NIH 101

Laurie Tompkins, PhDActing Director, Division of Genetics and Developmental BiologyNIGMS, NIHSwarthmore CollegeMay 14, 2012NIH 101Structure of NIH (one view)Intramural (research labs at NIH) 10%

Extramural (administrators who deal with the biomedical research community outside of NIH) 90% Structure of NIH (another view)28 Institutes, Centers, and OfficesMost but not all support biomedical researchExamples:NCI (cancer)NHLBI (heart, lung, and blood)NIMH (mental health)NIGMS (basic research)

http://www.nih.gov/icd/

Most important point in talk!Every grant-funding institute, center and office is differentMission (topics of interest)Types of awardsGrants, cooperative agreements, contractsSpecial initiatives vs. investigator-initiated projectsResearch grants vs. centersEmphasis on training and workforce developmentTypes of awards (mechanism): R03, R21s not accepted by all institutes

Take-home message:New to NIH?Changing fields?

Figure out what institute(s) might be interested in funding what you want to do before you start working on the grant applicationIs NIH interested?If an institute is interested, what does it offer (special initiatives, types of awards)? How?http://www.nih.gov/icd/rePORTER http://projectreporter.nih.gov/reporter.cfmDiscuss idea with program directorEmail preferable to phone, to start discussionSend description of what you want to doThink about budget, term, scope of project before you contact programProvide information (independent investigator, trainee, institution, contact info)Inquiry may be referred to another person at NIH Special initiatives (ask!)RFA (institute interest, money set aside)PA (institute interest, but no money set aside)

If theres an RFA or PA for what you want to do, apply in response to the RFA or PA, even if its a little more work, you have to delay submitting an application, or the institute isnt the one that has funded your projects in the pastGet in touch with scientific/program contact named in funding opportunity announcement (FOA) if youre not sure Applying for fundingAll applicationsspecial initiatives and standardsubmitted in response to FOAFOAs published in NIH Guidehttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.htmlFOAs for unsolicited applicationshttp://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/parent_announcements.htmR01, R03, R15, R21, T32, F, common K Funding to award cycle (6-9 months)Most applications submitted electronicallyApplications submitted to CSR (Center for Scientific Review)Division of Receipt and Referral in CSR: two assignments, review and instituteReview: usually CSR study section Institute advisory CouncilFunding decision ReviewNIH administrator: Scientific Review Officer (SRO)CSR review: study section or special emphasis panel (SEP)Ca. 25% of applications reviewed by institute review staff: SROs Research grant applications: ca. half discussedSummary statementIf discussed, score, percentile (for some types of applications), summary of discussion, reviewers critiques, IRG notes (budget cuts, concerns)If not discussed, reviewers critiques

Council Second level of reviewDeals with appeals and grievances (concerns about review or the outcome), special situations (applications from investigators with lots of other funding, foreign applications, etc.)Provides advice about special initiatives and applications submitted in response to special initiativesEn bloc approval to consider applications for fundingLots of variability among institutes Post-Council Institute (program) decides which applications to fundLots of differences among institutes in how funding decisions are madeNew investigators typically get special considerationBudget and/or term of award may be cutStart date may be later than requestedGrants management specialist makes award Why does receipt-to-award cycle take so long? SROs need time to read applications, figure out what expertise is required to evaluate them, recruit/assign appropriate reviewersReviewers need time to read and evaluate applicationsAfter review, SROs need time to write summary statementsAdvisory Councils need time to complete assignments (read documents and make decisions) Question or concern? Program director, SRO, or grants management? Before submitting application: program (or if question is about a study section, SRO)After submission, before review: SROAfter review, program (scientific issues) or grants management (budget or policy issues). General rule: institutional administrators talk to grants management, investigators talk to program. Just-in-time: grants management. PLEASE SUBMIT ASAP IF REQUESTED.After award: program (scientific), grants management (budget or policy)