Program officers and grants management specialists handle most of your correspondence. For more information on getting help with specific stages of the grant or contract application process, refer to the individual pages detailing the stages of the Grants & Contracts process.
- Program officers handle scientific, funding, and programmatic matters. Check When To Contact an NIAID Program Officer and advice on how to Get a Speedy Response From Your Program Officer.
- Grants management specialists deal with business and policy issues. Check When To Contact a NIAID Grants Management Specialist and advice on how to Get a Speedy Response From Your Grants Management Specialist.
When To Contact an NIAID Program Officer
Your method to find and contact the appropriate program officer depends on how far along you are in the grant process.
Before you apply, we strongly suggest that you get advice from a program officer relevant to your area of science. To find one, try these methods:
- Search for POs across NIH using the Matchmaker tool. Add scientific text such as an abstract, then choose the Similar Program Officials button.
- For NIAID Training and Career Development Grant Programs, contact AITrainingHelpDesk@niaid.nih.gov.
- For NIAID Small Business Programs, consult the NIAID Small Business Program Team.
- For all other NIAID award types, find POs in our three extramural program divisions:
- If you already have a funding opportunity in mind, check the Scientific/Research Contact listed in Section VII of the NIH Guide notice.
After you apply, find your assigned program officer in the eRA Commons.
After award, contact the program officer listed on your Notice of Award.
Mandatory
You must contact a program officer before you apply for the following application types:
- Applications requesting $500,000 or more in direct costs for any year. Read our Big Grants SOP.
- Conference grants (R13 or U13). Read our Conference Awards SOP.
- Clinical trial planning and implementation grants. NIAID’s Investigator-Initiated Clinical Trial Resources describe our prior consultation process and more.
In your application cover letter, state that you have included the NIAID acceptance letter in the PHS 398 Cover Letter attachment.
Recommended
We also recommend that you contact a program officer for the following:
- To discuss potential application topics or Find a Funding Opportunity
- For requests for applications (RFAs) and program announcements (PAs) where peer review takes place at NIAID
- Make sure your future application would fit the notice of funding opportunity.
- First read the NIH Guide notice to glean basic information and learn the program officer's name.
- For investigator-initiated research
- Assess the enthusiasm of NIAID and other Institutes about your research area.
- Inquire about topics of interest to the program officer. This includes existing and new priorities we may be interested in even though we cannot publish an RFA or PA (funds constrain the number of initiatives we can publish).
- For clinical trial planning and implementation applications, seek a consultation with NIAID staff before you apply. Find Investigator-Initiated Clinical Trial Resources.
- Ask if he or she knows of any relevant initiatives in another Institute
- For requests for applications (RFAs) and program announcements (PAs) where peer review takes place at NIAID
- To find out about requesting assignment to an IC or study section
- To help you decide which Types of Funding Opportunities are appropriate for you
- For advice on how to Apply for a Grant
- Check if you should apply in response to an RFA.
- Ask about requirements for human subjects and vertebrate animals in research.
- For investigator-initiated clinical trials, read about prior consultation at Investigator-Initiated Clinical Trial Resources.
- If you have any questions about Scoring and Summary Statements
- If you spot a problematic code on your summary statement. Find what the codes mean at Research Animals Involvement Codes, Human Subjects Involvement Codes, and Human Subjects Inclusion Codes.
- To get insights into the discussion of your application at the peer review meeting, which your program officer may have attended as an observer. If you go by only the summary statement critique, you might have a hard time figuring out how much to revise before resubmitting if you did not receive a fundable score.
- To find out the latest funding status for your application.
- If the funding decision on your application is deferred until later in the fiscal year.
Find advice on how to Get a Speedy Response From Your Program Officer.
When To Contact an NIAID Grants Management Specialist
Find an NIAID grants management specialist in your notice of funding opportunity, the eRA Commons, or your Notice of Award.
You may also check NIAID Grants Management Program Contacts.
Mandatory
You must contact a grants management specialist for any of the following events:
- Pre-award requests, our “just-in-time” process—refer to the Just-in-Time SOP.
- Delay in completing paperwork required to issue your award.
- Any action that requires NIAID's prior approval—read more in Some Actions Require Our Approval in Changes to Project or Budget.
Recommended
We also recommend that you contact a grants management specialist for the following:
- Questions about your budget or other support on your grant
- Questions about any terms and conditions on your Notice of Award
- Clarification of NIH or NIAID Grants Rules and Policies
- Any issue that your business office does not handle or cannot advise you about
Find advice on how to Get a Speedy Response From Your Grants Management Specialist.