Research Project (RP) 

RP awards are designed to position SC INBRE investigators to successfully compete for NIH research project grants, either R15/R16s for PUI faculty or R01/R21s for CRU faculty. Within two years of their initial award, RP recipients are expected to submit a research project grant application to NIH. To prepare for this submission, awardees are required to attend SC INBRE’s Annual Career Development Workshop where they can receive guidance on various aspects of grant preparation and review. When project leaders are ready to begin writing their NIH application, they can work with SC INBRE’s Administrative Core to enroll in USC’s Propel research mentorship program. As part of its commitment to SC INBRE, USC (lead institution) will allow DRPP investigators to participate in this 9-month intensive grant writing program which provides one-on-one mentorship from the planning to submission stages of grant writing. 

Additionally, faculty are expected to include student training as a key component of their project. Junior/early-stage faculty funded through the DRPP will be required to participate in the Entering Mentoring program organized by the Administrative Core (AC) to develop mentoring skills which will be essential in training undergraduate students in biomedical research. 

RP leaders are required to participate in  SC INBRE’s annual Science Symposium along with their trainees, where the investigator will give an oral presentation (at least once) on their project and students can present posters on their research. This symposium is typically held in February of each year and abstracts are due in January.

All network institutions must have committed to providing 50% release time (6 person months) for RP leaders at the time of award.

To submit a Letter of Intent (LOI), please click on the link above. The LOI must be completed by 5 pm ET on Monday, March 3, 2025. Absolutely no late LOIs will be accepted.

Completed LOIs will include the title and short description of your project. This short description is limited to 4 sentences total and should accurately describe the biomedical relevance of your project. Applications submitted without an LOI submission will not be accepted.

Applicants should include their email address which will be used for all correspondence regarding this application. 

Completed applications, including institutional required signatures on the Face page, must be submitted to the link above by 5 pm ET on Friday April 5, 2025. Absolutely no late applications will be accepted.

Applications with missing components will not be accepted.

If you have any questions relating to this NOFO, please contact John Clarkson (Email).

All early career faculty supported by the RP awards are required to have two mentors, one scientific and one career mentor, who can help them navigate the challenges associated with establishing a research program while transitioning to a faculty role. Mentors will advise faculty during the preparation of their career development plan to ensure the proposed plan activities will enable the faculty member to achieve their career goals.

See Mentoring page for more details.

All projects must address biomedically relevant questions within the scope of research supported by NIH. It is incumbent upon the applicant to clearly demonstrate the biomedical relevance of the proposed work within the proposal. 

The application forms package can be downloaded from the SC INBRE website in a fillable, pdf format. Proposals must be prepared with 0.5” margins all around, using Arial (or similar sans serif font; font size no smaller than 11 pt) and subdivided into sections indicated below (page limits are noted). All forms must be completed according to the NIH guidelines for “R” series awards. Each package includes the following:

• • Face Page:  This page must be filled out in its entirety and signed by an authorized institutional representative.

  • Project Summary/Performance site/Key personnel:  Fill out all components and indicate whether or not the project uses human embryonic stem cells.

  • Biographical Sketch(es) of PI and other Key PersonneI (NIH-format)

  • Biographical Sketch(es) Example (NIH format)

  • 🚨 Budget Page:  Enter direct costs only; total cannot exceed $55,000; enter costs for first year of funding on the detailed budget form. New two-year projects will be renewed for a second year if a satisfactory progress report is received when requested during year one.

  • Budget Justification: Allowable costs include personnel; supplies; travel; equipment; and other costs as allowed on NIH research project grant budgets, including indirect costs.  Student support should be listed as salary not stipends.

  • Introduction/Response to Reviewers’ Comments (for resubmissions only): 1 page

  • Progress Report (for second and third year competitive renewals only): 2 pages

    1. • For current 2-year DRP awardees seeking a third year of funding, indicate how the additional funding will be crucial for a proposal submission within this third year or how funds will be used to address reviews from a previous proposal submission. 

       • For current 1-year DRP awardees seeking 2 years of new funding, describe how your initial funding has let to the new aims. 

       • There should be new specific aim(s) for the renewal with the scope of work appropriate for the duration of the award.

  • Specific Aims: 1 page

  • Research strategy (up to 6 pages): Should have the following 3 sections — Significance, Innovation, and Approach. Rigor of prior research should be addressed in the Significance section. In the Approach section, applicants need to address rigor, in terms of how the proposed study will address weaknesses in previous research,  describe experimental design/methods that will yield robust and unbiased results, address anticipated outcomes/alternatives, and relevant biological variables. 

  • Literature cited: 1 page

  • Human Subjects. Projects involving human subjects must already have IRB approval at the time of proposal application. This includes projects that are deemed to be exempt by their institutions.

    1. • Please include the IRB Letter in your proposal application.

       • Please include a certificate of training in HS research (CITI) for all study personnel in your proposal application.

       • Human subject research must complete the appropriate required forms (see links to forms at bottom of page).

No activities involving human subjects can be initiated without appropriate IRB approval of the protocol. Applications with human subjects that do not have prior IRB approval will not be reviewed. For applications selected for funding, the Administrative Core will not release funds until such projects have been approved by NIH/NIGMS.

• • Vertebrate Animals (1 page). If the proposed project involves vertebrate animals,  include a vertebrate animals section which addresses the following: 1) a description of procedures which includes species, strains, sex, ages, and number of animals to be used in the proposed project; 2) justification for model used; 3) address minimization of pain and distress; and 4) method of euthanasia according to NIH guidelines (see https://olaw.nih.gov/guidance/vertebrate-animal-section.htm for additional information). 

Note: Submit your animal protocol for IACUC approval while you are preparing your RP application if you do not already have it approved.If your campus does not have an OLAW assurance or IACUC and you want to propose a project involving vertebrate animals, contact Dr. Edie Goldsmith (Email) before submitting your application. Research involving vertebrate animals must have IACUC approval before work on the project can begin. For applications selected for funding, the IACUC approval letter will be due to John Clarkson (Email) no later than July 18, 2025. The Administrative Core will not release funds to any investigator who has proposed to use vertebrate animals in their research until the project has been approved by NIH/NIGMS.

• • Select Agents Research (1 page; if necessary). If your proposed activities involve the use of select agents at any time during the proposed project period complete this section. In this section address the following: 1 Identify the select agent(s) to be used in the proposed research; 2) Provide the registration status of all entities* where select agent(s) will be used; 3) Provide a description of all facilities where the select agent(s) will be used. If there are no select agents, do not complete this section.

  • Resource Sharing Plan (1 page, if applicable): Should be provided for applications which propose the development of novel model organisms or novel research resources/tools.

  • Data Management and Sharing Plan (1 page). Describe the plan, consistent with NIH data/resource sharing policies (https://grants.nih.gov/policy/sharing.htm), for sharing of research data/resources generated. The Data Management and Sharing Plan (DMSP) must include the following sections: 1) data type; 2)  related tools, software/code; 3) standards; 4) data preservation, access and associated timelines; 5) Access, distribution or reuse considerations; and 6) Oversight of data management and sharing. A sample plan is available on this website (https://sharing.nih.gov/data-management-and-sharing-policy/planning-and-budgeting-for-data-management-and-sharing/writing-a-data-management-and-sharing-plan#after).

  • Authentication of Key Biological/Chemical Resources (1 page). Describe methods/procedures for validating the identity of significant biological/chemical agents used.

  • Plans for Further Development of the Work (1 page). Describe plans for publication and how you plan to use the data in grant proposals; if possible, mention specific opportunities for funding; new collaborations.

  • Plans for training of students/postdoctoral fellows under the award (1 page). Formal training plans are not allowed, but activities designed to improve student research capabilities can be described. Make sure to include opportunities for training in lab safety and responsible conduct of research.

    1. • CRU applicants: Explain what role the students will have in the project and how participation in the project will help develop the students’ research and intellectual skills and help them mature as scientists. Provide details of interactions between faculty member and students/fellows.

       • PUI applicants: Include a description of how the proposed research will be accomplished with an undergraduate research team. How will the students be trained and supervised in conducting research (involvement in experimental design, execution, and data analysis)? 

  • Faculty Career Development Plan (2 pages). Each applicant will select two advisors: a career advisor from the applicant’s institution and a scientific advisor who should be an established investigator in the applicant’s scientific area (i.e. senior collaborator). A written plan describing the contribution each advisor will make to the scientific and career advancement of the applicant, along with any planned activities the applicant will take part in to foster his/her career development, must accompany each application. The plan should indicate the frequency of meetings between the applicant and their advisors, contributions advisors played in proposal preparation, and indicate goals and milestones for the applicant’s career progression. Financial support can be requested if the scientific advisor is devoting significant time commitment to guiding the RP applicant.

    1. • Letter of support from Advisors. Each individual listed as an advisor must provide a letter of support, signed and on letterhead.

       • Biographical sketches of Advisors (NIH format)

  • Checklist: This is the page where the indirect costs associated with the project are calculated and shown.

Applicants seeking RP funding may propose to use human subjects as part of their research plan. However, human subject research that qualifies as a clinical trial is not allowed. Investigators proposing human subjects work are required to provide completed human subjects forms with the submission of their proposal which includes information on informed consent process; the inclusion of women, minorities, children and across the lifespan; recruitment and retention plan; study timeline; enrollment tables; and address the protection of human subjects. An official letter of approval from their Institutional Review Board (IRB) is also required as part of the application packet. 

If you are working with human cells or de-identified samples, or uncertain if your research qualifies as human subject research, please review the flow chart at this link to see if your work qualifies as Human Subjects research.

Human Subjects Forms

• • Human Subjects Form and Instructions

  • Human Subjects Exempt Form

  • Human Subjects Attachment Packet