U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Critical Dates

Final application to RIC no later than 5 working days before the advertised deadline

Standard Deadlines R01: 05 February; 05 June; 05 October

Standard Deadlines R21: 16 February; 16 June; 16 October

*AIDS focused programs, RFAs and some program announcements, deadlines will vary throughout the year. Pay close attention to the deadlines in the funding opportunity announcement

COVID 19 advice is available at: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/natural_disasters/corona-virus.htm

Overview

The University of Melbourne encourages eligible researchers to participate in and lead proposals to the National Institute of Health (NIH) in the United States.

Funding

View schemes on Grants.gov, the United States grants portal, the NIH Finding Funding page or find opportunities through UoM Research Professional.

How to apply

Submit to the Themis Submission Workbench
This will be the first line of communication to the International team of your intention to submit a proposal.
*the completion of FOR and SEO codes are a critical element
Communicate with International Grants Team, RIC and Program Director, NIH
For higher chances of success, it is recommended that applicant conduct active discussions with the Program Director, Faculty Research Office and the International Grants Team ric-international@unimelb.edu.au as early as possible. For assistance with identifying and connecting with a program officer, contact Blake Plowman, Research Partnership Leader, at blake.plowman@unimelb.edu.au.
Sign up for eRA Commons login
All senior/key personnel must have eRA Commons accounts prior to application. Forward the relevant names and email addresses to ric-international@unimelb.edu.au. Only RIC International Grants can create eRA Commons accounts for University of Melbourne investigators.
Access application package from Grants.gov or NIH ASSIST and review documentation
If you intend to submit proposals to a variety of US federal funding agencies, it is suggested that you utilize Grants.gov, as it is the typical submission portal. However, if you intend only to submit to the National Institutes of Health, NIH ASSIST may be a better option given that it is more intuitive to the NIH application requirements.
Foreign Justification
While NIH invites foreign applications, they will undergo an additional level of scrutiny and must demonstrate that the proposal includes talent, resources, populations, or environmental conditions not available in the US or that augment US resources. A foreign justification narrative is a required component for all NIH applications
For applications with other organisations as the sub-awardees
Forward the research office contact information for any external collaborators or contractors to the International Grants Team. Several application documents will be required from the collaborator for inclusion into the proposal and to confirm the collaborators' commitment to the project.
Complete the application
Application can be completed either through online or using the downloadable forms obtained from Grants.gov Workspace or ASSIST. Use the supporting documents below as reference to completing the application.
Budget Development
Contact your Agreement Administrator for assistance with budget development
Review Ready
Email completed application to ric-international@unimelb.edu.au at least 10 working days before the advertised deadline for RIC review. The International Grants Team will provide comments and suggestions within 5 working days.

NB: Past experience has proven that organising supporting materials at the end of the grant writing process causes significant submission delays and impacts the quality of the application. It is recommended that applicant starts preparing as early as 2 or 3 months before the advertised deadline or delegate tasks to the project team as early as possible.
Submit by the Internal Deadline
For lead application, the lead PI must click the “Submit to AOR” button to submit the final completed application to RIC International Grants at least 5 working days prior to the advertised deadline.
For non-lead application, UoM site PI must submit completed documentations to ric-international@unimelb.edu.au for University approval at least 5 working days prior to the lead’s requested date.
NB. Please note that submission has to occur through RIC International Grants. RIC cannot guarantee successful submission for late or incomplete applications.