Application Approval Process and Additional Information

For the K99 portion of the award, in which the funding comes from the intramural program of the IC, the Scientific Director (SD) will have to guarantee the stipend and resources to support a postdoctoral fellow for an additional 1-2 years while they start developing a project that will become their independent research when they move to an outside institution (Environment and Institutional Commitment statement). Therefore the following approval process will be necessary:

1. A postdoctoral fellow interested in applying will need to request, in writing, through his/her postdoc supervisor, approval from the SD to write an application. Applications may be prepared through a fellow’s current lab or a proposed new lab and supervisor.
2. Only fellows who have less than 4 years postdoctoral training experience (whether at the NIH or elsewhere before coming to the IRP) at the time of the application deadline may apply. In exceptional circumstances, with the approval of the Scientific Director, a fellow with 4-5 years of postdoctoral experience can apply, provided an appropriate appointment mechanism can be used consistent with NIH intramural postdoctoral policies.
3. The postdoc supervisor will need to write the Statement by Sponsor and will be expected to review the complete application with the postdoc. This Statement should not be an endorsement/recommendation for the fellow but simply the information requested about the candidate’s research career and the sponsor.
   The Scientific Director will sign the application on behalf of the IC, as is done for K22 awards. The Environment and Commitment statement can be prepared by the SD and/or Lab/Branch Chief - attached is NIH-wide language that can be included.
4. The ICs are encouraged to provide assistance in the form of grant-writing workshops.
5. Program people in the ICs’ extramural programs are available for advice
6. The R00 portion of the funding may be from any IC. Based on subject matter, the Center for Scientific Review (CSR) will assign each application to the appropriate IC for scientific review.

Additional Information

1. An intramural fellow may apply regardless of whether he/she is an IRTA, CRTA, VF (within visa restrictions) or a Research or Clinical Fellow in an FTE position - the only requirement is that the fellow have had 4 or less years of postdoctoral training at the time of the application deadline.
2. Fellows are permitted to include their own unpublished data in their application.
3. Resubmissions of revised applications are allowed; however, given that it will take approximately 9 months to hear about the result of the first application, only those fellows who initially applied with three years or less postdoctoral training will remain eligible.
4. Only fellows are eligible to apply, not staff scientists, staff clinicians, or others in non-fellowship positions.
5. One cannot apply simultaneously for more than one K award, so concurrent applications for a K99/R00 and a K22 award will not be allowed.
6. An awardee must spend at least one year in the K99 portion of the award.
7. Once someone has received an award, a delay in moving to the R00 portion is allowed only under extenuating circumstances, to be decided on a case-by-case basis.
8. For VFs on J-1 visas, the NIH will support an extension of the J-1 to cover the remaining time at the NIH, within the J-1 visa restrictions. When the fellow moves to an institution to start the R00 portion, the NIH will not object to the waiver for the H-1b visa.
9. The R00 portion of the award must be used at an academic institution. If a fellow wins an award, and has accepted a position at the NIH, the R00 portion will have to be relinquished.
10. Contract workers are not eligible to apply through the NIH Intramural Research Program because they are not supervised by an NIH PI.