Our DRC emphasizes the pilot and feasibility grant program as an important mechanism to augment diabetes research and promote the next generation of research leaders. The P&F process taps a rich tradition of such programs at UAB. University-wide centers have long provided pilot funding opportunities to junior faculty and to senior faculty entering new areas of research. The P&F program will foster new research programs in diabetes and support a broad base of basic, clinical, translational, and prevention and control projects.

Our P&F Program has been markedly successful over the past 6 years.  We have impelled the career development of junior investigators who received most of these awards (70%), launched innovative projects, and enticed established investigators in other areas to apply their expertise to the study of diabetes.  We always have robust responses to our RFAs from our investigator base every year (an average of 43 applications), and have leveraged institutional support to fund numbers of grants beyond that made possible by NIH support; 48 pilots have been awarded to-date, 35 from the NIH DRC allocation, 4 from institutional funds through the Comprehensive Diabetes Center, and 9 through ARRA supplements.

The process for applying for the DRC Pilot and Feasibility Grant is meant to mimic, in some ways, the application process for an NIH Grant.  The idea is to give experience and practice for those who haven’t written yet or who have written a few NIH proposals.  Examples of the necessary documents with pertinent UAB specific information are below.  A very thorough Resources section for all of our DRC Cores is in the example.  The UAB Office of Sponsored Programs website, Researcher’s Toolkit has information such as the Finance & Administrative rate agreement (Indirect Cost rate) and Fringe Benefit rates which change frequently.

Office of Sponsored Programs, Researcher’s Toolkit

PHS 398 forms example (docx)

RFA for Diabetes Pilot Grant Program 2019 (PDF)