What Do I Do If an Issue With NIH or Other Federal Application Systems Threatens Getting my Application in on Time?

July 31, 2014

Experiencing a system issue with ASSIST, Grants.gov, SAM, or eRA Commons that you believe threaten your ability to submit on time? Don’t panic. NIH will not penalize applicants who experience confirmed system issues that are beyond their control. However, it is imperative that you follow our Guidelines for Applicants Experiencing System Issues. This process includes contacting the eRA Commons Help Desk by the due date…

Want to Keep Current with eRA Commons News?

July 30, 2014

If you are involved with NIH, then chances are you use eRA Commons. In addition to announcing major changes to electronic submission of grant applications here on the Extramural Nexus, did you know we offer listservs targeted to issues related to electronic submission and eRA Commons, as well?

NIH: The View From 10,000 Feet

July 24, 2014

ere on the blog we discuss many different aspects of NIH’s research program – policies, funding trends, workforce issues. A few weeks ago, while I was preparing to give the opening talk at the NIH Regional Seminar on Program Funding and Grants Administration, I realized some Rock Talk readers might be interested in learning more about how these topics fit into the big picture of NIH. So, I asked my colleagues to tape this talk, “NIH: The View from 10,000 Feet”, so I could share it with you on the blog ….

Formula for Innovation: People + Ideas + Time

July 17, 2014

In these times of tight budgets and rapidly evolving science, we must consider new ways to invest biomedical research dollars to achieve maximum impact—to turn scientific discoveries into better health as swiftly as possible. We do this by thinking strategically about the areas of research that we support, as well as the process by which we fund that research. …. We often hear from investigators at all career stages that they spend a significant portion of their careers writing grant applications, consuming precious time that could otherwise be spent conducting research. ….

How Do Multi-PI Applications Fare?

July 11, 2014

A question that I hear often from investigators is: are my chances of funding increased or decreased by submitting a multi-PI application? It was seven years ago that NIH implemented the Multiple Principal Investigator Policy to encourage interdisciplinary and team approaches to biomedical research, and give scientists the option to apply with their peers and allow for equal credit for leadership of the research program. While the single-PI model works well, and continues to be the model for most of NIH’s research grants, the multi-PI option recognizes that as health research grows in scale and complexity, scientific teams may better reflect the intellectual and scientific leadership within a given grant application. So, let’s look at some data on how multi-PI applications fare in comparison to single-PI applications. ….