NIDCD Early Career Research(ECR) Award (R21 Clinical Trial Optional)
Funding Agency:
- National Institutes of Health
The NIDCD Early Career Research (ECR) Award is different from other NIH R21 programs. It is restricted to clinical and basic scientists who are transitioning to, or are already in the early stages of, their independent research career. The research should be focused on one or more of the areas within the biomedical and behavioral scientific mission of the NIDCD, specifically: hearing, balance, smell, taste, voice, speech, or language. The expected outcome from projects funded under this mechanism is the acquisition of necessary preliminary data for a subsequent research project grant (R01) application.
The proposed project may or may not be hypothesis-driven since the goal is to collect the necessary preliminary data sufficient to apply for an R01 grant. The project may aid in the formulation of hypotheses and may be milestone-driven or descriptive in scope. Given that the goal is to collect preliminary data, R21 projects may be less immediately impactful or significant compared to the typical R01. It is not an expectation that this R21 project will likely "move the field forward" at this stage.
Preliminary data are not required. However, the project should be supported by sufficient information to give confidence to the reviewers that the proposed work is feasible and that data derived from the project would likely be suitable as preliminary data for a subsequent R01 application. If preliminary data are available, it is recommended that these be included.
The NIDCD ECR Award R21 may be used by beginning clinical scientists planning a future application for an NIDCD K08 or K23 mentored research career development award to demonstrate the feasibility of the research project to be proposed in their K-award application. Applicants that have already received a K award from NIDCD may reduce their effort on the K-award to no less than 50% (6 person-months based on a 12 month calendar) during the last two years of the K-award in order to become PD/PI on the NIDCD ECR Award R21 (see NIH policy http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-08-065.html). The PD/PI’s total level of effort must remain at 75% (9 person-months based on a 12 month calendar) or more across the K-award and the R21 award. Questions regarding eligibility should be addressed prior to beginning to prepare the application by contacting the training staff member listed in Section VII. Agency Contacts.
The combined budget for direct costs for the entire project period may not exceed $375,000. No more than $125,000 in direct costs may be requested in any single year.
June 18, 2024; October 17, 2024
Bracie Watson, Jr.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Telephone: 301-402-3458
Email: watsonb@nidcd.nih.gov