NIDCR R13 Conference Grant Application Procedures

Purpose

To support scientific conferences including: symposiums, seminars, workshops, or other organized formal meetings, in areas relevant to the mission of NIDCR. NIDCR support of conferences and workshops is typically limited to a maximum of $30,000 per meeting, but the actual award will be contingent upon availability of funds, programmatic priorities and recommendations by peer review and program staff. Secondary support of a conference, of up to $3,000, may be requested if another institute or center at NIH has agreed to provide primary support.

Areas of Interest

NIDCR gives priority to applications that:

• Support meetings representing new areas of research, highlighting applications of novel approaches to achieving research goals, and are open to participation by the general scientific community, particularly junior investigators, students, and postdoctoral fellows.
• Provide funds to graduate students, postdoctoral trainees, and junior faculty members to attend.

Eligibility

Eligibility is limited to domestic institutions and organizations, including established scientific or professional societies.

This program supports both domestic and international conferences; however, an international conference can be supported only through the U.S. representative organization of an established international scientific or professional society.

Application Procedures

1. Contact the NIDCR program official in the scientific area of the proposed conference to discuss the suitability of the potential R13 application for NIDCR support.
2. Submit an R13 Letter of Request seeking approval to submit an application at least six weeks before the application receipt date. This applies to both new and resubmitted applications. The request should be sent via email to Dr. Lillian Shum, Director, Division of Extramural Research at NIDCR with a copy to Mr. Joel Guzman, Program Specialist. If accepted, NIDCR will send an Advance Permission Letter to the applicant via email (Please note that NIDCR’s agreement to accept an application does not guarantee funding).
3. The R13 Letter of Request must include the following components:
   1. Intended application submission date
   2. Principal investigator information: name, institution, email, phone
   3. Conference/meeting information: title, dates, location, facility, intended audience, estimated number of attendees (including speakers), estimated overall costs, funds requested from R13, intended use of R13 funds, and other sponsoring organizations
   4. Purpose of the meeting
   5. Rationale/justification
   6. Opportunities for junior investigators, students, and postdoctoral fellows
   7. Preliminary draft agenda of the program, including names and affiliations of invited and/or confirmed speakers
4. At the time of application submission, a copy of the Advance Permission Letter must be included as part of the cover letter component. Conference grant applications must be submitted electronically through grants.gov. Refer to the current funding opportunity announcement for application submission information.
5. It is recommended that applicants utilize a receipt date at least seven months prior to the conference.

Receipt Dates

Additional Information

For important information on the conference grant (R13) mechanism, prospective applicants should review:

• NIH Guide NOFO PA-25-080: NIH Support for Conferences and Scientific Meetings (Parent R13 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
• NIH Guide Notice NOT-OD-12-041: New NIH Policy on Efficient Spending Related to Grants Supporting Conferences and Meetings
• Frequently Asked Questions: NIH Frequently Asked Questions for Conference Grants (R13)

Contact

Lillian Shum, Ph.D. 
Division of Extramural Research 
(301) 594-0618 
Email: lillian.shum@nih.gov