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Review Criteria: R03 Reviewer List and Assignment of Applications
Application Steps: Register, Request Application, Submit Application, Submission Dates and Times, Modular Grant Format, Page Limit, Confirmation of Application Receipt, Dissertation, 1-Year Studies, Secondary Data Analysis
Eligibility: R03 and K Awards, Funded PIs and R03s, Visiting Professor Visa/Citizenship
REVIEW CRITERIA
NIH-supported research aims to
- Advance understanding of biological systems
- Improve disease control
- Enhance health
Reviewers score applications in terms of
- Significance
- Does the study address an important problem?
- How will it advance scientific knowledge?
- How will the study affect concepts or methods that drive cancer behavioral research, prevention, and control?
- Approach
- Are the conceptual framework, design, methods, and analyses fully developed, well integrated, and appropriate to project goals?
- Does the application note potential problem areas and offer alternative tactics?
- Innovation
- Does the project employ novel concepts, approaches, or methods?
- Are its aims original and innovative?
- Does it challenge existing paradigms or develop new methods or technologies?
- Investigator
- Is the investigator appropriately trained and suited to carry out the project?
- Is the work appropriate to researchers' level of experience?
- Environment
- Is the scientific environment where the project will take place conducive to success?
- Do proposed activities take advantage of the environment's unique features or employ useful collaborative arrangements?
- Does the institution support the project?
Reviewers weight criteria as appropriate for a specific application. An application need not be strong in all areas to score well. For example, a proposal may involve important work that isn't innovative but is vital to moving cancer behavioral research forward.
Reviewers also examine
- Project budget and duration
- Plans to include diverse populations in terms of gender, race, and age as appropriate
- Provisions for protecting human and animal subjects
- Research environment's safety
PREVIOUS R03 GRANT REVIEWERS
For a list of previous R03 grant reviewers, contact:
Veronica Y. Chollette, MS, RN
Small Grants Program Coordinator
Applied Cancer Screening Research Branch
Behavioral Research Program
Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences
6130 Executive Blvd, Room 4048
Rockville, MD 20892-7330
(301) 435-2837 (phone)
(301) 480-6637 (fax)
vc24a@nih.gov
REVIEW GROUP ASSIGNMENT OF APPLICATIONS
NCI coordinates an ad hoc review group for small grants for each of the three review cycles.
Advice to Investigators Submitting Clinical Research Applications
APPLICATION STEPS
Step 1. Register Your Organization and Principal Director/Investigator
A one-time registration is required for institutions/organizations at both:
PD/PIs should work with their institutions/organizations to make sure they are registered in the NIH Electronic Research Administration (eRA) Commons.
Several additional separate actions are required before an applicant institution/organization can submit an electronic application, as follows:
1a) Organization/Institutional Registration in Grants.gov/Get Started
Your organization will need to obtain a Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number and register with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) as part of the Grants.gov registration process.
If your organization does not have a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) or Employer Identification Number (EIN), allow for extra time. A valid TIN or EIN is necessary for CCR registration.
The CCR also validates the EIN against Internal Revenue Service records, a step that will take an additional 1 to 2 business days.
Direct questions regarding Grants.gov registration to:
Grants.gov Customer Support
Contact Center Phone: 800-518-4726
Business Hours: M-F 7:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time
E-mail: support@grants.gov
1b) Organization/Institutional Registration in the eRA Commons
1c) Project Director/Principal Investigator (PD/PI) Registration in the NIH eRA Commons: Refer to the NIH eRA Commons System (COM) Users Guide.
- The individual designated as the PD/PI on the application must also be registered in the NIH eRA Commons. It is not necessary for PDs/PIs to register with Grants.gov.
- The PD/PI must hold a PD/PI account in the Commons and must be affiliated with the applicant organization. This account cannot have any other role attached to it other than the PD/PI.
- This registration/affiliation must be done by the Authorized Organization Representative/Signing Official (AOR/SO) or their designee who is already registered in the Commons.
- Both the PD/PI and AOR/SO need separate accounts in the NIH eRA Commons since both are authorized to view the application image.
Note that if a PD/PI is also an NIH peer-reviewer with an Individual DUNS and CCR registration, that particular DUNS number and CCR registration are for the individual reviewer only. These are different than any DUNS number and CCR registration used by an applicant organization. Individual DUNS and CCR registration should be used only for the purposes of personal reimbursement and should not be used on any grant applications submitted to the Federal Government.
Several of the steps of the registration process could take 4 weeks or more. Therefore, applicants should immediately check with their business official to determine whether their institution is already registered in both Grants.gov and the Commons. The NIH will accept electronic applications only from organizations that have completed all necessary registrations.
Step 2. Request Application Information
Applicants must download the SF424 (R&R) application forms and SF424 (R&R) Application Guide for this FOA through http://www.grants.gov/applicants/apply_for_grants.jsp.
Note: Only the forms package directly attached to a specific FOA can be used. You will not be able to use any other SF424 (R&R) forms (e.g., sample forms, forms from another FOA), although some of the "Attachment" files may be useable for more than one FOA.
For further assistance, contact Grants Info; Telephone: 301-435-0714, E-mail: GrantsInfo@nih.gov.
Telecommunications for the hearing impaired: TTY 301-451-0088.
Note: Renewal (formerly "competing continuation" or "Type 2") applications are not permitted.
2a) Content and Format of Application
Prepare all applications using the SF424 (R&R) application forms and in accordance with the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide (MS Word or PDF).
The SF424 (R&R) Application Guide is critical to submitting a complete and accurate application to NIH. There are fields within the SF424 (R&R) application components that, although not marked as mandatory, are required by NIH (e.g., the "Credential" log-in field of the "Research & Related Senior/Key Person Profile" component must contain the PD/PI’s assigned eRA Commons User ID). Agency-specific instructions for such fields are clearly identified in the Application Guide. For additional information, see "Tips and Tools for Navigating Electronic Submission" on the front page of "Electronic Submission of Grant Applications."
The SF424 (R&R) application is comprised of data arranged in separate components. Some components are required, others are optional. The forms package associated with this FOA in http://www.grants.gov/applicants/apply_for_grants.jsp will include all applicable components, required and optional. A completed application in response to this FOA will include the following components:
Required Components:
SF424 (R&R) (Cover component)
Research & Related Project/Performance Site Locations
Research & Related Other Project Information
Research & Related Senior/Key Person
PHS398 Modular Budget
PHS398 Cover Page Supplement
PHS398 Research Plan
PHS398 Checklist
Optional Components:
PHS398 Cover Letter File
Research & Related Subaward Budget Attachment(s) Form
Note: While both budget components are included in the SF424 (R&R) forms package, the NIH R03 uses ONLY the PHS398 Modular Budget. (Do not use the detailed Research & Related Budget.)
All application instructions outlined in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide (MS Word or PDF) are to be followed, with the following requirements for R03 applications:
- R03 applications submitted in response to this FOA will use the NIH modular budget format and "Just-in-Time" concepts, with direct costs of up to two $25,000 modules or $50,000 in total per year, and a maximum of $100,000 over 2 or 3 years (i.e., four modules of $25,000 each in total over the entire award period) being allowed.
- Items 2-5 of the PHS398 Research Plan component of the R03 application may not exceed 10 pages, including tables, graphs, figures, diagrams, and charts.
- "Introduction" (required for a resubmission application) is limited to one page.
- Preliminary data are not required, but may be included if available.
- R03 Appendix materials may include the mentoring plan, graphic images of gels, micrographs, etc., provided that the image (may be reduced in size) is contained within the 10-page limit of Items 2-5 of the Research Plan. No images may be included in the Appendix that are not also represented within the Research Plan. No publications or other printed material, with the exception of pre-printed questionnaires or surveys, may be included in the Appendix.
- Do not use the Appendix to circumvent the page limitations of the Research Plan. An application that does not observe these limitations may be delayed in the review process.
Note: While each section of the Research Plan needs to be uploaded separately as a PDF attachment, applicants are encouraged to construct the Research Plan as a single document, separating sections into distinct PDF attachments just before uploading the files. This approach will enable applicants to better monitor formatting requirements such as page limits. All attachments must be provided to NIH in PDF format, filenames must be included with no spaces or special characters, and a .pdf extension must be used.
2b) Appendix
The following materials may be included in the Appendix:
Up to five publications, manuscripts (accepted for publication), abstracts, patents, or other printed materials directly relevant to the proposed project. Do not include manuscripts submitted for publication. Applicants should refer to instruction guides and specific Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) to determine the appropriate limit on the number of publications that may be submitted for a particular program. Note that not all grant mechanisms allow the inclusion of publications.
- Publications in press: Include only a publication list with a link to the publicly available on-line journal article or the NIH PubMed Central (PMC) submission identification number. Do not include the entire article.
- Manuscripts accepted for publication, but not yet published: The entire article may be submitted electronically as a PDF attachment.
- Manuscripts published, but an online journal link is not available: The entire article may be submitted electronically as a PDF attachment.
- Surveys, questionnaires, data collection instruments, clinical protocols, and informed consent documents.
- Graphic images of gels, micrographs, etc., provided that the image (may be reduced in size) is also included within the (stated) page limit of Items 2-5 of the Research Plan. No images may be included in the Appendix that are not also represented within the Research Plan.
As stated before, applicants are cautioned not to use the Appendix to circumvent the page limitations of the Research Plan.
Applicants are reminded to review this FOA for program-specific guidance on Appendix material and other application requirements.
2c) Letter of Intent
A letter of intent is not required for this funding opportunity.
2d) Plan for Sharing Research Data
Not applicable.
2e) Additional Application Requirements
- The candidate should identify a mentor(s) with cancer prevention and control research expertise that has NIH grant experience and is willing to mentor junior investigators in behavioral research. The mentor is not required to be employed in the applicant ’s institution. The candidate should include a mentoring plan that describes the nature, frequency, and method of mentoring that will take place through the entire grant period. The plan should provide evidence of the mentor’s commitment to mentoring, as seen in previous mentoring activities. The mentor’s proposed percent effort commitment to the mentoring plan should also be stated.
- In the budget requests, applicants should include costs for attendance at a single 2-day grantee meeting in Bethesda, Maryland, to which they, as principal investigators, will each be invited sometime during their second year of funding.
- The NIH requires the PD/PI to fill in his/her Commons User ID in the "PROFILE – Project Director/Principal Investigator" section, "Credential" log-in field of the "Research & Related Senior/Key Person Profile" component. The applicant organization must include its DUNS number in its Organization Profile in the eRA Commons. This DUNS number must match the DUNS number provided at CCR registration with Grants.gov. For additional information, see "Tips and Tools for Navigating Electronic Submission" on the front page of "Electronic Submission of Grant Applications."
Step 3: Submit Application
To submit an application in response to this FOA, applicants should access this FOA via http://www.grants.gov/applicants/apply_for_grants.jsp and follow steps 1-4. Note: Applications must only be submitted electronically. PAPER APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
Electronic Submission
Note – NIH requires electronic submission of the SF424 (R&R) form through Grants.gov to NIH for all R03 grant applications (this new policy took effect after June 1, 2006.)
Electronic submission is as follows:
- Registration – The NIH electronic submission process requires institutional registration in two separate systems: Grants.gov and eRA Commons. Project Directors/Principal Investigators also must be registered in eRA Commons. These registration processes can take up to four weeks (possibly longer for new organizations) to complete. All registrations must be in place prior to application submission. For additional information on preparing for electronic submission to NIH please visit: http://era.nih.gov/ElectronicReceipt/preparing.htm.
- Training resources – video library, archived training sessions and other training resources to learn about the NIH electronic submission process and the new SF424 (R&R) application
- Tips & Tools – resources to avoid common application submission errors
Applications may be submitted on or after the opening date and must be successfully received by Grants.gov no later than 5:00 p.m. local time (of the applicant institution/organization) on the application submission/receipt date(s). (See Section 3b for all dates.) If an application is not submitted by the receipt date(s) and time, the application may be delayed in the review process or not reviewed.
Once an application package has been successfully submitted through Grants.gov, any errors have been addressed, and the assembled application has been created in the eRA Commons, the PD/PI and the Authorized Organization Representative/Signing Official (AOR/SO) have two business days to view the application image.
- If everything is acceptable, no further action is necessary. The application will automatically move forward for processing by the Division of Receipt and Referral, Center for Scientific Review, NIH, after two business days.
- Prior to the submission deadline, the AOR/SO can "Reject" the assembled application and submit a changed/corrected application within the two day viewing window. This option should be used if the AOR/SO determines that warnings should be addressed. Reminder: warnings do not stop further application processing. If an application submission results in warnings (but no errors) it will automatically move forward after two business days if no action is taken. Please remember that some warnings may not be applicable or may need to be addressed after application submission.
- If the two day window falls after the submission deadline, the AOR/SO will have the option to "Reject" the application if, due to an eRA Commons or Grants.gov system issue, the application does not correctly reflect the submitted application package (e.g., some part of the application was lost or didn’t transfer correctly during the submission process). The AOR/SO should first contact the eRA Commons Helpdesk to confirm the system error, document the issue, and determine the best course of action. NIH will not penalize the applicant for an eRA Commons or Grants.gov system issue.
- If the AOR/SO chooses to "Reject" the image after the submission deadline for a reason other than an eRA Commons or Grants.gov system failure, a changed/corrected application still can be submitted but it will be subject to the NIH late policy guidelines and may not be accepted. The reason for this delay should be explained in the cover letter attachment.
- Both the AOR/SO and PD/PI will receive e-mail notifications when the application is rejected or the application automatically moves forward in the process after two days.
Upon receipt, applications will be evaluated for completeness by the Center for Scientific Review, NIH. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.
There will be an acknowledgement of receipt of applications from Grants.gov and the Commons. Information related to the assignment of an application to a Scientific Review Group is also in the Commons.
The NIH will not accept any application in response to this FOA that is essentially the same as one currently pending initial merit review unless the applicant withdraws the pending application. The NIH will not accept any application that is essentially the same as one already reviewed. This does not preclude the submission of an application already reviewed with substantial changes, but such application must include an "Introduction" addressing the previous critique. Note such an application is considered a "resubmission" for the SF424 (R&R).
3b) Submission Dates and Times
Application Submission/Receipt Date(s): April 20, 2008; August 21, 2008; December 22, 2008.
Peer Review Date(s): March/April 2008; July/August 2008; November/December 2008; March/April 2009.
Council Review Date(s): February 2008; June 2008; October 2008; February 2009; June 2009.
Earliest Anticipated Start Date(s): April 2008; July 2008; December 2008; April 2009; July 2009.
3c) Intergovernmental Review
This initiative is not subject to intergovernmental review.
3d) Funding Restrictions
All NIH awards are subject to the terms and conditions, cost principles, and other considerations described in the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
Pre-Award Costs are allowable. A grantee may, at its own risk and without NIH prior approval, incur obligations and expenditures to cover costs up to 90 days before the beginning date of the initial budget period of an award if such costs: are necessary to conduct the project, and would be allowable under the grant, if awarded, without NIH prior approval. If specific expenditures would otherwise require prior approval, the grantee must obtain NIH approval before incurring the cost. NIH prior approval is required for any costs to be incurred more than 90 days before the beginning date of the initial budget period of a new award.
The incurrence of pre-award costs in anticipation of a competing or non-competing award imposes no obligation on NIH either to make the award or to increase the amount of the approved budget if an award is made for less than the amount anticipated and is inadequate to cover the pre-award costs incurred. NIH expects the grantee to be fully aware that pre-award costs result in borrowing against future support and that such borrowing must not impair the grantee's ability to accomplish the project objectives in the approved time frame or in any way adversely affect the conduct of the project. See the NIH Grants Policy Statement.
3e) Sharing Research Resources
NIH policy requires that grant awardee recipients make unique research resources readily available for research purposes to qualified individuals within the scientific community after publication (see the NIH Grants Policy Statement at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2003/NIHGPS_Part7.htm#_Toc54600131). Investigators responding to this funding opportunity should include a sharing research resources plan addressing how unique research resources will be shared or explain why sharing is not possible.
The adequacy of the resources sharing plan and any related data sharing plans will be considered by Program staff of the funding organization when making recommendations about funding applications. The effectiveness of the resource sharing will be evaluated as part of the administrative review of each Non-Competing Grant Progress Report (PHS 2590). See Section VI.3., "Reporting."
MODULAR GRANT FORMAT
The modular grant format applies to the R03 mechanism. For more information about the modular grant format, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/
nihgps_2001/part_iib_6.htm#ModularApplicationsandAwards.
Frequently Asked Questions about Modular Research Grant Applications can be found at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/
funding/modular/modular_faq_pub.htm
BUDGET AND TIME LIMITS
- Total budget must not exceed $100,000 for the entire project
period
- Direct costs in may not exceed $50,000 per year
- Total project period must not exceed 3 years
- Small grants are not renewable
Salary Information: There are Federal mandates regarding the limitation of salary on NIH grants. For more information see the official notice on: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-02-030.html
PAGE LIMIT
You have up to 10 pages to present your proposal and will not be penalized for submitting fewer.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF RECEIPT
A card confirming receipt of your application is generated when the SRA and reviewers are selected.
R03s and DISSERTATION RESEARCH
The R03 mechanism may be used for dissertation research purposes, as long as the applicant organization permits students to be a PI on an NIH grant.
1-YEAR STUDIES
The R03 program announcement funds grants for 3 years but 1-year studies are allowed.
SECONDARY DATA ANALYSIS
You may conduct secondary data analysis with the R03 mechanism. Reviewers will look for a sophisticated and bulletproof analytical plan.
The small grant is limited in scope. Stay focused and don't try to undertake too much. Use other ideas as a base for your next phase of study research.
ELIGIBILITY
R03 AND K AWARDS
For information on K awards, visit http://cancertraining.nci.nih.gov.
You may apply for R03 and K awards but not in the same application receipt cycle. K awards include restrictions such as an 80 percent maximum effort on the award.
R03s AND FUNDED GRANTS
If you are or have been a principal investigator on an NIH R01, UO1, P01 or R03 or non NIH cancer control grant you cannot apply for an R03 unless you are switching your area of research.
VISITING PROFESSOR VISA/CITIZENSHIP
Individuals in the United States on a J1 visiting professor visa and working at a U.S. institution may apply for a small grant. We suggest first asking your institution's grants office about its policy.
PIs and Other Personnel
The NIH Grants Policy Statement reads:
Although PIs and other personnel under research projects are not required to be U.S. citizens, NIH will not intercede on behalf of non-citizens whose stay in the United States may be limited by their visa status. As a result, NIH requires the applicant to determine and indicate, in its application, that such individuals' visas will allow them to remain in this country long enough for them to be productive on the project. If a grant is awarded on the basis of this information and the individual's visa does not allow for such a stay, NIH may terminate the grant.
For more information on eligibility, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/
nihgps_2001/part_iia_1.htm#_Toc504811775
Trainees and Fellows
Citizenship requirements for trainee and fellow eligibility are addressed in "National Research Service Awards" of the Grants Policy Statement:
The individual to be trained must be a citizen or a non-citizen national of the United States or have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence at the time of award. Non-citizen nationals are persons, who, although not citizens of the United States, owe permanent allegiance to the U.S. They are generally persons born in outlying possessions of the United States (e.g., American Samoa and Swains Island). Individuals who have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence must be in possession of a currently valid Alien Registration Receipt Card (I-551), or must be in possession of other legal verification of such status. For example, if an individual is in possession of the proper validation on his/her passport, a notarized photocopy of the passport could suffice. Since there is a 6-month limitation on this validation, it is the responsibility of the sponsoring institution to follow-up and assure that the individual received the I-551 prior to the 6-month expiration date.
An individual expecting to be admitted as a permanent resident by the earliest possible award date listed in the fellowship program announcement may submit an application for an individual NRSA fellowship. The submission of documentation concerning permanent residency is not required as part of the initial application. Any applicant selected to receive an award must provide a notarized statement of admission for permanent residence prior to award.
Applicants who have been lawfully admitted for permanent residence, i.e., are in possession of an Alien Registration Receipt Card or other legal verification of such status, should check the Permanent Resident box in the citizenship section on the face page of the fellowship application. Applicants who have applied for and have not yet been granted admission as a permanent resident should check the same box, but should write in the word "pending."
For more information on National Research Service Awards, see the NIH Grants Policy Statement:
http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2001/part_iib_3.htm#_Toc504811961
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