US Government Funding Opportunities
National Institutes of Health (NINDS)
Link to NIH Grant and Fellowhip application forms: http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/forms.htm
Relevant institutes include National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
(NINDS; http://www.ninds.nih.gov), National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH;http://www.nimh.nih.gov), National Institute of Aging (NIA;http://www.nia.nih.gov).
Research grants (RO1)
The RO1 is the major grant mechanism used by the NIH to fund research. RO1 applications are usually unsolicited, although they may be submitted in response to a specific Request for Applications (RFA) or Program Announcement (PA) by one or more institutes. In general, applications can request up to $250,000 (US) in research support per year for up to 5 years. Applications requesting more than this amount per year must receive approval from the institute prior to submitting the application. Application deadlines for new unsolicited grants are Feb. 1, June 1 and October 1 of each year. RFAs may have alternative deadlines; check the specific requirements of a particular RFA. Detailed budgets are no longer submitted with the new modular grant application, but are required if prior to release of funding if approved. Grants proposing animal or human experimentation must provide documentation of an approved Institutional Review Board (Human) or Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (animal) protocol within 60 days of submitting the application.
Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award (K08)
The Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award (MCSDA-K08) is designed to recruit and prepare clinically trained persons for research and teaching careers in areas of basic or clinical science related to neurological disorders. Although the award is primarily targeted to candidates holding an M.D. or equivalent degree, it will support individuals holding other health professional degrees as well (e.g., D.D.S., D.O., D.V.M., and Dr. P.H.). The award supports a 5-year period of supervised basic or clinical neuroscience research experience and should be comparable in scope and rigor to meeting the requirements for an advanced research degree. Applicants with a clinical doctoral degree must apply within 3 years of completing their clinical training, which is defined as residency training, and if applicable, an additional year of clinical fellowship. Any exceptions to the 3 year limit will require approval of NINDS program staff, prior to the submission of an application. The candidate must identify a mentor with extensive research experience and must devote 100 percent of his or her time and effort to the proposed MCSDA activities (at least 75 percent of this effort must be directed to research and research training activities). To accommodate neurosurgeons, who need significant clinical activity to maintain their surgical skills, NINDS will accept 50% time commitment to the award. Individuals who are current or former principal investigators on NIH research project grants (R01, R29, or P01) or center grants are not eligible. Beginning with new awards made in fiscal year 2002, the K08 award provides up to $85,000 per year of salary support, based on the established salary structure at the applicant’s institution for staff members of equivalent qualifications, rank, and responsibilities. The institution may supplement the NINDS salary contribution. There is also a research allowance of $50,000. All non-competing (Type 5) applications will continue to receive salary and research support under the original terms and conditions of the award.
Mentored Patient Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
The Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23) was created to support the career development of investigators who have made a commitment to focus their research endeavors on patient-oriented research. This mechanism provides support for a period of supervised study and research for clinically trained professionals who have the potential to develop into productive clinical investigators focusing on patient-oriented research. The project period may be for up to 5 years with a minimum of 3 years.
For the purposes of this award, patient-oriented research is defined as research conducted with human subjects (or on material of human origin such as tissues, specimens, and cognitive phenomena) for which an investigator directly interacts with human subjects. This area of research includes: 1) mechanisms of human disease; 2) therapeutic interventions; 3) clinical trials; and 4) the development of new technologies. The objectives of the Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award are to: 1) encourage research-oriented clinicians to develop independent research skills and gain experience in advanced methods and experimental approaches that will allow them to conduct patient-oriented research, and 2) increase the pool of clinical researchers who can conduct patient-oriented studies, capitalizing on the discoveries of biomedical research and translating them to clinical settings. Candidates must have a clinical degree or its equivalent: M.D., D.D.S., D.M.D., D.O., D.C., O.D., N.D. (Doctor of Naturopathy), and doctorally prepared nurses. In addition, individuals holding the Ph.D. degree may apply for the award if they have been certified to perform clinical duties, such as a clinical psychologist, clinical geneticist, etc. Candidates must have also completed their clinical training, including specialty and, if applicable, subspecialty training prior to receiving an award. However, candidates may submit an application prior to the completion of clinical training. Candidates must identify a mentor with extensive research experience and must be willing to spend a minimum of 75 percent of full-time professional effort in research career development and clinical research activities. Former principal investigators on NIH research grants (R01), FIRST awards (R29), SBIR/STTR awards, subprojects of program-project (P01) or center grants (P50), K08 awards, or the equivalent are not eligible. Former principal investigators of an NIH Small Grant (R03) or Exploratory/Developmental Grant (R21) remain eligible.
Beginning with new awards made in fiscal year 2002, the NINDS will provide a salary for the award recipient of up to $85,000 per year plus commensurate fringe benefits for a minimum of 75 percent effort. Direct salary is exclusive of fringe benefits, facilities, and administrative costs. The total salary requested must be based on a full-time, 12-month staff appointment. The NINDS will generally provide up to $50,000 per year research allowance. All non-competing (Type 5) applications will continue to receive salary and research support under the original terms and conditions of the award.