Brand-new applicants to NIH – and even not-so-new applicants – benefit from understanding the grant application process. The Center for Scientific Review (CSR) has webinars and videos that give a sneak peek at how NIH grant applications are reviewed for scientific and technical merit. Topics include:
- What Happens to Your Grant Application
- Top 10 NIH Peer Review Q&As for Applicants
Additionally, there is information on the Early Career Reviewer (ECR) Program, which allows emerging scientists serve as grant reviewers on a single submission cycle, getting an insider’s view of how NIH and the review process work while developing grant reviewer skills. The ECR program has numerous benefits, including: (1) reviewing alongside experienced researchers; (2) learning how impact scores are derived; (3) improving grant writing skills by getting an insider’s view of how grant applications are evaluated; (4) serving the scientific community by serving as a reviewer; and (5) developing research-evaluation and critique-writing skills.
In order to be eligible for the ECR program, researchers must have at least 1 year of experience as a ful-ltime faculty member or researcher in a similar role and be an Assistant Professor or in an equivalent role, as the program is focused on early career scientists.
As a whole, CSR’s web site has resources and tips worth perusing.
