Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (Parent K24 - Independent Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) | PA 19 088

Opportunity Information: Apply for PA 19 088

The NIH Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (K24) under PA-19-088 is a discretionary grant opportunity designed to support established, mid-career clinician-scientists who are already engaged in patient-oriented research. The central goal is to buy protected time so the awardee can both (1) push forward a sustained program of research involving human participants and (2) serve as a research mentor, with an emphasis on developing the next generation of clinical investigators. In practice, this means the award is as much about strengthening the applicant's mentoring environment and training pipeline (residents, fellows, and junior clinical faculty) as it is about the applicant's own research progress.

This particular K24 parent announcement is tailored to a specific kind of human research: independent basic experimental studies with humans that meet the NIH definition of a clinical trial while still qualifying as basic research. The key idea is that the proposed work prospectively assigns human participants to different conditions, meaning the study includes an experimental manipulation of an independent variable, and it measures biomedical or behavioral outcomes in people. The intent of these studies is to understand fundamental mechanisms or phenomena without being aimed at a specific practical application, product, or process. If the research is instead oriented toward a concrete application (for example, developing or testing an intervention with a specific product-like or practice-changing endpoint in mind), NIH directs applicants to use the companion funding announcement referenced as PA-18-393 rather than this one.

Eligible applicant organizations span a wide range of U.S.-based institutions and entities. These include state, county, city/township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations that are not federally recognized; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (outside of higher education); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses) and small businesses; and other categories NIH allows. The announcement also highlights eligibility for several institution types that often align with NIH interest in broadening participation and strengthening research capacity, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, and Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), as well as faith-based or community-based organizations and eligible federal agencies.

At the same time, there are clear limits on foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply as the applicant organization. However, "foreign components" may be allowed when they meet NIH policy definitions and are appropriately justified, meaning the applicant can sometimes include certain international elements within an otherwise eligible U.S.-based application structure, consistent with the NIH Grants Policy Statement.

From a classification standpoint, the funding instrument is a grant, and the activity category is listed under education, environment, and health, reflecting the award's dual nature: supporting a research program while formally emphasizing mentored career development through the applicant's role as a mentor. The opportunity is administered by the National Institutes of Health and is associated with multiple CFDA numbers (93.113, 93.173, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.361, 93.866), which typically correspond to different NIH institutes and centers that may participate in or fund applications under the FOA. The opportunity record shows an original closing date of 2020-05-07 and a creation date of 2018-11-28, indicating when the announcement was posted and one of its listed due dates.

Overall, this K24 is best understood as a mechanism for mid-career clinical researchers who already have an active patient-oriented research trajectory and a strong mentoring role (or a plan to build one) to secure protected time. The scientific niche for this specific announcement is narrow by design: it is meant for prospective, experimentally assigned studies in humans that are simultaneously "clinical trials" under NIH rules and "basic research" in purpose, with outcomes measured in humans to illuminate fundamental mechanisms rather than to directly advance a particular applied product or process.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Midcareer Investigator Award in Patient-Oriented Research (Parent K24 - Independent Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113, 93.173, 93.213, 93.242, 93.273, 93.279, 93.361, 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2018-11-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-05-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• 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.

Apply for PA 19 088

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