Your guide to NIH stimulus funds

In recent weeks the National Institutes of Health has been churning out new grant announcements tied to the handsome $10.4 billion sum the agency netted through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), otherwise known as the stimulus bill. With application deadlines looming in the next couple of months, __The Scientist__ thought now would be a good time to lay out all the funding opportunities that could get you and your lab some of the stimulus funding. linkurl:Competitive Revisi

Written byBob Grant
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In recent weeks the National Institutes of Health has been churning out new grant announcements tied to the handsome $10.4 billion sum the agency netted through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), otherwise known as the stimulus bill. With application deadlines looming in the next couple of months, __The Scientist__ thought now would be a good time to lay out all the funding opportunities that could get you and your lab some of the stimulus funding. linkurl:Competitive Revision Applications;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-058.html Deadline: April 21, 2009. Purpose: To expand the scope of existing research projects. Hiring additional students or postdocs, adding or jiggering PIs on multiple-PI grants, buying new equipment, etc. Eligibility: Any researcher/institution who is already funded by an NIH grant. Includes Small Business Technology Transfer or Small Business Innovation Research Program grantees. Your chances: NIH does not indicate how many awards it expects to make, but will dole out $1 billion in ARRA funds by September 30, 2010 through this program and the two administrative supplement programs (see below). Award period: Two years. Funding limits: No overall maximum dollar amount, but equipment purchases can't exceed $100,000. linkurl:NIH Challenge Grants in Health and Science Research;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-OD-09-003.html Deadline: April 27, 2009. Purpose: To fund "novel research in areas that address specific knowledge gaps, scientific opportunities, new technologies, data generation, or research methods that would benefit from an influx of funds to quickly advance the area in significant ways," according to the NIH. View a list of Challenge Topics linkurl:here.;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/challenge_award/Omnibus.pdf Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution, non-profit, state, or local government. Your chances: 200 or more grants to be awarded. Award period: Two years. Funding limits: Maximum $500,000 per year in total costs or $1,000,000 overall. linkurl:High-End Instrumentation Grant Program;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-09-118.html Deadline: May 6, 2009. Purpose: To purchase a single major item of equipment used for biomedical research that costs at least $600,000. Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution, non-profit, state, or local government. Project directors or principal investigators must identify three or more NIH-funded investigators who will be users of the requested instruments. Your chances: Approximately 40 grants to be awarded. Award period: One year and direct costs only. Funding limits: Minimum $600,000. Maximum $8,000,000. linkurl:Research to Address the Heterogeneity in Autism Spectrum Disorders;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-09-170.html Deadline: May 12, 2009. Purpose: To fund research on the heterogeneity of autism spectrum disorders. Specific topic areas include methodological development, biomarkers/biological signatures, immune and central nervous systems interactions, genetics/genomics, environmental risk factors, model development, treatment and intervention, and services research. This funding spans several granting mechanisms: linkurl:R01,;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-09-170.html linkurl:collaborative R01,;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-09-171.html exploratory stage research linkurl:(R21),;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-09-172.html and early stage clinical research linkurl:(R34/Collaborative R34).;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-MH-09-173.html Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution, non-profit, state, or local government. Your chances: 40-50 grants to be awarded over all the grant types. Award period: Two years. Funding limits: R01 - no dollar amount limit. R21 - maximum $175,000 per year or $350,000 in direct costs over a two-year project period. R34/Collaborative R34 - maximum of $225,000 per year or $450,000 in direct costs over a two-year project period. linkurl:Research and Research Infrastructure "Grand Opportunities";http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-OD-09-004.html Deadline: May 27, 2009. Purpose: To support "high impact ideas that lend themselves to short-term funding, and may lay the foundation for new fields of investigation" and "large-scale research projects that accelerate critical breakthroughs, early and applied research on cutting-edge technologies, and new approaches to improve the synergy and interactions among multi and interdisciplinary research teams," according to NIH. Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution, non-profit, state, or local government. Your chances: NIH does not indicate how many awards it expects, but wants to get $200 million in ARRA funds out the door by September 30, 2010 under this program. Award period: Two years. Funding limits: "Only applications with budgets greater than $500,000 total costs per year for a project period of two years are expected to be considered." linkurl:Supporting New Faculty Recruitment to Enhance Research Resources through Biomedical Research Core Centers;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-OD-09-005.html Deadline: May 29, 2009. Purpose: To hire newly-recruited faculty members that will develop research projects within the context of NIH's Biomedical Core Centers, which the agency defines as communities "of multidisciplinary researchers focusing on areas of biomedical research relevant to NIH, such as centers, departments, programs, and/or trans-departmental collaborations or consortia." Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution or non-profit. Your chances: Up to 117 grants will be awarded through 14 NIH institutes. Overall, NIH wants to get $100 million in ARRA funds out the door by September 30, 2010 under this program. Award period: Two years. Funding limits: Maximum varies from $250,000 - $500,000 per year in direct costs. linkurl:Administrative Supplements Providing Summer Research Experiences for Students and Science Educators;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-060.html Deadline: Throughout 2009-2010. Purpose: To "encourage students to seriously pursue research careers in the health related sciences, as well as provide elementary, middle school, and high school teachers, community college faculty, and faculty from non-research intensive institutions with short term research experiences in NIH-funded laboratories." Eligibility: NIH-funded researchers. Your chances: NIH does not indicate how many awards it expects, but wants to get $1 billion in ARRA funds out the door by September 30, 2010 under this program, another administrative supplement program, and the competitive revision program. Award period: Up to two years. Funding limits: Hourly minimum wage for high school students. Up to $10 per hour for undergrads. Up to $18,000 plus fringe benefit costs of $2,500 for science educators. Up to $1000 per person for the costs of laboratory supplies and other related allowable costs. linkurl:Administrative Supplements;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-09-056.html Deadline: Throughout 2009-2010. Purpose: For anything from conducting comparative effectiveness research, to purchasing new equipment, or hiring new postdocs or recent college graduates. Eligibility: NIH-funded researchers. Your chances: NIH does not indicate how many awards it expects, but wants to get $1 billion in ARRA funds out the door by September 30, 2010 under the two administrative supplement programs and the competitive revision program. Award period: Up to two years. Funding limits: Equipment purchase maximum $100,000. Other limits vary depending on NIH institute. linkurl:Core Facility Renovation, Repair, and Improvement;http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-RR-09-007.html Deadline: September 17, 2009. Purpose: To fix up or improve shared core facilities. This program's extramural corollary seeks to improve any biomedical or behavioral research facilities that aren't considered "core facilities." Eligibility: Any US researcher/research institution or non-profit. Your chances: NIH does not indicate how many awards it expects, but wants to get $1 billion in ARRA funds out the door by September 30, 2010 under this core program and the extramural program to construct, renovate, or repair existing non-Federal research facilities. Award period: No more than five years. Funding limits: Direct costs between $1 million and $10 million may be requested.The NIH landing page containing all the links you need can be found linkurl:here.;http://grants.nih.gov/recovery/ Happy applying!
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Meet the Author

  • From 2017 to 2022, Bob Grant was Editor in Chief of The Scientist, where he started in 2007 as a Staff Writer. Before joining the team, he worked as a reporter at Audubon and earned a master’s degree in science journalism from New York University. In his previous life, he pursued a career in science, getting a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Montana State University and a master’s degree in marine biology from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Bob edited Reading Frames and other sections of the magazine.

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