How to Land an NIH Grant

by Jennifer Fink •

Use Feedback to Strengthen Your Grant Application

Don’t give up if your grant application isn’t funded. “I’ve learned a lot from grants I haven’t gotten,” Dr. Grandis said. “When you don’t get a grant, you get constructive feedback that allows you to refine your proposal and send it somewhere else.”

If initial feedback indicates that your research plan is solid, but the reviewers aren’t sure if the research question is significant enough to warrant funding, think about, “How can I adapt my question so it has a higher impact?” Dr. Bleier said. Or, if the reviewers don’t think that your data is strong enough to demonstrate feasibility, conduct additional research to prove that your proposed study “isn’t just feasible in general, but feasible in your lab,” he said.

Use your passion to fuel your repeated efforts. “You have to really care,” Dr. Grandis said. “You’re going to get more pushback and rejections than you are going to get accolades and rewards, so you really have to think your work matters.”

Jennifer Fink is a freelance medical writer based in Wisconsin.

Key Points

  • It usually takes several tries to land an NIH grant.
  • Consider pursuing smaller grants to fund preliminary research before applying to the NIH.
  • Learning how to write a grant and proposing innovative work with impact may increase your chances of getting funded.

NIH Awards & Grants

Career Development (K) Awards

K awards provide support for senior postdoctoral fellows or faculty-level candidates. They are intended to bring candidates to the point where they are able to conduct their research independently and are competitive for major grant support.

Research Project Grant (R01)

The original and historically oldest grant mechanism used by NIH, R01s “support a discrete, specified, circumscribed project… in an area representing the investigator’s specific interest and competencies.” R01 grants must support the mission of the NIH.

Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) (R35)

R35 grants typically provide five years of funding. These grants, according to the NIH, are intended to provide investigators with “greater stability and flexibility, thereby enhancing scientific productivity and the chances for important breakthroughs.”

*Information adapted from NIH resources.

Triological Society Grant Programs

Through 2019, the Triological Society has awarded $6 million to otolaryngologists-head and neck surgeons to support clinical research, basic research, and alternative science. The Research Career Development Awards provide funding to young clinician scientists to enable them to pursue long-range research objectives, including NIH K or R awards. The Clinical Scientist Development Awards, a joint program with the American College of Surgeons, provide funding to new NIH K08/K23 awardees so they have sufficient pilot data to submit a competitive R01 proposal prior to the conclusion of the K award. Learn more.