PILOT PROGRAM
The Office of the Vice Provost for Research (VPR), in collaboration with the Center for Biomedical Research (CBR), is piloting a new program for pre-peer-review of certain federal grant proposals to be submitted by OU investigators. The pilot program is modeled on the current CBR system of pre-peer-review, but will expand to include other disciplines, and will include financial rewards for both the reviewers and the investigators if the proposal is successful. Reviewers will also receive a stipend for a timely review based on the criteria established by the funding agency.
The pilot program will involve 6 proposals, for which the success rate of funding will be compared to similar proposals that were not given pre-peer-review. Based on these findings, the VPR may implement the program on a more permanent basis. The current CBR program will be dormant during the period of the pilot program, and will become active again as soon as 6 proposals have completed pre-peer-review.
Who can apply? Any OU investigator who is planning to submit a grant proposal to one of the 4 selected federal sponsors. Individuals can participate in the pilot program only once as PI on a grant.
Which federal agencies qualify for pre-peer-review of proposals? National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, and Department of Energy.
What is the minimum budget requirement of the grant application? To participate in this pilot program, the total direct costs for all years of the grant must be at least $150,000.
What is the financial incentive for the reviewer? The reviewer will receive $250 when he/she has submitted a formal review of the proposal, within 2 weeks of receipt, using the review criteria established by the sponsoring agency (or by the VPR if necessary). If the grant is funded, the reviewer will receive an additional $250.
What is the incentive for the investigator? Experience at OU and other institutions with pre-peer-review of proposals shows an improvement in review scores and funding potential. An additional incentive for the PI is that if the pre-peer-reviewed proposal is funded, he/she will receive $250.
What is the deadline to participate? The PI must alert the VPR at least 5 weeks before the grant application deadline that he/she will be submitting a proposal for pre-review in the pilot program. This will allow the identification of an appropriate reviewer. The proposal itself must be submitted to the VPR at least 4 weeks before the grant submission deadline. It is recognized that the draft proposal will not necessarily be a final, fully formatted draft, but must be complete with regard to all of the required sections of scientific text. The reviewer will be given 2 weeks to complete the review and return the comments to the PI so that any changes can be made before submission.
When will the pilot program end? The pre-peer-review program will be unavailable while the outcomes of the 6 proposals are analyzed.
What happens to the current program in CBR? This pre-peer-review program will be dormant during the pilot program so that the director of the CBR can work with the VPR on the cooperative program. However, proposals that are not eligible for this new program can still be submitted to the CBR for pre-peer-review as before.
Other questions? Contact VPR Dorothy Nelson at danelson@oakland.edu