Program Announcements (PA)

Purpose

To stimulate grant-supported research in high-priority and high-opportunity areas of science.

Procedure

A program announcement (PA) is one of three types of initiatives -- together with requests for applications (RFA) and solicitations -- NIAID develops with its advisory Council. See the Concept Development SOP for more information on concept and initiative processes.

PAs may be sponsored by one or more NIH institutes. They usually use standard NIH submission dates; see the NIH Standard Due Dates for Competing Applications. PAs remain active for three years, unless NIAID inactivates them sooner; see the Program Announcement Inactivation SOP for more on that topic.

PAs differ from RFAs as follows:

• PAs may or may not have set-aside funds. If they do not, NIAID may fund some of the applications beyond the payline. RFAs always have set-aside funds.
• PAs are usually broader; for example, a PA may focus on biodefense research opportunities, where an RFA will focus on developing therapies for a particular disease.
• Applications in response to a PA are not reviewed together; rather, each application goes to whatever study section is the best match. Applications responding to an RFA are always reviewed together.

There are two special types of PAs:

• PAR -- applications are reviewed by an IC or a special Center for Scientific Review committee and have receipt dates that are specified in the Guide announcement.
• PAS -- PA with set-aside funds.

Investigators

• For NIAID's active PAs, go to the NIH Funding Opportunities Relevant to NIAID.
• You can also find PAs in the NIH Guide by selecting Program Announcements (PAs) under Browse Active Funding Opportunities. This retrieves active PAs based on expiration dates.
• You can find PAs in Grants.gov by selecting Find Grant Opportunities, Search Grant Opportunities, Basic Search. Then enter the PA number in the Search by Funding Opportunity Number box.
• Determine whether applying for a PA is right for you by reading the pages starting with Compare FOAs in the NIH Grant Cycle: Application to Renewal.

Program Staff

• After developing a concept for a PA, enter it into the Research Initiative Management System (RIMS).
• Once your division, the NIAID director, and Council recommend a concept for approval, work with Division of Extramural Activities (DEA) staff to create a phasing plan that schedules all steps needed to proceed from concept to award. See the Phasing of Initiatives SOP.
• Prepare first and final drafts of a PA and forward to your program division coordinator for internal division review. After your division approval, your program division coordinator submits the drafts to DEA for review and approval.
• After electronic applications arrive, you can view them in IMPAC.
  • Work with the scientific review officer (SRO) to perform a programmatic and administrative review to make sure they respond to the PA's objectives and requirements.
  • Determine which applications are nonresponsive, taking SRO input into account.
• For nonresponsive applications, do the following:
  • Determine if the application fits NIAID's research mandate. If it does, NIAID will accept it as an investigator-initiated application.
    • Inform your program division coordinator and request that the PA number be changed in IMPAC.
    • Your program division coordinator emails the request to Contact for NIAID Staff.
    • Contact for NIAID Staff updates IMPAC.
  • If it is not responsive to NIAID's research mandate, see if another IC will accept assignment of the application.
  • If no other IC will accept the application, inform the PI that the application is nonresponsive and withdraw the application. See Withdrawal of a Nonresponsive Application SOP.

Office of Program Coordination and Operations Staff

• Create a phasing plan and receive internal DEA approval of the plan before sending to program divisions for approval.
• Provide guidance to program staff during all stages of PA development.
• Review first and final drafts and send comments to the program officer through the program division coordinator according to the phasing plan.
• Enter PAs into the Early Notification System to allow other ICs the opportunity to comment before the PA is published.
• Ensure PAs are formatted according to the most recent PA guidelines and templates.
• Send the final PA to NIH Guide staff for review, approval, and publication.
• Monitor phasing milestones and revise as necessary.

Office of Initiative Development

• About four to eight weeks before the first version of an PA is due, coordinate and lead planning meeting to discuss scope, requirements, and other issues.
  • The meeting includes the program officer, branch chief, program division coordinator, DEA staff, and possibly a representative from NIAID's Office of Technology Development.
  • See the Team Meetings for NIAID Solicited Grant and Contract Research Initiatives for details.
• Advise program staff during all stages of PA development.

Contacts

Applicants with questions should Contact Staff for Help.

PAs -- Contact for NIAID Staff

Phasing -- Contact for NIAID Staff, Office of Program Coordination and Operations (OPCO)

Program division coordinators

Contact for NIAID Staff -- DAIDS

Contact for NIAID Staff -- DAIT

If you have knowledge to share or want more information on this topic, email deaweb@niaid.nih.gov with the title of this page or its URL and your question or comment. Thanks for helping us clarify and expand our knowledge base.

Links

Template files for PAs

Early Notification SOP

Grants.gov

Creating NIH Guide Notices SOP

Release of Funds for Solicited, Opportunity Pool, and Career Awards SOP

Repooling and Reprogramming SOP

Research Initiative Management System (RIMS)

Searching the NIH Guide for Expired Initiatives

SIMS on the intranet

NIH Guide Publishing System, including Submission Guidelines and Templates for Publications in the NIH Guide