Office of Proposal Development

1
Graduate Student SeminarNational Institutes of
HealthBreakout Session

• John IvyProposal Development Officer
• Office of Proposal DevelopmentTexas AM
  UniversityandTexas AM Health Science Center
• Copies of this presentation will be available on
  the OPD website, http//opd.tamu.edu/

2
Office of Proposal Development

• Supports faculty in the development and writing
  of research and educational proposals to federal
  agencies and foundations
• Center-level initiatives,
• Interdisciplinary research teams,
• New junior faculty,
• Institutional diversity initiatives
• Health Science Center collaborations,
• Multi-institutional research partnerships
• Offers a full suite of grant writing training
  programs to help faculty develop and write more
  competitive proposals.

3
OPD Proposal Support

• Assistance with finding funding opportunities
• Information on particular programs
• What is the funding agency looking for?
• Experiences of other TAMU faculty who have
  applied for that program
• What types of projects have been funded?
• Project planning
• Strategic planning based on review criteria
• Education and outreach components
• Proposal editing
• Conformity with solicitation requirements
• Clarity and organization
• Grammar, punctuation, spelling

4
Seminars and WorkshopsCheck our website at
http//opd.tamu.edu/seminars

• One-day Craft of Proposal Writing Workshop
  offered each fall before classes start
• Seminar on strategies for competing for funding
  with breakout sessions on different agencies
  scheduled in the fall
• Semester-long grant-writing workshops offered
  fall and spring semesters
• Seminars on specific programs (instrumentation,
  NSF CAREER, NIH K-awards, etc.) offered
  throughout the year
• Faculty panel discussions on specific agencies
  and research areas in spring

5
(No Transcript)
6
OPD Member List

• Jean Ann Bowman, PhD (Physical Geography/Hydrology
  ), earth, ecological, and environmental sciences,
  jbowman_at_tamu.edu
• Libby Childress, scheduling, workshop management,
  project coordination, libbyc_at_tamu.edu
• Mike Cronan, PE (inactive), B.S. Civil
  Engineering, BA, MFA, center-level proposals,
  partnerships, new initiatives, mikecronan_at_tamu.edu
  
• Lucy Deckard, BS/MS Materials Engineering, New
  Faculty Initiative, fellowships, engineering and
  physical science proposals, equipment and
  instrumentation, l-deckard_at_tamu.edu
• John Ivy, PhD (Molecular Biology), NIH biomedical
  and biological science initiatives,
  johnivy_at_tamu.edu
• Phyllis McBride, PhD (English), proposal writing
  training, biomedical, editing,
  p-mcbride_at_tamu.edu
• Robyn Pearson, BA/MA (anthropology) social
  sciences and humanities proposals, editing and
  rewriting, rlpearson_at_tamu.edu

7
Today's Topics

• NIH Overview
• NIH Funding Mechanisms
• Finding NIH Funding Opportunities
• Elements of an NIH proposal
• Review of proposals

8
DHHS Overview

• Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
• Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
  Administration (SAMHSA)
• Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
  (ATSDR)
• Health Resources and Services Administration
  (HRSA)
• Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
• Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
• Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
• National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• Administration on Aging (AoA)
• Program Support Center (PSC)
• Indian Health Service (IHS)

9
NIH 20 Institutes, 7 Centers
10
NIH Mission

• Improve the health and well-being of humans and
  reduce the burden of illness on population
• foster fundamental creative discoveries,
  innovative research strategies, and their
  applications
• develop, maintain, and renew scientific human and
  physical resources
• expand the knowledge base in medical and
  associated sciences
• exemplify and promote the highest level of
  scientific integrity, public accountability, and
  social responsibility in the conduct of science

11
National Institutes of Health

• Each Institute has its own mission
• Each Institute has its own budget
• Each Institute has its own activities
• Each Institute has its own ways of doing things
• When youre planning to submit a grant, check
  with program directors from different institutes
  to determine their specific policies and interest
  in your science.

12
NIH Overview

• NIH is a basic research agency
• Different from a mission-based agency (e.g.,
  NASA, DoD)
• Funds basic science research (molecules to
  humans) in health-related topics

13
NIH Training Awards

• Individual Training awards for predoctoral
  (F31), postdoctoral (F32), or senior fellowships
  (F33)
• Limited to US citizens or legal aliens

14
NIH Career Awards

• Some directed at retraining, professional career
  development, and recognition of career success
• K01 Mentored Research Scientist Award
• Provide mentored career development in a new
  research area
• K02 Independent Scientist Award
• Develop career of funded scientist 5 yr, 75
  effort
• K05 Senior Scientist Award
• Recognize outstanding scientist with sustained
  level of high productivity
• K08 Mentored Clinical Scientist Award
• Development of independent clinical research
  scientist
• K18 Career Enhancement Award for Stem Cell
  Research (restricted to certain IC)
• K25 Mentored Quantitative Research Career
  Development Award
• Foster collaborative research in areas
  integrating biomedical science and engineering
• K99/R00 NIH Pathway to Independence (PI) Award
• 2 years mentored postdoctoral research 3 years
  independent research in tenure track position (or
  equivalent)
• K Kiosk
• http//grants1.nih.gov/training/careerdevelopmenta
  wards.htm

15
NIH Research Program Grant

• Unsolicited proposals regular receipt, review
  cycles
• Numerous funding mechanisms
• R01 Research Project Grant
• Supports discrete, specific, highly successful
  outcome projects
• All ICs support this mechanism
• R03 Small Grant
• Supports small research projects limited time
  and resources are the key elements
• R21 Exploratory/Independent Research Grant
• Supports high risk-high yield research projects
• R15 Academic and Research Enhancement Award
  (AREA) Grant
• Small research projects in the biomedical and
  behavioral sciences conducted by students and
  faculty in health professional schools, and other
  academic components that have not been major
  recipients of NIH research grant funds

16
Research Grants for Independent Scientists

• R01 Large Research Grant
• 4-5 years, 250,000/yr
• R03 Small Grant
• 2 year max, 50,000/yr max
• R21 Exploratory Research Grant
• High Risk High Reward
• Transformational
• 2 years, 275,000 total
• R15 Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA)
• Primarily undergrad institutions
• Institute must have received lt3mill/yr in NIH
  funding

17
New Investigator Programhttp//grants.nih.gov/gra
nts/new_investigators/index.htm
18
For New Investigators

• K99/R00 Pathway to Independence
• Must have fewer than 5 yr postdoc experience
• Open to US and non-US citizens
• 2 yr mentored Post-doc 75 effort required
• 3 yr independent, tenure-track or equivalent
  position 75 research effort
• R01 fast review for new investigators
• Check box on cover page for new investigators
• Example Oct 5 Submit Mar 1 Summary
  Statement Mar 20 Resubmit (Mar 5, Jul 5, Nov 5)

19
For New Investigators

• More lenient R01 payline for new investigators
  (varies by IC)
• In FY07, 500 R01 awards to be made to new
  investigators
• DP2 Directors New Innovator Award
• For exceptionally creative work of new
  investigators
• Requires highly innovative approaches that have
  the potential to produce an unusually high impact
• Must have completed doctoral degree within 10 yr
• Awards up to 300,00

20
Office of Extramural Research (OER)

• Distinction between solicited versus unsolicited
  proposals
• Unsolicited (investigator-initiated) proposals
  (82)
• Parent Announcements (Program Announcements, PA)
• Solicited (agency-initiated) proposals (18)
• Program Announcements (PA)
• New research programs and updates to ongoing
  programs (renewable)
• Request for Applications/Proposals (RFA/RFP)
• One time request to fulfill specific agency
  research objective or need

21
FY 2007 OPERATING PLAN NIH DISCRETIONARY BUDGET
AUTHORITY 29.228 BILLION
22
Application Due Dates
23
Finding NIH Funding

• Search All Federal Agencies Grants.gov
• Search all of NIH NIH OER
• Search your favorite NIH IC(s) NIH IC home
  pages
• Sign up for email notices by weekly/daily
  listserves
• Sign up for RSS feeds
• Other strategies Other sources
• Google
• Colleagues
• National Science Foundation
• Acknowledgements in publications
• Philanthropy News Digest / The Foundation Center
• Commercial search providers Community of
  Science (COS)

24
Finding NIH Funding

• Office of Extramural Research (OER) about
  http//grants1.nih.gov/grants/intro2oer.htm
• NIH funding opportunities page
• OER Home pagehttp//grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm
  
• NIH Guide for Grants and Contractshttp//grants.n
  ih.gov/grants/guide/index.html
• Subscribe to weekly listserv!
• Grants.gov
• Includes funding opportunities for NIH in
  addition to the other 25 federal grant-making
  agencies
• Located at http//www.grants.gov/Index
• Subscribe to weekly listserv

25
(No Transcript)
26
Parent Announcements
27
(No Transcript)
28
Example Sequencing Technology
29
Example Sequencing Technology
30
Identifying NIH Solicitations by Topic

• Search by Keyword(s) or Phrase(s)
• Identify funding opportunities
• Determine supporting ICs
• Identify mechanism (R, T, U, etc.)
• Determine eligibility
• Identify review criteria

31
Identifying NIH Solicitations by IC

• Search by Agency (IC)
• Identify funding opportunities within an agency
• Steps for searching.
• Identify Agency (IC)
• Go to their homepage (http//www.nih.gov/icd)
• Go to their Research Funding or "Extramural
  Funding section
• Perform search

32
Identifying NIH Solicitations by IC
33
Identifying NIH Solicitations by IC
34
Staying Informed on NIH FOAs

• e.g., at NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts

35
Know what was recently funded

• Learning about recently funded research in your
  area helps you understand what an agency is
  looking for in the review process
• Review abstracts of funded proposals on agency
  web sites
• Talk to the principal investigators of funded
  proposals in your area
• Obtain copies of funded proposals
• Ask the PI
• Ask the agency (funded proposals are public)

36
CRISP http//crisp.cit.nih.gov/

• Computer Retrieval of Informationon Scientific
  Projects
• A searchable database of federally funded
  biomedical research
• What similar projects have been funded?
• Has someone already been funded to pursue my
  idea?
• Who are my competitors?
• Who are potential collaborators?

37
Remember, investigator-initiated grants represent
gt80 of those funded by NIH!
38
Preparing Proposals

• All NIH proposals use either the electronic form
  SF424 or the paper PHS398.
• The transition to SF424 for F and K awards is
  delayed
• Step 1 Download the Instructions and Forms
• http//grants2.nih.gov/grants/funding/424/
• http//grants1.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs39
  8.html
• Step 2 READ THE INSTRUCTIONS

39
Speak with the Program Officer early and often
40
Common Elements of PHS398 R01

• Cover page/face sheet (1 page)
• Abstract, performance site, key personnel (2
  pages)
• Table of contents (1 page)
• Budget page(s)
• Budget justification
• Biosketch of PI, biosketch of all other major/key
  personnel (4 pages each)
• Resources (no page limit)
• Research Plan (Items A-D) (25 page limit)
• Other Information under Research Plan (Items E-J)
  (no page limit)
• e.g., references cited, human or animal research
  subjects, inclusion of minorities/children in
  clinical studies, data sharing plans, etc.
• Appendix items (in-press publications, surveys,
  photos)
• Checklist

41
Budget Budget Justification

• Budget
• Get help (institutional grants administrator)
• Be reasonable. The reviewers also do research!
• Budget Justification
• Personnel
• Who? What will they do? How much effort ()? Why
  is this person critical to the success of the
  project?
• Equipment
• What do you need? Why do you need it? Is there a
  similar apparatus nearby that you can use (if
  yes, why not use it)?
• Travel
• Where do you need to go? How many times will you
  go there? How many of the project personnel will
  go? Approximately how much will it cost and why?
• Other Supplies
• Equipment maintenance contracts? Fee for service
  resource?

42
NIH Biographical Sketch

• Four page maximum
• Section A. Positions and Honors
• Section B. Publications
• List publications reflective of the topic of the
  current proposal (or maximum)
• Section C. Research Support
• Current and completed support
• Begin with projects that are most relevant to the
  research proposed in the application

43
Abstract or Summary (Description)

• May be the only thing the reviewer reads
• Must grab the reviewer, be compelling
• Must communicate excitement
• Should communicate concisely
• Intellectual framework of proposed project
• The Goals and Significance of the proposed
  project
• Broad, long-term objectives and Specific Aims
• Reference the health relatedness of the project
  (i.e., relevance to the mission of the agency).
• Concisely describe Research Design and Methods
• Who will be conducting the project and, briefly,
  their qualifications
• Project outcomes
• Be Succinct understandable to a scientifically
  or technically literate reader
• 30 lines of text maximum
• Check for additional requirements
• E.g., intellectual merit and broader impacts in
  NSF proposals

44
Project Narrative

• The second component of the Project
  Summary/Abstract (i.e., Description)
• No more than two or three sentences.
• Describe the relevance of your research to Public
  Health.
• Be Succinct
• Use plain language easily understood by a
  general, lay audience

45
Research Plan

• Introduction (Resubmissions only)
• A) Specific Aims
• Long-range goals
• Hypothesis
• B) Background Significance
• C) Preliminary Studies / Progress Report
• D) Research Design and Methods
• Structure based on Specific Aims or on Review
  Criteria

46
Specific Aims

• Provides a framework for the reviewer
• State a long-range goal of your research program
• Tie to program/agency mission and goals
• State a specific hypothesis that your experiments
  will address
• State specific, measurable Specific Aims
• Discuss expected outcomes
• Do not be overly ambitious!

47
Background Significance

• Background should tie closely to your proposed
  research
• Be thorough and concise
• Describe state of the field
• Do not be dismissive of previous research
• Identifies the opportunity
• Provides a rationale for your approach
• Specify how your research will extend and advance
  knowledge in the field
• Identify what is Significant about your research

48
Preliminary Data / Progress Report

• Be aware of expectations regarding amount of
  preliminary data
• Varies by agency
• Varies by program
• Varies by discipline
• Higher risk projects may require more preliminary
  data
• Discussion of preliminary data must connect
  clearly to proposed project

49
Research Design Methods

• Structure based on Specific Aims or on Review
  Criteria
• Be very clear about how you will accomplish your
  stated goals and objectives
• Include details
• What, specifically, will you do when you get the
  money?
• Schedules and milestones may be helpful
• This is especially important if you are a
  relatively new researcher
• Address any potential results and problems and
  how you will deal with them
• Avoid ambiguous terminology be specific!

50
Formatting Requirements

• Font
• Arial, Helvetica, Palatino Linotype, or Georgia
  typeface
• Black font color
• Font size of 11 points or larger
• Symbol font may be used to insert Greek letters
  or special characters the font size requirement
  still applies
• Type density, including characters and spaces,
  must be no more than 15 characters per inch
• Type may be no more than six lines per inch
• Page Margins
• Use standard paper size (8 ½" x 11)
• Use at least one-half inch margins (top, bottom,
  left, and right) for all pages
• Figures, legends, tables, graphs, charts, etc.
  may use smaller font

51
NIH General Review Criteria

• Investigator
• Education, training, relevant experience
• Environment
• Suitability of facilities and institution support
• Significance
• Ability of the project to improve health
• Approach
• Feasibility of methods and appropriateness of
  budget
• Innovation
• Originality of research

52
Review of NIH Proposals

• Center for Scientific Review (CSR)
• http//www.csr.nih.gov/default.htm
• Divisions (4)
• Integrated Review Groups (IRG) 23
• Study Sections (SS) 220
• Scientific Review Administrator (SRA)
• Members (peers with expertise in SS research)
• Standing members
• Ad hoc members
• http//www.csr.nih.gov/Roster_proto/sectionI.asp

53
What happens when you submit an application?
Center for Scientific Review
Scientific Review Group or IC Review Branch
IC Advisory Council
Institute Director
54
Your application is reviewed at study section by

• Experts
• Non-experts
• People who are reading lots of grants
• People who want to be excited by science
• People who will be irritated by a sloppy
  application

Submit a high quality application!
Have people review your application critically
well before submission
55
CSR Review Streamlining

• Proposal received at CSR
• Assigned to an IRG, then to a Study Section (SS)
• The Scientific Review Administrator (SRA) assigns
  a primary, secondary, and tertiary reviewer
• Investigator-initiated proposals (R01, R03, R21)
  are read by the 1, 2, 3 reviewers
• Bottom 50 of proposals are identified about 1
  week prior to the SS meeting (triaged or
  streamlined)
• Streamlined applications receive summary
  statements verbatim from each reviewer, but are
  not discussed nor scored
• All 3 reviewers must agree on the streamlined
  proposals in order for the proposal to be triaged

56
CSR Scoring Proposals

• SS meets to review applications
• Primary reviewer presents your proposal to the
  group (reads the abstract)
• SS members discuss your application, the primary
  reviewer is able to answer questions about the
  proposal
• SS members assign a score to the proposal between
  1-5 (1outstanding, 5forget it)
• After the meeting the SRA calculates the average
  score for each proposal, multiply by 100 to get a
  3 digit score (100-500)
• SRA calculates a priority score or percentile
  ranking of the score based on the past 3 cycles
  of grant scores within SS
• SRA prepares a written critique of your proposal
  based on reviewers comments

57
Three possible outcomes

• Triaged
• Discussed, scored, not funded
• Discussed, scored, FUNDED!

58
Revisions

• Three strikes and youre out
• Read the reviewers comments
• Take a break
• Re-read the reviewers comments
• Dont take them personally
• Read the reviewers comments, AGAIN
• Begin working on the revisions, incorporating the
  revisions that you think make your proposal
  better than the previous submission
• If you have a question about a particular
  comment, contact the SRA

59
Interpreting Reviews Planning to Resubmit

• Were certain issues mentioned consistently?
• Plan how to address those issues
• Did the reviewers misunderstand your proposal?
• Plan how to make your text more clear
• Was no clear issue mentioned?
• May not have excited reviewers enough
• May not be an area they wish to fund now
• May not fit into their research portfolio
• Many funded proposals were funded after multiple
  submissions ? intelligent perseverance is the key!

60
Three Myths
61
Myth 1

• Its so competitive now that a new investigator
  has no chance of funding
• Truths
• Balderdash
• If you dont apply, you will not be funded

62
FIRST TIME INVESTIGATORSAS A PERCENTAGE OF ALL
COMPETING AWARDEES
63
Myth 2

• Nobody gets funded on the first submission
• Reality
• At NINDS in 2005, 58 of the K awards were
  obtained on the first submission
• Plan on resubmitting, but make your first
  submission as good as it can be anyway
• You cannot be funded on the resubmission without
  a first submission!

64
Myth 3

• You have little chance of funding when initially
  triaged
• Reality
• Plenty of applications are funded after initially
  being triaged

65
Success at NIH

• Understand NIHs mission and overall goals
• Propose research topics that cross the boundaries
  of various IC leverage tools and resources from
  other research areas to approach your research
  topic create multidisciplinary research teams
• Focus on NIH priorities
• Search for funding opportunities often and using
  different strategies, e.g., agency or topic
  search, and submit unsolicited proposals when
  possible
• Look for various opportunities to acquire
  funding, e.g., diversity supplements, career
  awards
• Partner with established NIH investigators

66
Additional Life Science Funding Sources

• Grants.gov http//www.grants.gov
• National Science Foundation http//www.nsf.gov/
• Find Funding http//www.nsf.gov/funding/
• Funded Research http//www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/
• GrantsNet sponsored by AAAS and
  HHMI http//sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/funding
• Congressionally Directed Medical Research
  Programs http//cdmrp.army.mil/funding/default.ht
  m
• Philanthropy News Digest RFP listings http//found
  ationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/
• American Cancer Society http//www.cancer.org/docr
  oot/RES/RES_0.asp
• American Heart Association http//www.americanhear
  t.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier9713
• Cancer Research Institute http//www.cancerresearc
  h.org/criprogs.html
• Life Sciences Research Foundation http//www.lsrf.
  org/geninfo.htm
• National Multiple Sclerosis Society http//www.nat
  ionalmssociety.org/

67
http//foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/
68
Additional Postdoctoral Fellowship Information
Sources

• Google is your friend! Search postdoctoral
  fellowship
• UCSF Biochemistry Biophysics listinghttp//bioc
  hemistry.ucsf.edu/fellowships.html
• American Cancer Societyhttp//www.cancer.org/docr
  oot/RES/RES_5_1.asp?siteareaRES
• American Heart Associationhttp//www.americanhear
  t.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier9713
• Cancer Research Institutehttp//www.cancerresearc
  h.org/postdoc.html
• Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundationhttp//www
  .drcrf.org/apFellowship.html
• Helen Hay Whitney Foundationhttp//www.hhwf.org/H
  TMLSrc/ResearchFellowships.html
• Life Sciences Research Foundationhttp//www.lsrf.
  org/geninfo.htm
• The National Academieshttp//www7.nationalacademi
  es.org/fellowships/
• National Multiple Sclerosis Societyhttp//www.nat
  ionalmssociety.org/Research-Postdoct.asp
• GrantsNet sponsored by AAAS and
  HHMIhttp//sciencecareers.sciencemag.org/funding?
  CFID1015488CFTOKEN17265996

69
Questions?

• Copies of this presentation will be available on
  the OPD websitehttp//opd.tamu.edu/