RFAs, RFPs, and PAs

Questions and Answers Table of Contents

Where can I find basic information on RFAs, RFPs, and PAs?

Find basic information on RFAs, RFPs, and PAs, see the SOPs on Requests for Applications, Request for Proposals, and Program Announcements. Also read Application Approach: What Are Your Choices? and Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

Where can I find RFAs, RFPs, and PAs?

NIH publishes most institute initiatives -- requests for applications (RFA), requests for proposals (RFP), and program announcements (PA) -- in the NIH Guide. RFAs and PAs are also published as funding opportunity announcements in Grants.gov. Find RFPs at FedBizOpps.gov, the Federal Business Opportunities Web site.

To find NIAID's active initiatives, go to the NIAID Funding Opportunities List. For more on the Guide, see the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts SOP.

If my R01 application does not get an award as part of an RFA, can I resubmit it as an investigator-initiated R01 application?

Yes. If your application does not get an award as part of a request for applications (RFA), you can resubmit it as a new investigator-initiated R01 application.

When preparing your application, do not include an introduction describing the changes and improvements that you make. While you should consider the peer review comments you received when you responded to the RFA, your application must meet new application requirements.

Also read If my investigator-initiated application was not funded, may I resubmit it in response to an RFA?

Do PAs have special receipt and expiration dates?

As investigator-initiated research, program announcements follow NIH's Standard Due Dates for Competing Applications. They expire after three years, unless the institute decides to extend them. See Parent PA and Institute-Specific PA in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

Where are program announcements and requests for applications reviewed?

For most program announcements, the most appropriate study section in the Center for Scientific Review will conduct the initial peer review. Potentially, many review committees could review applications responding to a single program announcement.

Program announcements that identify a location of peer review (PAR) are an exception. Most PARs are reviewed by special emphasis panels.

Requests for applications are reviewed by the lead institute sponsoring the RFA. At NIAID, one or more special emphasis panels may review the applications. Read more in Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

Do RFAs and PAs have set aside funds?

Some program announcements (PAs) do -- a PAS is a program announcement with set aside funds. PAs that do not have set-aside monies are funded as investigator-initiated grants, usually within the NIAID payline.

Requests for applications, in contrast, always come with funds set aside to pay for the awards, and applications responding to an RFA compete only with each other for funding. See Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal. For payline information, go to Paylines and Budget.

Do RFAs and PAs often have special requirements?

Yes. Always read the NIH Guide announcement carefully to see what area of research it defines and special requirements for applicants, including review criteria.

Are RFAs more competitive than PAs?

See Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal. For advice on how your research strengths suit an initiative, contact the program officer listed in the announcement.

For RFAs, will there be reviewers with expertise in my field?

Yes. For every request for applications (RFA), NIAID assembles a panel of experts to review the applications received in the scientific areas defined in the RFA. Depending on the number of applications received, NIAID may have more than one panel conducting the review.

If you're responding to an RFA, you will have the advantage of an audience that is fluent in the particulars of your field that also makes them savvy readers of your application.

For more information, see Primary and Secondary Reviewers Make Your Case in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal and Will most reviewers understand my science? in our Writing a Great Grant Application questions and answers.

Am I better off applying for an investigator-initiated award or responding to an RFA?

Read Application Approach: What Are Your Choices? and Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal

Also see If my R01 application does not get an award as part of an RFA, can I resubmit it as an investigator-initiated R01 application? and May I respond to an RFA with an application that was not funded as an investigator-initiated application?

Where can I find more questions and answers about funding opportunities?

See RFAs and NIAID's Peer Review Process and NIAID Program Project (P01) Applications questions and answers.

What if my question wasn't answered here, or I'd like to suggest a question?

Email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. We answer questions by email and post them here. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.