Competition for NIH R15 (AREA) awards is limited to institutions that receive less than $6 million annually from the NIH, in other words, competition is limited to faculty from smaller and mid-sized research universities. Beginning this fall, the budget limit for these awards will double to $300,000 in direct costs over three years. This increase in possible award size will allow study designs and project outcomes to go well beyond the kinds of preliminary and pilot work that have historically been the stock and trade of the R15. NIU faculty are well-positioned to compete for these funds.
Beginning this summer, the NIH has begun phasing in major changes to its peer review processes, including changes in the scoring system, the review criteria, and, beginning in January, the length and structure of the proposal narrative. Faculty who do not fully understand these changes will be at a disadvantage in the review process.
To address these major developments, Dr. David Stone, director of the Office of Sponsored Projects, will hold a series of brown bag lunch sessions to provide faculty with the latest information about these changes and how faculty can best address them in their proposals.
Two sessions have been scheduled for faculty in the social, health, and educational sciences. The first is on Monday, October 5, from noon to 1 pm in the Blackhawk Annex in the Holmes Student Center (HSC). The second session will be held on Tuesday, November 3, from noon to 1 pm in the Illinois Room in the HSC.