Review Matters

Announcing a Simplified Review Framework for NIH Research Project Grant Applications

Authors

October 19, 2023

Cross-posted on Open Mike. As we have discussed in previous blogs, NIH has heard concerns from the extramural community about the complexity of the peer review process for research project grants (RPGs) and the increasing responsibilities of peer reviewers in policy compliance. NIH has also heard concerns about the potential…
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Update on Improving NRSA Fellowship Review: Analysis of Comments from the Request for Information

Authors

October 12, 2023

As outlined in “Update on Improving Fellowship Review: A Request for Information (RFI),” NIH issued an RFI—from April 17 through June 23, 2023—seeking input on the proposed changes to the peer review of Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowship applications by restructuring the review criteria and modifying…
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Using AI in Peer Review Is a Breach of Confidentiality

Authors

June 23, 2023

“As the scientific community continues to evolve, it is essential to leverage the latest technologies to improve and streamline the peer-review process. One such technology that shows great promise is artificial intelligence (AI). AI-based peer review has the potential to make the process more efficient, accurate, and impartial, ultimately leading…
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Update on Simplifying Review Criteria: Analysis of Comments from the Request for Information

Authors

May 11, 2023

Cross-posted on Open Mike. As discussed in the blog, “Update on Simplifying Review Criteria: A Request for Information (RFI),” NIH issued an RFI—from December 8, 2022, through March 10, 2023—seeking feedback on its proposed plan to revise and simplify the framework for the first level of the peer review of…
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Update on Improving Fellowship Review: A Request for Information

Authors

April 25, 2023

NIH is recommending changes to the peer review of Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowship applications by restructuring the review criteria and modifying some sections of the PHS Fellowship Supplemental Form that are specific to NRSAs. The goal of this effort is to facilitate the mission of…
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Navigating the NIH

Authors

April 13, 2023

NIH has a vested interest in receiving proposals from a wide range of investigators, from a wide range of applicant institutions. However, data on funding of research project grants (RPGs) and a recent analysis done by CSR on applicant institutions for National Research Service Award (NRSA) fellowship applications indicate some…
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Update on Simplifying Review Criteria: A Request for Information

Authors

December 8, 2022

Cross-posted on Open Mike. NIH has issued a request for information (RFI) seeking feedback on revising and simplifying the peer review framework for research project grant applications. The goal of this effort is to facilitate the mission of scientific peer review – identification of the strongest, highest-impact research. The proposed…
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Career Opportunities at NIH for Behavioral and Social Scientists: Serving as a Program or Scientific Review Officer

Authors

October 13, 2022

Guest post by Dr. Christine Hunter, Acting Director, NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research; Dr. Valerie Durrant, Director of the Division of AIDS, behavioral and Population Sciences at the Center for Scientific Review; and Ms. Elan E. Ey, Deputy Director, Client Services Division, NIH Office of Human Resources.…
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CSR 2022-2027 Strategic Plan

Author

September 20, 2022

I am pleased to announce the release of the CSR 2022-2027 Strategic Plan. CSR is entrusted with most of the peer review that enables NIH to support a broad range of biomedical research. Our primary goal, to ensure that peer review identifies the strongest, most promising science, depends upon an…
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Seeking Public Comment on CSR’s 2022 – 2027 Strategic Plan

Author

February 14, 2022

I am pleased to announce that CSR’s draft strategic plan is now open for public comment. This 5-year plan (for 2022–2027) will serve as our roadmap as CSR advances its mission of seeing that NIH grant applications receive fair, independent, expert, and timely scientific reviews—free from inappropriate influences—so NIH can…
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