New and early stage investigators are essential to the vitality of health-related research. For this reason, the NIH will begin explicitly to encourage the transition of early career investigators to research independence. While it is clear that identification and special consideration of applications submitted by new investigators has protected the flow of previously unfunded investigators into the NIH PI pool, there have been few incentives to encourage early transition to independence. Many new investigators have spent many years in predoctoral and postdoctoral training.
Accordingly, the NIH has issued a new policy to adopt more broadly the approach used by the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award. Under this policy, the NIH will identify those new investigators who are within 10 years of completing their terminal research degree or within 10 years of the end of medical residency. Those individuals will be called Early Stage Investigators and their career status will be considered at the time of review and award. For a full description of the new policy and an implementation schedule, please see the corresponding Guide Notice.
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