The National Center for Medical Rehabilitation Research (NCMRR) Early Career Research (ECR) Award (R03) is intended to support both basic and clinical research from rehabilitation scientists who are establishing independent research careers. The research must be focused on one or more of the areas within the mission of NCMRR: Applicants are encouraged to refer to the NIH Research Plan on Rehabilitation for strategic priorities (https://www.nichd.nih.gov/newsroom/news/110121-NIH-rehab-plan). The NCMRR ECR Award R03 grant mechanism supports various types of projects including secondary analysis of existing data; small, self-contained research projects; development of research methodology; translational research; outcomes research; and development of new technology. Irrespective of the type of project, the intent of the NCMRR ECR Award R03 is for the Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PD(s)/PI(s)) to obtain sufficient preliminary data for a subsequent R01 application.
The NCMRR Early Career Research (ECR) Award is different from other NIH R03 programs, including the Parent R03 Announcement. It is restricted to clinical and basic scientists who are in the early stages of their independent career in rehabilitation research. For projects supported by a ECR R03 Award, successful results should provide a solid foundation for further research under the R01 funding mechanism.
This FOA targets Early Career Investigators interested in rehabilitation research. The PD/PI must be an independent investigator, not a postdoctoral fellow. The PD/PI must be no more than 8 years beyond the date that the first professional, advanced professional, or terminal academic degree was awarded, whichever is most recent. The 8-year eligibility period will be calculated based on the MM/DD/YYYY the degree was awarded and the published application receipt date, regardless of whether it is a new or resubmission application. Formal years of clinical training (Internship, Residency, and Fellowship) are not counted as part of the 8-year limit. The exemption of years for clinical training is not limited to physicians.
Individuals who have served as PD/PI on any NIH research grant (including an R01, R03, R15, R21, SBIR/STTR, project leads on subprojects of program project or center grants) or any other federally-funded research grant (e.g., NSF, DOD, VA) are NOT eligible for the NCMRR ECR Award Grant Program. Recipients of the K99/R00 award are not eligible to apply for the NCMRR ECR Award (R03). However, former recipients of the Federally-funded National Research Service Award fellowships and traineeships (i.e. F- and T- series awards) or mentored career development awards (i.e. K awards) are eligible for the NCMRR ECR Award grant program.
For Multi-PI applications, all of the PDs/PIs must meet the above eligibility criteria.
Questions regarding eligibility should be addressed prior to beginning to prepare the application by contacting the Scientific/Research contact listed in Section VII. Agency Contacts.
Only one NCMRR ECR Award (R03) application may be submitted as a single PD/PI or one of Multiple PDs/PIs per due date.
The combined budget for direct costs for the entire project period may not exceed $200,000. No more than $100,000 in direct costs may be requested in any single year.
The scope of the proposed project should determine the project period. The maximum period of support is 2 years.
