“I was virtually broke, so I had to have the money,” said    Dr. Paul Thompson, describing the pressures he felt having to resubmit his first R01 grant application. Dr. Megan McEvoy felt different pressures. “My tenure clock was ticking,” she explained.

To help such endangered applicants, CSR shortened the review cycle for new investigators submitting R01 applications. Since 2006, these applicants receive their scores and critiques within 10 days of the review meeting. And since September 2007, CSR has accelerated these reviews so new R01 applicants can resubmit their applications in the next review round instead of being forced to wait out a round.

Both Dr. McEvoy from the University of Arizona and Dr. Thompson from the University of South Carolina were in tight spots: Their previous applications were unscored and they were running out of time. But they both had reasons to be optimistic and resubmitted in the next round.

Fixable Problems: “My main problem was making it clear why what I wanted to do was important and a good way to approach it ... . That’s something that can be addressed on a short-time scale,” said Dr. McEvoy. Dr. Thompson explained his situation: “The reviews overall were quite positive . . . and my chair and my mentor both said, ‘I think you should just try to turn it around.’”

Both Drs. Thompson and McEvoy did well in the following reviews and are now funded.

Not for Everyone: “I don’t think everybody should do it,” said Dr. Thompson. “You have to look at your reviews and make sure that the comments are addressable and not just go in just to go in.” NIH encourages applicants who have questions to discuss them with their Program Officer. Of the new investigators given the opportunity, between 10 and 13 percent resubmit their R01 applications in the next round.  

Careful Evaluation: NIH is currently finalizing a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of these shorter review cycles, and the results of this study will guide efforts to shorten review cycles for other applicants.

A Big Difference Already: Some established applicants, however, haven’t waited. CSR now holds its review meetings and posts summary statements earlier than before. Thus, many applicants can resubmit in the next round, and about 100 take advantage of this opportunity each round. “It makes a huge difference,” said Dr. McEvoy. “I go up for tenure this summer.”

Learn More at the CSR Initiatives Web site.