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Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI) National Institutes of Health  •  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

NIH Director’s Pioneer Award

Format for Letters of Reference

Letters of reference are an important component of the application for the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award Program. Applicants must arrange to have three (and no more than three) letters of reference submitted electronically on their behalf to the NIH eRA Commons Web site at https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/reference/submitRefereeInformation.jsp. Letters must be submitted by referees, not by applicants. Applicants are encouraged to provide the following instructions to their referees.

Instructions for Referees:

SUBMISSION DATE/TIME: Letters may be submitted electronically beginning December 3, 2007, and must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m. (EST) January 16, 2008, at https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/reference/submitRefereeInformation.jsp. Late letters will not be accepted, and applications with fewer than three letters may not be reviewed.

LETTER FORMAT: In two pages or less, describe the qualities the applicant possesses that support his/her claim to scientific innovativeness and creativity. When possible, give specific examples that illustrate these qualities. Address the likelihood that the applicant will conduct groundbreaking research in the proposed research area.

The applicant’s name must be included at the top of the letter. Although the referee’s signature is not required, the letter must include a signature block with the referee’s full name, title, and institution.

REQUIRED INFORMATION FOR SUBMISSION: The following information is required and must be entered on the letter submission page https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/reference/submitRefereeInformation.jsp at the time of submission:

  • Referee Information:
    • Referee’s First and Last Name (Required)
    • Referee’s Middle Initial (MI) (Not Required)
    • Referee’s Email Address (Required)
    • Referee’s Institution/Affiliation (Required)
    • Referee’s Department (Required)

      Note: A Commons User Name is not required for referees and should not be entered on the letter submission form. Only the applicant’s Commons User Name is required.
  • Applicant Information (to be provided to referees by applicants):
    • Applicant’s Commons User Name (Required)
    • Applicant’s Last Name (Required) (Note: must match exactly the applicant’s name in the Commons)
    • Funding Opportunity Number (FOA) of this announcement RFA-RM-08-013 (Required)
    • Confirmation Number (Required only when submitting a revised letter for the current FOA)
    • Reference letter – two pages maximum; PDF format

CONFIRMATIONS: Email confirmations will be sent to both the applicant and the referee following submission of the letter. The email confirmation will include a Confirmation Number that will be required if it is necessary to submit revised letters. Please print the email confirmation for your records. Revised letters may be submitted until 5:00 p.m. (EST) January 16, 2008.

PROBLEMS OR QUESTIONS: If you have questions or problems submitting a letter, or if you do not receive an email confirmation, please contact the NIH Help Desk at commons@od.nih.gov or (301) 402-7469; (866) 504-9552 (Toll Free); (301) 451-5939 (TTY), Monday – Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST. While referees may submit letters for any number of applicants, each referee may submit only one letter per applicant. Revised letters may be submitted only with a Confirmation Number. Please do not attempt to submit a second letter for the same applicant without a Confirmation Number as this may preclude that applicant’s other referees from submitting letters. If you are unsure if your letter was successfully submitted, please contact the Help Desk.

Note: If you submitted letters for Pioneer Award applicants in a prior year, you must submit new letters of reference this year. Previously submitted letters will not be retrieved.

Please see the Frequently Asked Questions at http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/pioneer/faq.aspx. Send question to Pioneer@NIH.gov.

More information about the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award Program can be found at http://nihroadmap.nih.gov/pioneer/.

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This page last reviewed: January 30, 2008