‘Grant Writing’
Flow Chart of NIH Fellowship Submission Process
Oct. 31, 2025—The flow chart below provides a high-level overview of the fellowship submission process for Vanderbilt and VUMC applications. You will need to work closely with your Grant Manager throughout this process. Click here to go back to the main Fellowship Project Management blog series.
Conquer Your Fellowship: A Project Management Tool and Guide for Your NIH Fellowship
Oct. 24, 2025—Applying for an NIH fellowship can feel overwhelming, but the right guidance makes all the difference. This collection of resources walks you through every stage of the process – from identifying the right funding opportunity to preparing your application and understanding what happens after review. Whether you’re just getting started or refining a resubmission, these...
NIH Fellowship Grant Pacing Project Management Trello Board
Oct. 24, 2025—How to use and customize the ASPIRE Grant Planner Trello Board Applying for an NIH fellowship can feel like you are juggling dozens of moving parts at once. The ASPIRE grant planning Trello board helps you manage these tasks in one visual, flexible workspace. Throughout this blog, we will walk through how the board is...
Effective Strategies for Working with your Sponsor
Oct. 24, 2025—Your fellowship sponsor (your PI) plays an important role in your fellowship application, especially for fellowship applications to the NIH. Beyond supporting you as a scientist, they are responsible for writing key sections of the application to demonstrate their commitment to your training and career development. Sections of an NIH NRSA application written by the...
Understanding the NIH Alphabet Soup
Oct. 24, 2025—Applying for NIH fellowships comes with a whole new set of acronyms. Here’s a quick guide to the ones you’re most likely to encounter: Funding Announcements FOA – Funding Opportunity Announcement The official notice that describes eligibility, objectives, requirements, and deadlines for a grant or fellowship. NOFO – Notice of Funding Opportunity The newer term...
Resubmission (if needed) and Next Steps
Oct. 24, 2025—Not all fellowship applications are funded on the first try, but many successful fellows are awarded after resubmission! If you plan to resubmit your application, consider the following: Read your summary statement carefully. The reviewer comments highlight strengths and weaknesses, so look for common themes across reviewers. These will be important to address in your...
Contacting your NIH Program Officer (PO)
Oct. 24, 2025—After you have figured out which FOA to apply to, verified your eligibility, and decided which institute to apply to, the next step is to contact your target institute to verify their institute is a good fit for your proposal. The “Program Officer” (PO) is your main NIH point of contact for questions about the...
Contacting your Vanderbilt Grant Manager
Oct. 24, 2025—A VU or VUMC Grant Manager is your primary institutional contact for submission requirements, internal deadlines, and routing. They manage the submission of your fellowship application to the NIH and will need to begin working with you weeks in advance of the NIH deadline to meet VU’s or VUMC’s internal deadlines. They will also assist...
Common pitfalls in NIH fellowship applications (and how to avoid them)
Oct. 24, 2025—Fellowship applications are complex. Not only do you have to have a strong scientific proposal and training plan, you also have to manage multiple documents and deadlines. Here are some strategies to help you avoid some common mistakes. Contact your Vanderbilt grant manager early in the process. Your Vanderbilt grant manager will “route” your grant...
Guide to NIH Fellowship Reference Letters
Oct. 24, 2025—Reference Letters are a required component of NIH fellowship applications (and they are different than Letters of Support!) Key points about Reference Letters: You must have at least 3 reference letters, but up to 5 can be submitted. You may want to request more than the minimum number in case one of your recommenders does...
Understanding the NIH Peer Review Process
Oct. 24, 2025—After you submit your application, the review process may seem mysterious. Here is a step-by-step guide to understand what is going on behind the scenes. Cycle Due Date (F Series) Scientific Review Council Round Earliest Start Date I April 8 June – July August or October September or December II August 8 October –...
Identifying the “right” NIH fellowship opportunity
Oct. 24, 2025—Before you start writing a fellowship application to the NIH, it is important to identify the right funding opportunity and connect with the institute staff who manage that funding opportunity to ensure your project aligns with the institute’s priorities. Understand the different types of NIH NRSA fellowships that support research training (a.k.a. “mechanisms”). F30: For...
Effective Strategies for Working with you Sponsor/Mentor
Oct. 21, 2025—Your fellowship sponsor (your PI) plays an important role in your fellowship application. Beyond supporting you as a scientist, they are responsible for writing key sections of the application to demonstrate their commitment to your training and career development. Sections of an NRSA application written by the Sponsor: Mentoring Approach and Candidate Mentoring Plan Prior...
Fellowship Grant Application NIH workshop
Sep. 26, 2025—The University of Pittsburgh is proud to host a virtual session in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on the topic of Fellowship grant applications. This event is open to trainees nationwide, will be held on Sept. 29th from 3-5pm, and will feature NIH presenters sharing insider guidance to help them: ✅ Identify the...
ASPIRE Up: Applying for Fellowships & NRSAs
Aug. 20, 2025—ASPIRE Up: Applying for Fellowships & NRSAs Looking for funding for your PhD or postdoctoral training? Join Kim Petrie, PhD and Aubrie Stricker, PhD for an informative session on applying for fellowships to support biomedical research training. This workshop will cover: An overview of available fellowships and funding opportunities Strategies for identifying funding sources How...
Edge for Scholars providing writing group for big grants
Jun. 6, 2025—Writing an R01 (or equivalent large grant)? Join this group for accountability, peer feedback, and protected time for writing. The weekly Edge for Scholars R01 Writing Group begins on June 13 from 11 AM – 1 PM and will meet for 16 weeks on Zoom. Keep yourself on track for submission and get feedback from your...
ASCB’s Mentoring Program
Apr. 8, 2025—Applications for ASCB’s Faculty Research and Education Development (FRED) Mentoring Program will open soon! FRED is designed for postdocs and early-career scientists who are preparing a research or education grant for submission to the NIH, NSF, or other funding agencies. Through FRED, you’ll work closely with a mentor of your choosing to strengthen your grant-writing...
ASPIRE Up: K Awards-From K12 to K99!
Jan. 17, 2025—Thursday, February 20, 2025 11:00am Zoom registration. (updated as of 2/18/25) Description: Please join Abigail Brown PhD, BRET Director of Outcomes Research, to learn the basics about the different types of K awards, from institutional (K12) to K99 awards Co-sponsored by BRET Office of Career Development ASPIRE Program and the Vanderbilt Postdoctoral Association (VPA)
ASPIRE UP: Grant Writing
Oct. 3, 2024—1:00-1:50pm “Vanderbilt Resources for Grant Writing” Featuring Abigail Brown, Assistant Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and Director of Outcomes Research, Vanderbilt University Dr. Brown will discuss how Vanderbilt can help you write your career development grant or fellowship application. She will cover the many resources available to help you identify funding opportunities and produce...
Finding Funding for your Research- databases you have access to from Vanderbilt University subscriptions
Nov. 29, 2023—Did you know that Vanderbilt University maintains two subscriptions to grant search databases that you can use to find funding for your work? SPIN To access SPIN, you will need to create a profile. If you have a Vanderbilt email it will be approved by the Provost’s office and you will be given access. A...