THE 2024 FALL NORC P&F RFA IS CLOSED.  THE 2025 P&F RFA WILL BE POSTED IN THE SPRING.

APPLICATION DUE DATE: TBD SPRING 2025

Description

The Nutrition Obesity Research Center (NORC) at UCSF is sponsoring an open Request for Applications (RFA) for Pilot and Feasibility Grants, which provide funding for investigators to pursue novel and promising ideas broadly relevant to nutrition, obesity, and metabolism research. The NORC Pilot and Feasibility Program is funded through a Center grant from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) to facilitate the engagement of junior faculty and encourage new directions in NORC related research, regardless of a laboratory’s historical research focus.

Pilot funding of up to $50,000 per application is available for a period of 12 months from the time of award.

Sufficient financial support during the P&F funding year is intended to aid the research project to eventually secure extramural (preferably NIH) funding. Applicants are encouraged to make use of the Core Services supported by the NORC (see http://norc.ucsf.edu/cores) and will benefit from the subsidized rates as they will become NORC members at least for the duration of the award. Grantees will be invited to present at the yearly NORC retreat.

Any resulting publication must directly acknowledge the NORC grant award P30DK098722.

Eligibility

Preference will be given to Junior Faculty engaged in research broadly relevant to nutrition, obesity, and metabolism, who do not yet have NIH R01 funding (K awardees are eligible to apply). Investigators at any of the following are invited to apply: UCSF, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Merced and UC Santa Cruz Collaborative projects (including across UC campuses) are encouraged. For collaborative applications all PIs need to meet the eligibility criteria listed for this grant mechanism. Prior recipients of a NORC P&F grant are not eligible to apply again.

Please contact Myra Gloria ([email protected]) or Brian Feldman ([email protected]) if more information is needed.

Review Criteria

The reviewers will examine proposals for eligibility of the investigator, innovation of the research and its potential to generate data sufficient for future extramural funding opportunities broadly related to metabolism, obesity and nutrition. NIH review criteria (Significance, Investigators, Innovation, Approach, Environment) will be used.

HOW TO APPLY (APPLICATIONS DUE BY TBD):

Email your proposal as a SINGLE PDF that includes the components listed in numeric order in the instructions below. Please email your proposal to Myra Gloria, [email protected]

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROPOSAL PDF: 

Format Requirements: Arial font; 11 pt; minimum 0.5 inch for all margins; no appendices; include page numbers and table of contents.

1. Cover page: Title of proposal, amount of funding requested, Principal Investigator name(s), academic title(s), department(s), phone number(s), complete mailing address(es) and email address(es).   Please indicate if you identify as URiM (Underrepresented Minority).

2. Abstract: One half page

3. Biosketch: An NIH Biosketch (use current form approved through 1/31/26) including personal statement, for each PI

4. Current & Pending support: All current and pending intramural and extramural research support information for each PI, following the NIH format.

5. Proposal (maximum 2 pages, including figures and tables, excluding literature cited)

• Background, Significance and aims
• Experimental Design and Methods

• Literature cited (not included in page limit)

6. Statement of Collaboration detailing interaction with NORC and proposed core usage on separate page (1-2 paragraphs)

7. Budget and Budget Justification: Detailed budget and budget justification explaining how the funds will be used (any format).

If you have any questions, please contact Myra Gloria, NORC Program Manager. Thank you.