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Meeting Reports 2003
Assessment of Success of the R03 Program
Presented at the Advisory Council Meeting of the NIAMS on May 22, 2003 (historical)
Background:
- Purpose:
- The R03 program was begun because of a lack of start-up funds for
new investigators
- Mentioned in many venues
- The R03 program was begun because of a lack of start-up funds for
new investigators
- Phasing:
- A decision was made to gradually phase in the program over several years. First via annual RFA soliciations and then through Program Announcements
- Questions:
- Has the R03 program been successful?
- Should the R03 program be altered in any way?
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible:
- Former and current recipients of:
-Small research grants (R03s)
-Academic Research Enhancement Awards (AREA) (R15)
-Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Awards (K08)
-Mentored Research Scientist Development Awards (K01)
-Shannon Awards (R55)
-Individual (F32) or Institutional (T32) National Research Service Award (NRSA) training support
- Former and current recipients of:
- Non-Eligible:
- Current and previous holders of R01s
- Current and previous holders of R29s
- Principal Investigators (PIs) of research subprojects of Research Program Projects (P01) and Centers (P50 and P60)
- PIs with support from NSF or VA
History of the
R03 Program
Receipt Dates
- Requests for Applications -
- March 18, 1997 (AR-97-001)
- April 29, 1998 (AR-98-002)
- January 22, 1999 (AR-99-001)
- Program Announcements -
- 3 times/year in 1999, 2000 and 2001 (PAR-99-099)
- 3 times/year in 2002 and 2003 (PAR-02-030)
Some Evaluation Questions
- What is the purpose of the program?
- Small projects? Start-up funds?
- When is the appropriate time to conduct the evaluation?
- How long after completion of the R03?
- How should "success" be defined?
- Receipt of a subsequent R01?
- Taking a position in industry?
- Proving that a research idea is not feasible?
- What is the most appropriate control group?
- Are there differences in program distribution for the R03 awards?
- A CAVEAT: Some of the data in subsequent slides may differ slightly from official budget office data due to variations in co-funding
General Facts
- Only data from the first three competitions were analyzed
- There were 323 applications for the first three competitions and 297 applicants
R03 Awards
- From the 97-001 competition:
- 153 R03 applications
- 26 awards (17.0% success rate)
- From the 98-002 competition:
- 94 R03 applications
- 24 awards (25.5% success rate)
- From the 99-001 competition:
- 76 R03 applications
- 26 awards (34.2% success rate)
- From the 99-099 competition:
- 316 R03 applications
- 71 awards (22.5% success rate)
Award Statistics
Subsequent R01 Awards
- From the 97-001 competition:
- 42% of NIAMS R03 awardees had a subsequent R01
- 17% of unsuccessful R03 applicants had a subsequent R01
- 25% of all applicants had a subsequent R01
- From the 98-002 competition:
- 31% of NIAMS R03 awardees had a subsequent R01
- 12% of unsuccessful R03 applicants had a subsequent R01
- 26% of all applicants had a subsequent R01
- From the 99-001 competition:
- 24% of NIAMS R03 awardees had a subsequent R01
- 7% of unsuccessful R03 applicants had a subsequent R01
- 18% of all applicants had a subsequent R01
General Conclusions
- R03 awardees were more likely to obtain a subsequent R01 award than unsuccessful applicants
- The greater the amount of time that has passed since the R03 award the more likely the chance of having a R01
Does the branch make a difference in the success rate for obtaining a R03?
R03 Success Rate by Branch
Success Rate By Branch for Applications to that Branch Per RFA
Branch |
RFA 97-001 |
RFA 98-002 |
RFA 99-001 |
All RFAs |
---|---|---|---|---|
Rheumatic |
13.6% (9/57) |
26.9% (8/38) |
43.8% (10/25) |
22.5% (27/120) |
Muscle Biol. |
0.0% (0/9) |
37.5% (3/8) |
22.2% (2/9) |
19.2% (5/26) |
Skin |
25.0% (8/32) |
37.5% (3/8) |
50.0% (3/6) |
30.4% (14/46) |
Musculoskeletal |
13.3% (9/55) |
15.0% (10/40) |
33.3% (10/35) |
22.1% (29/131) |