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Madelon Halula, Ph.D. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases June 2012 NIH Regional Seminar Washington, DC. Grant Writing for Success. Points to Remember. Grant writing is a learned skill Grant writing is a full time job You will need help and advice - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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Madelon Halula, Ph.D.National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
DiseasesJune 2012 NIH Regional Seminar Washington, DC
Grant Writing for Success
Grant writing is a learned skill
Grant writing is a full time job
You will need help and advice
The more you learn the better
Points to Remember
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/researchfunding/grant/strategy/Pages/default.aspx
NIH mission: to create fundamental knowledge about living systems and apply that knowledge to reduce human illness and disability.
27 institutes and centers, each with its own research focus or function◦ Find funded projects.
NIH RePORTER Community of Science
Qualify for NIH Funding
www.nih.gov
Identify NIH Funded Grants
See what Research Projects the NIH or any Institute has funded
Find Potential Collaborators for your Project
Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT)
http://report.nih.gov/index.aspx
A searchable database of federally supported biomedical research
Access reports, data, analyses, expenditures, results of NIH supported research activities
Identify, analyze IC research portfolios, funding patterns, funded investigators:
• Identify areas with many or few funded projects
• Identify NIH-funded investigators and their research
• Identify potential mentors/collaborators
Your Institution Most types of institutions—including universities, small and large businesses, state and local governments, and foreign institutions—qualify for most research grants.
Investigator qualificationsR01 Parent Program Announcement under Eligible Individuals: Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as the PD/PI is invited to work with his/her organization to develop an application for support. Individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply for NIH support.
Special considerations for particular types of grants
Qualify for NIH Funding
Chose and Design a Project
Chose and Design a ProjectPropose research about
which you are passionate and totally committed
Now you just have to explain it ……
Chose and Design a Project• Be ready to apply electronically• Do a self-assessment publications and experience managed comparable efforts• Find your niche scientific opportunities, skills, will you be competitive?
Chose and Design a Project• Be ready to apply electronically• Do a self-assessment publications and experience managed comparable efforts• Find your niche scientific opportunities, skills, will you be competitive?
Chose and Design a Project• Plan a series of research goals for 7-
10 years that address a significant problem
• Draft Specific Aims and hypothesis• Outline experiments and feasibility • Decide grant type (R01, R21, etc.),
review the requirements and target your application
Chose and Design a Project• Investigators-Initiated vs. Targeted
Research Program Announcements Requests for Applications
• Get advice from colleagues, NIH staff, other scientists
NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Official publication listing NIH funding opportunities and policy notices◦ Request for Applications (RFA)◦ Program Announcements (PA, PAR,
PAS)◦ Request for Proposals (RFP)◦ Notices (NOT)
Published weekly
http://www.niaid.nih.gov/researchfunding/council/concepts/pages/
default.aspx
Team Science
• Increased expertise and resources brought to the project
• Being independent enough to lead a major award
• Institutional recognition• Peer review of multidisciplinary project• Making a team work- communication,
communication!
Write Your Application
• Follow application instructions• When in doubt – ask!
Write Your Application
Write Your Application Research Plan: Know your audience• Make it easy for reviewers to
understand the significance, feasibility
• Understand the likely composition of the review group and scoring
Write Specific Aims• Grab the reader immediately with
significance and rationale• State long-term objectives AND
expected impact• Explicitly state hypotheses and research
question• List aims in a few sentences each
Write Research Strategy• Remember page limits• Address issues of significance and
innovation• Show reviewers that your approach is
feasible – resources, expertise, alternatives.
• Make it easy to read
Preliminary Studies/Progress Report How previous work -- by you, your
team, and others -- leads to this study Demonstrate your experience,
competence and likelihood of continued success
Must flow logically from literature review and major themes of the problem area
Developing a Strong Research Plan
Approach For clinical studies be explicit and
thorough in discussing ◦ intervention or system to be studied◦ target population ◦ inclusion and exclusion criteria◦ independent and dependent variables◦all measures and instruments◦power analyses
Write Research StrategyApproach is important• Background and preliminary data to
support the context and importance• Provide experiments to support each
specific aim• Describe anticipated results and
implications Provide references –
Top Ten Weaknesses• Poorly formatted, typographical errors,
grammatical errors, lack of proofreading, or unappealing presentation.
• Insufficient preliminary data, or preliminary data do not support project's feasibility.
• Overly ambitious • Lack of significance to the field or public
health. • Lack of investigator expertise or team.
Top Ten Weaknesses• Lack of innovation or new ideas. • Lack of a strong, original hypothesis and
Specific Aims. • Needed to identify potential pitfalls and
alternative approaches. • Concern about knowledge of the field (didn’t
cite relevant papers or account for alternative viewpoints).
• Peer Review group not a good match
Submit Your Application
• Cover Letter• Prepare to Submit • Passing Validations • Assess Application After You
Submit
Assignment and Review
Check your application assignments – Institute and Review
Identify Your Program Officer
Identify your Scientific Review Officer
Align with Review CriteriaScored Criteria ApplicationSignificance Research Strategy
a. SignificanceInvestigator(s) Biosketch - Personal
StatementLetters of Support
Innovation Research Strategyb. Innovation
Approach Research Strategyc. Approach
Environment Facilities & Other Resources
SIGNIFICANCE Does this study address an important
problem? If the aims are achieved, how will
scientific knowledge be advanced? What will be the effect on concepts or
methods that drive this field?
Core Review Criterion #1
Core Review Criterion #2
INVESTIGATOR Are the investigators appropriately
trained and well suited to carry out this work?
Is the work proposed appropriate to the experience level of the principal investigator and other researchers?
Does the investigative team bring complementary and integrated expertise to the project (if applicable)?
Core Review Criterion #3
INNOVATION Does the project employ novel
concepts, approaches or methods? Are the aims original and innovative? Does the project challenge existing
paradigms or develop new methodologies or technologies?
APPROACH Are the conceptual framework,
design, methods, and analyses adequately developed, well-integrated, and appropriate to the aims of the project?
Does the applicant acknowledge potential problem areas and consider alternatives?
Core Review Criterion #4
ENVIRONMENT Does the scientific environment in which the work will be done contribute to the probability of success?
Do the proposed experiments take advantage of unique features of the scientific environment or employ useful collaborative arrangements?
Is there evidence of institutional support?
Core Review Criterion #5
Human subjects Animal care and use Select agents Model organism sharing plan Data sharing plan
Other Review Considerations
Get to the right review group Title, abstract, specific aims all point to the main
goals of your project Attach a cover letter for the Center for Scientific
Review Division of Receipt and Referral ◦suggest IC and review group assignment*◦outline areas of key expertise needed for
appropriate review◦do not name specific reviewers
* Consult with Program Official
Good Review
Understand the dynamics of peer review: Reviewers will review many applications Make your application easy to read and easy
to understand The impact and significance should be clear
throughout the application Convince them to be your advocate
◦ Get them on your side!
Good Review
Good ideas, well presented always win Think clearly Write clearly Be complete but not verbose Never lose sight of the significance Point to the impact Pay attention to details
How to Assure that your Grant Gets Funded?
Funding • Funding Decisions based on merit, program
considerations, available funds• Understand Paylines and Percentiles • How NIAID Makes Funding Decisions • Getting and Managing Your Grant• Your Notice of Award
If Not Funded
You are in good company
Know your options
Get advice, Regroup
Try again
Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT)
http://report.nih.gov/
A searchable database of federally supported biomedical research
Access reports, data, analyses, expenditures, results of NIH supported research activities
Identify, analyze IC research portfolios, funding patterns, funded investigators:
• Identify areas with many or few funded projects
• Identify NIH-funded investigators and their research
• Identify potential mentors/collaborators
http://report.nih.gov/
NIH staff: We are here to help- Call & email us!!
Searching NIH web sites is a good start … but follow up with personal contact
Contact NIH program staff early Ask what information would help them advise
you about IC interest & “goodness of fit” Are there related FOAs?
Single PI model does not always work well for multi-disciplinary, collaborative research
Recognizes contributions of full team In place for most submissions to Grants.gov Implications for “New Investigator” status A complex issue – Talk to NIH program staff if
you are considering multiple PIs !
Multiple Principal Investigators
grants1.nih.gov/grants/multi_pi
NIH homepage: http://www.nih.gov/
NIAID (or any Institute): http:/niaid/www.niaid .nih.gov/
CSR website: http://www.csr.nih.gov/
Where Do I Get More Information?
Sample Applications and Summary Statements
Additional Supporting Material
More Web Resources
grants1.nih.gov/grants/grant_tips.htm
grants.nih.gov/grants/glossary.htm
http://www3.cancer.gov/admin/gab/links.htm
deainfo.nci.nih.gov/consumer.htm
deainfo.nci.nih.gov/extra/extdocs/gntapp.htm
http://era.nih.gov/
https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/
http://era.nih.gov/virtualschool/
grants2.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2003
grants2.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2003
http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/
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http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm
Enter search
criteria orSelect
Advanced Search
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/index.html
Select the FOA number to open the announcement.
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/parent_announcements.htm
Automated Training Tutorials◦ eRA Commons Registration◦ Completing an Application Package (Grants.gov)◦ Find & Download a Funding Opportunity◦ Check Submission Status & View Assembled
Application (PI & SO versions)
eSubmission
era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/training.htm
Frequently Asked Questions era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/faq.htm
Avoiding Common Errors era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/avoiding_errors.htm
Presentations, Quick Reference Materials, Brochures, Drop-in newsletter articles era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/communication.htm
Training Videos, Videocast Archivesera.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/training.htm
eSubmission
