Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA NS 21 020
The Research Program Award (R35 Clinical Trial Optional), Funding Opportunity Number RFA-NS-21-020, is a grant program from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH). It sits in the broad funding activity area of Health under CFDA 93.853. The central idea of this opportunity is to fund an investigator's overall NINDS-aligned research program for an extended period, rather than supporting a collection of narrower, shorter, project-by-project grants. By doing that, the program is designed to reduce the constant cycle of writing and managing multiple applications and renewals, and to give investigators more time and mental space to focus on doing research and mentoring people in the lab.
A major purpose of the NINDS Research Program Award (often described as an RPA) is to provide longer-term stability and more flexibility for Program Directors/Principal Investigators. Instead of being locked into a rigid set of aims that must be pursued exactly as proposed, recipients are intended to have room to pursue promising leads, pivot when data point in a new direction, and take on higher-risk or longer-horizon work that would be hard to sustain under typical shorter grants. The opportunity explicitly frames this flexibility as a way to help investigators "rigorously explore exciting research opportunities" and support trainee development, all while staying aligned with the NINDS mission. In practical terms, the award is meant to support a coherent research program rather than a single experiment, subproject, or narrowly defined question.
In terms of scope and fit, the notice makes it clear that applications must align with NINDS priorities. Research that falls outside the NINDS mission, or that is traditionally supported by a different NIH Institute or Center, is not considered through this program. That means applicants need to be thoughtful about institute alignment and be prepared to show that the core scientific focus belongs at NINDS. The title includes "Clinical Trial Optional," which indicates that clinical trials are allowed but not required; applicants can propose clinical trial activity if it fits their overall program, but the mechanism is also suitable for programs that are preclinical, translational, or otherwise non-trial-focused, so long as they remain mission-relevant.
The award period is notably long for an NIH mechanism: the RPA can support eligible investigators for up to 8 years. Funding levels are described as being commensurate with the PD/PI's recent NINDS support, meaning it is intended to roughly reflect an investigator's established NINDS funding profile rather than providing a one-size-fits-all budget. The funding opportunity listing shows an award ceiling of 0, which typically indicates that a specific cap is not stated in the summary field and that applicants should rely on the full announcement and related budget guidance for constraints and expectations. The listing also indicates an expectation of around 30 awards, suggesting a competitive but substantial cohort size for a specialized program aimed at supporting established research programs.
Eligibility is broad across organizational types, reflecting NIH's standard landscape of eligible applicant institutions. Eligible applicants include various levels of government (state, county, city/township, and special district governments), independent school districts, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education), public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal governments (federally recognized) and tribal organizations (including those other than federally recognized tribal governments), for-profit organizations other than small businesses, small businesses, and other entities as clarified in the full eligibility text. While organizations apply, the program is fundamentally oriented around supporting the research program of an NINDS-funded investigator, so applicants should expect the core suitability to depend heavily on the PD/PI's NINDS track record and the coherence and promise of the proposed program.
Finally, the administrative details provided in the source data place this opportunity in 2021, with a creation date of May 6, 2021 and an original closing date of July 13, 2021. As summarized, the R35 RPA is essentially a stability-and-flexibility mechanism: it aims to give productive NINDS investigators longer runway, reduce administrative churn, encourage ambitious or time-intensive science, and strengthen mentoring and training within NINDS-relevant neuroscience research programs.Apply for RFA NS 21 020
- The Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Research Program Award (R35 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.853.
- This funding opportunity was created on May 06, 2021.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 13, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 30 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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