a standing role as a resource for collaboration and training. This guide sets out what NCTR is, what it studies, and which route into it is documented, as described on the official FDA pages checked on 2026-10-29.
What NCTR is and who runs it
NCTR sits inside the Office of the Chief Scientist, which is part of the Office of the Commissioner at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The official page states its mission as serving as “a global resource for collaboration, training, and innovative scientific solutions.” Its stated vision is to conduct scientific research that gives FDA reliable data for its decisions and develops tools that support the agency’s public health mission.
The campus is a one-million-square-foot research site in Jefferson, Arkansas. The FDA page describes NCTR as the only FDA center located outside the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Per the Wikipedia entry on the center, it was established by executive order on January 27, 1971, on a site previously used by the U.S. Army Chemical Corps; the FDA page itself does not give this history.
What NCTR researches
The FDA page lists these focus areas: antimicrobial resistance, artificial intelligence, biomarker identification, nanotechnology, and perinatal and maternal health. The research is regulatory science, meaning work whose output feeds FDA’s reviews and policies. For the wider discipline behind it, see CASRAI’s guide to what toxicology is, its research areas and funding sources, which also places NCTR among the federal agencies that conduct toxicology research.
Who can train or collaborate there (eligibility, with the official source)
The center-level FDA page says NCTR works with scientists across FDA, other government agencies, industry and academia, and that researchers from academic and regulatory science organizations, domestic and international, investigate, learn and train there. It states no funding eligibility rules, because it describes no funding program.
The one program with published eligibility terms is the Summer Student Research Program, which the FDA page says is administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE). As described on that official page on 2026-10-29 (the page footer reads “Content current as of: 01/25/2024”):
- You must be a student in good standing at an accredited U.S. college or university.
- A cumulative GPA of at least 2.50 on a 4.0 scale is required.
- U.S. citizenship is required, and you must be at least 18 years of age at the time of application.
- Proof of health insurance is required before the appointment begins.
What the program provides and requires
NCTR is a research center, so “what it funds” is better read as “what the training route offers.” The summer program is a 10-week placement. The page says stipends are determined by the level of education and gives no amount, so any figure you see elsewhere should be checked against the current ORISE posting. This is training under a research fellowship-style appointment in a federal laboratory, which is a different thing from a grant awarded to an institution.
Application steps for the training program
- Confirm you meet the eligibility terms above on the current FDA program page.
- Apply through Zintellect, the ORISE application system. The FDA page lists the opportunity as FDA-NCTR-2024-01.
- Send program questions to the ORISE contact listed on the FDA program page.
- Provide proof of health insurance before the appointment begins, as the page requires.
The page lists no application deadlines, so there is no deadline to state here. Opportunity numbers carry a year, so look for the current cycle’s posting rather than assuming the one quoted stays open.
Typical timeline phases
The official page describes only the following sequence, and no calendar dates are given in this guide as facts.
- Application phase: an online application in Zintellect under the program’s opportunity number.
- Pre-appointment phase: proof of health insurance is due before the appointment starts.
- Placement phase: a 10-week summer program at NCTR.
Common mistakes
- Looking for grant announcements. NCTR conducts research itself. The official page names no funding opportunity, so a search for NCTR grants is better redirected to agencies that fund extramural toxicology, covered in the toxicology guide.
- Relying on old program pages. The summer-program page carries a content date of 01/25/2024 and an opportunity number from 2024. Confirm the current cycle before planning around it.
- Confusing NCTR with the National Toxicology Program. They are different bodies. NCTR is an FDA center; CASRAI’s toxicology guide describes the National Toxicology Program as housed at NIEHS.
- Assuming the program is open to everyone. The summer program as described requires U.S. citizenship and enrollment at an accredited U.S. institution.
Related agencies and programs
| Body or program | What it is, per the source named | Source |
|---|---|---|
| NCTR Summer Student Research Program | 10-week summer program administered by ORISE; eligibility and Zintellect application as above | FDA program page, checked 2026-10-29 |
| NIEHS and the National Toxicology Program | NIEHS is the primary NIH home for environmental-exposure and mechanistic toxicology research and houses the National Toxicology Program | CASRAI toxicology guide, linked above |
| EPA | Funds and conducts toxicological research in support of chemical, pesticide and environmental risk assessment | CASRAI toxicology guide |
| NIOSH (part of CDC) | Funds research on workplace chemical and physical hazards | CASRAI toxicology guide |
| NIH NRSA | NIH’s training-award mechanism, a separate route from FDA laboratory placements; see NRSA | CASRAI dictionary |
For the environmental side of the same field, see what environmental health is.
Frequently asked questions
What is the National Center for Toxicological Research?
It is an FDA research center in Jefferson, Arkansas, within the Office of the Chief Scientist. Its stated aim is to provide reliable scientific data for FDA decisions and to serve as a resource for collaboration and training.
Does NCTR give out research grants?
The official FDA page describes no grant or funding program. NCTR carries out its own research and offers training and collaboration routes instead.
What does NCTR study?
The FDA page lists antimicrobial resistance, artificial intelligence, biomarker identification, nanotechnology, and perinatal and maternal health.
Who can join the NCTR summer program?
As described on the official page, enrolled students at accredited U.S. institutions with a cumulative GPA of at least 2.50, U.S. citizenship, age 18 or over, and proof of health insurance before the appointment.
Where is NCTR located?
Jefferson, Arkansas, the only FDA center outside the Washington, D.C. area according to the FDA page.
Sources
- U.S. FDA, National Center for Toxicological Research, checked 2026-10-29 (page content dated 10/05/2026).
- U.S. FDA, Summer Student Research Program (NCTR), checked 2026-10-29 (content current as of 01/25/2024).
- Wikipedia, National Center for Toxicological Research, checked 2026-10-29, used only for the 1971 establishment date.
