Grant Writing for New Applicants

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• Make sure your potential shines through the application. Show that you:
  • Have your own resources and institutional support.
  • Are independent.
  • Are able to lead.
• Reveal your independence as an investigator through your publications -- first and last authors are more impressive than those in the middle.
• Impress peer reviewers by showing a solid understanding of the literature and the strengths and weaknesses of your methods.
• Look up the members of the study section, and cite their work if relevant. You can find them at CSR Study Section Roster Index.
• Always provide as much data as possible to support your Specific Aims and hypotheses. Remember that reviewers expect less preliminary data from you. It's okay to use data that are not yours as long as you identify your source.

"Less Is More"

• Reviewers are more inclined to give you a fundable score if you ask for less money and fewer years and propose a modest amount of work, i.e., few specific aims.
• They also expect new investigators to have fewer preliminary data, resources, and publications compared to established PIs. Write your biosketch so it shows to your advantage all the qualifications needed to lead the project.
• Leave out all nonessential information.
• Do not try to impress reviewers with a lot of background information. Reviewers may know much more about a field than you do.

Using Your Application More Than Once

Every project NIH funds must be unique. By law, NIH cannot support a project already funded or pay for research already done.

Even so, you can apply to an organization outside the Public Health Service with your NIH application, though NIH will not fund it if you get that award.

Also you may not send the same application to more than one Public Health Service agency at the same time (go to Agencies and Programs).

Find more information in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

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