Reminder of NIH Policy on Late Applications Caused by Weather Emergencies
NIAID will consider accepting an application after its due date if a weather-related issue, i.e., an applicant organization is forced to close due to a natural disaster or some other emergency, is the reason for a late submission. In that scenario, you as the applicant should include a Cover Letter indicating why your application is delayed. Note, however, that the delay should typically not exceed the time period that the applicant organization was closed.
During declared national disasters, award recipients who are unable to complete and submit required reports such as the Research Performance Progress Report, Federal Financial Report, and Final Invention Statement by the scheduled due date should notify the assigned NIAID grants management specialist and program official of their delay. While NIAID will accept delayed reports, we may also delay issuing grant awards until we receive and accept the required reports.
As explained at Late Applications, NIH does not grant advance permission for late application submission. For more information, read NIH Extramural Response to Natural Disasters and Other Emergencies.
Examine Data on Professional Degree Types in NIH’s Grant Portfolio
In A Look at the Degree Types for Principal Investigators Designated on NIH Applications and Awards: FYs 2014 to 2023, Dr. Michael Lauer, NIH Deputy Director for Extramural Research, provides data on the number of applications and awards by degree type over the last 10 fiscal years to show how researchers with varied professional backgrounds were included in our grant portfolio. Principal investigators (PIs) are categorized as having single medical or scientific degrees, dual degrees, or other degrees.
In examining the 10 years of data, several trends stand out:
- The percentage of applications submitted by PIs with single scientific degrees fell somewhat.
- The proportion of applications by and awards to PIs with single medical degrees trended down.
- The proportion of applications from and awards to PIs in the dual degree and “other” degree categories increased.
NIH analyzes these trends to both inform our understanding of the NIH-supported biomedical research workforce and assess how NIH policies and programs can support them in the future. We encourage you to check out the data for yourself.
NIH Revises Its Definition of Sexual and Gender Minority Populations
NIH’s Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office revised the definition of sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations in NIH-supported research as follows:
Sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations include, but are not limited to, individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, transgender, non-binary, Two-Spirit, queer, and/or intersex. Individuals with same-sex or same-gender attractions or behaviors and those with a variation in sex characteristics are also included. These populations may also encompass those who do not self-identify with one of these terms but whose sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or biological traits are characterized by non-binary constructs of sexual orientation, gender, and/or sex.
This definition recognizes “variations in sex characteristics” (VSC) as a term commonly used by people with intersex traits and/or who identify as intersex, and supplants the term “differences of sex development,” which is a term coined by and primarily used by health professionals in a medical context. The change is not intended to exclude people or groups included under previous definitions of SGM populations for NIH.
For more information, read the September 6, 2024 Guide notice.