Developmental x Clinical Investigation Grants

Eligibility

Applicants must be Junior Faculty^* within one of our member institutions and meet the following criteria:

• Possess a doctoral-level degree
• Be an early-stage investigator without an R01 (or equivalent) NIH funding
• UCSD/SDSU: Be at the level of Assistant Professor, Project Scientist, or Research Scientist
• SCRIPPS/LJI: Junior faculty positions, staff scientists (with chair approval), institute investigators, and Scripps Fellows

^* Newly recruited (within the last two years), established investigators may hold the rank of Associate Professor or higher (or an equivalent position) and may have existing R01 funding.

Restrictions

• All work must be conducted within the United States, as foreign components are no longer allowed under the current NIH–CFAR funding structure.
• Applicants may submit only one Developmental grant application per cycle and may only serve as PI on one active Developmental grant at a time.
• Postdoctoral fellows may not apply for Developmental grants, and these grants may not be used to provide salaries for postdoctoral fellows.
• Developmental grants cannot:
  • Support clinical trials or studies involving new drugs, treatments, or devices, or off-label use of a licensed drug.
  • Fund travel to scientific meetings, with one exception: Early stage investigators may include travel to a scientific meeting to present the results of their Developmental grant research.
• If an awarded grant includes research in humans or animals, Institutional Review Board or Institutional Animal Care Use Committee approval must be submitted to the SD CFAR Developmental Core before funds may be spent. Regulatory approvals should be emailed to cfar@ucsd.edu.

Requirements

• You must submit a Letter of Intent  to cfar@ucsd.edu by Friday, July 3. If approved, applicants will be invited to submit a full application.
• Submissions should address at least one of the NIH Office of AIDS Research Priorities and/or an and an intersecting aspect of addiction science.
• You may use qualifying samples from the CI Core’s stored collection, or you may propose the use of fresh samples.
• Core Services (if needed): You must contact SD CFAR service cores by July 1, prior to your submission to discuss assistance needed.
  • Early stage (pre-R01) investigators must work with at least one mentor. Newly recruited senior investigators are not required to have a mentor, though it is encouraged. Recruits in their second year will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
  • Mentors must certify that they have reviewed and provided input on the application prior to submission. Applications will only be accepted after this pre-submission review. Mentors need not be HIV experts but should have received NIH R01 (or equivalent) funding and have experience with NIH grants. Qualifications will be evaluated during the review process.
  • For assistance in identifying a mentor, please email cfar@ucsd.edu with any questions.

Application Details

Application Components to be submitted via REDCap:

Cover and Face Page, Abstract, Goals & Mentoring Plan, Budget and Budget Justification, NIH Other Support, Biosketch of PI and Mentor(s), Environmental and Institutional Commitment, Service Core Checklist, 4-page Research Plan, Literature Cited. If applicable: Letters of Support and IRB.

See Application Details for Developmental Grants for more details.

Evaluation Process

Applications for Developmental Grants are evaluated by local, national, and international experts, with applicants recommending three to six reviewers to ensure appropriate expertise and avoid conflicts of interest. Additional reviewers may be selected by Developmental Core leadership.

Each application is assessed based on eligibility, mentorship quality, mentor qualifications, scientific merit, alignment with HIV research goals, and potential for future funding and publications. Reviewers provide scores and constructive feedback, while the Developmental Grant Review Committee makes funding recommendations based on scientific quality and program priorities, with final decisions dependent on available funding.

Evaluation Criteria

• Eligibility: Reviewers assess whether each applicant meets the established eligibility requirements. Please confirm your eligibility before submitting an application.
• Scientific Merit: Reviewers evaluate proposals based on their innovation, feasibility, and likely contribution to ongoing HIV research efforts. Reviewers are selected for their expertise in relevant scientific fields.
• Relevance to HIV Research: Proposals must align with the research priorities of the NIH Office of AIDS Research. Applications should introduce a new concept or explore an under-investigated area of HIV research. Projects may involve basic, clinical, behavioral, or public health science.
• Potential for Future Impact: As SD CFAR is supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), each funded project is expected to contribute meaningfully to the advancement of HIV research. Reviewers assess whether a proposal is likely to result in peer-reviewed publications and external grant funding.

Notification

Applicants are typically notified of the Core’s decision within four to six weeks following the submission deadline. The decision notice includes written critiques prepared by the reviewers; reviewer identities are not disclosed. These critiques are intended to provide constructive feedback to help applicants strengthen their proposals, regardless of the funding outcome.

Revisions
Applicants whose proposals are not funded are encouraged to work with their SD CFAR mentors to submit a revised application. Minor revisions may be addressed within 30 days. Major revisions should be submitted during a future funding cycle. Mentorship is required for early-stage investigators and is available to other applicants upon request.

Funding Source

Up to $50,000 USD in direct costs Up to $30,000 USD in direct costs for newly recruited, establish investigators