Bridges Programs Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions about the Bridges to the Future Program (Bridges to the Baccalaureate and Bridges to the Doctorate) generally relate to the following topics:
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
Applying for a Bridges Grant
Q. Can an institution with a Bridges to the Baccalaureate grant also apply for a Bridges to the Doctorate program? Similarly, can an institution with a Bridges to the Doctorate grant also apply for a Bridges to the Baccalaureate program?
A. Yes, an institution that submits an application for the Bridges to the Baccalaureate program (PAR-13-333) may submit a separate application for support of a Bridges to the Doctorate program (PAR-12-276), if they meet the eligibility requirements.
Similarly, an institution that submits an application for the Bridges to the Doctorate program may submit a separate application for support of a Bridges to the Baccalaureate program, if they meet the eligibility requirements.
Q. What are the elements of a good application?
A. A good application should contain all the essential elements and should be organized following the instructions in the Bridges FOAs, as applicable, including:
- A brief description of and rationale for selecting the participating institutions (the lead applicant as well as partners). This should include the academic environments and geographic locations in the context of the lead applicant institution.
- A clear statement of program goals and specific aims relative to the institutional baseline.
- A Progress Report (for renewal applications only) that includes program outcome data in the context of the Bridges program’s goals, metrics and expectations and institutional baseline data. Applications with more than one previous funding cycle must provide information on the past two consecutive funding cycles.
- A clear description of the training and experience of proposed Program Director(s)/Principal Investigator(s) (PDs/PIs), coordinator(s), and program faculty and staff, as well as their roles and responsibilities in the administration of the Bridges program.
- A plan for training in responsible conduct of research.
- An evaluation plan to assess the effectiveness of the program in achieving its goals and objectives.
- Evidence of strong institutional commitment for the proposed program from all participating institutions.
- Letters of support.
Q. What can be placed in the Appendix?
A. Information directly relevant to the grant application, such as biosketches of proposed faculty mentors, tracking data for individual students supported by the Bridges program over the past 10 years (if applicable), Bridges-specific student curriculum (do not include entire university catalogs), sample (blank) copies of survey forms and other assessment instruments, abstracts of student presentations/URLs for peer-reviewed publications by students published during the immediate past funding cycle and consortium agreements and letters of support may be included in the Appendix. The Appendix should not be used to provide completed surveys, summary of survey results, or program evaluation reports.
Do not use the Appendix to circumvent the page limitations of the Research Plan component. An application that does not observe these limitations may be delayed in the review process or not reviewed.
Q. Where are the sample data tables uploaded?
A. Applicants are encouraged to use the suggested table formats available at the NIGMS Bridges Web site, to provide the data required in the Research Education Program. These data tables should be included in the Other Attachments section of the application form.
Budget
Q. Is there a cap on the amount of funds that can be requested?
A. Bridges to Baccalaureate budgets are limited to $300,000 direct costs per year. Bridges to Doctorate budgets are limited to $250,000 direct costs per year.
Q. Can we use funds for programs for high school students or to recruit students into the program?
A. No, costs supporting activities aimed at high school students are not allowed. Similarly, costs for recruiting high school students into the Bridges to Baccalaureate program or college students into the master’s program under the Bridges to Doctorate program are NOT allowed.
Q. Is tuition remission allowed in the Bridges program?
A. The tuition costs for students in the Bridges to Baccalaureate program is NOT allowed.
Master’s students in the Bridges to the Doctorate program are allowed tuition remission as part of the compensation package at the master’s institution. Limited tuition costs of Bridges students for taking one or two courses per year at the partner doctoral degree institution may also be requested.
Q. Can we provide any funds to students after they transfer to the second-level institution?
A. Yes, a Bridges student participant may receive salary support to conduct research for one of the 2 years of allowable support at the second-level institution.
Non-Responsive Applications
Q. What are the most common reasons why an application is found to be non-responsive to the Bridges program announcements?
A. The most common reasons why Bridges applications are found to be non-responsive include, but are not limited to:
- Applications principally for financial aid, without a well thought-out institutional program designed to increase the overall transfer of students going into the baccalaureate or Ph.D. degree programs in biomedical/behavioral research fields.
- Applications that exceed specified page limits.
- Applications that lack the required institutional baseline data, measurable goals and objectives.
- Applications that lack a Plan for Responsible Conduct of Research.
- Competing applications that lack a clearly identified detailed progress report.
- Applications that lack a detailed evaluation plan.
- Applications that lack letters of support.
Q. What happens if an application is not responsive to a program announcement?
A. Generally, the application is withdrawn without review.
Review
Q. How is my Bridges application reviewed?
A. Bridges applications that are complete are evaluated for scientific and technical merit by an appropriate review group convened by the NIGMS Office of Scientific Review in accordance with the review criteria stated in the program announcement (see Section V in program announcement). Within a few days after the meeting you can access your priority score, and in about 6 weeks, you can access your summary statement electronically by logging on to your eRA Commons account. The summary statement generally includes: the Scientific Review Officer's (SRO) summary of the study section’s discussion, the written critiques produced by the assigned reviewers, the study section’s recommendations and administrative notes. The National Advisory General Medical Sciences Council provides the second level of review.
Funding
Q. What is a fundable priority score and how are the funding decisions made for a Bridges application?
A. There is no predetermined fundable score for a Bridges application. Applications compete for available funds with all other recommended applications from eligible institutions.
The recommendations of the peer review group and the Advisory Council are major factors in determining which grants will actually be awarded. The following are considered in making funding decisions:
- Merit: The primary measures of merit are an application's priority score and the summary statement prepared by the scientific review group.
- Availability of funds: NIGMS contributes each year to the budget for the Bridges to the Future programs. The number of awards that can be made is based on the number of meritorious applications received and the total budget available for the Bridges program.
- Programmatic considerations: NIGMS may have additional priorities (e.g., achieving a balance between baccalaureate and doctoral programs, ensuring regional diversity and supporting programs that offer unique opportunities) that will affect funding decisions.
- For renewal applications, past performance of the Bridges program is weighted heavily in making funding decisions. This includes the track record in: a) increasing the overall transfer of underrepresented students to baccalaureate or Ph.D. degree programs, as applicable, in the biomedical/behavioral sciences, and b) increasing the transfer of Bridges students to and graduation from, baccalaureate or Ph.D. degree programs, as applicable, in the biomedical/behavioral sciences.
Q. Where do I respond to the reviewers’ comments in my revised application?
A. The applicant should acknowledge the reviewer's concerns and issues in the Introduction section (see Form PHS 398 instructions), and explain how the revised application is different from the previous application. Changes to the application in response to the critiques should be highlighted by change in font or indentation as outlined in the PHS 398 instructions. The concerns and issues are noted in the Resume and Summary of Discussion section and/or under each reviewer's critique of the summary statement. If the applicant does not agree with a reviewer's comments, the rationale for disagreeing with the reviewer should be explained.
Q. What happens if there is money left over at the end of the year? Can I request a carryover of funds?
A. The funds awarded for any year must be spent in that grant year. The Bridges Programs have expanded authority so unobligated and unspent funds can be carried over into the new budget period (http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/nihgps_2011/nihgps_ch8.htm#_Toc271264924). These funds can be rebudgeted within the scope of the Bridges program; however, the PI/PD must contact their Bridges program official to rebudget any funds originally requested for program-supported student participants.
Progress Reports
Q. What should be included in the progress report section of a competing-renewal Bridges application, and how is the progress on outcomes evaluated?
A. For renewal applications, an explicitly identified, detailed progress report must be included. The following information must be included, in narrative and/or tabular form, as part of the progress report:
- Provide a summary of the overall progress made during the previous grant period relative to the institutional baseline and in the context of Bridges program’s expectations. Include the outcome data outlined in Sample Table 4 (see section IV.2 of program announcement).
- Briefly describe the major student development activities implemented, the number of students served, the faculty member introducing/conducting the activity and the progress made in relation to the original goals and objectives.
- Describe what has been learned through the program evaluation and any changes made in the program as a result of the evaluation.
- Describe any previously funded Bridges activities that are now continuing (or will continue) on institutional funds.
The competitive renewal application is treated like any new application except that the progress on the present program is also evaluated based on the goals and objectives outlined in the original application. Applications without a detailed progress report will be considered non-responsive, and may not be reviewed.
Q. When and where do I submit my annual progress report (noncompeting continuation application)?
A. Progress reports must be submitted 45 days before the beginning date of the next budget period following the the NIH Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR). General information about RPPR is available on the NIH Office of Extramural Research Web site. If your institution has never used RPPR before, please review the RPPR Instruction Guide. You can also review the NIGMS RPPR webinar, which includes important R25-specific instructions.
After the signing official clicks the Submit button, the system will verify that the e-SNAP contains all the required data in the correct format. The PI will receive an e-mail indicating either there is a missing/invalid data or that the e-SNAP has been accepted for submission. Once accepted, the status of the submitted e-SNAP is set to "Submitted."
Q. What should I (as PD) include in my annual progress report (noncompeting continuation application)? What is the page limit for the progress report?
A. The narrative part is limited to 3 pages, and numerical and other data may be presented in tabular form (tables and figures are not counted in the 3-page limit). In addition to the information requested in the Sample Table 4, also include, in tabular form, the career trajectory of Bridges students over a 10-year period (if applicable). List each student individually, and include the type and year of degree earned (including the major) and current plans or academic status. (see Sample Format Table 5).
Policies and Procedures
Q. Can we add or delete institutions from the program?
A. You can request permission to add or delete partner institutions by sending a letter or e-mail through your institutional business office (by hard copy or e-mail) to your NIGMS program director. Your letter should include the grant number, name(s) of the institutions, the name(s) of the program coordinator, an explanation of why the change is being made and a statement of the impact of the change on your budget. The principal investigator and an official from the grantee institution must sign the letter. If an institution is being added to the program, an official from that institution must also sign and you must submit a letter of support.
Q. Can the grantee institution change the principal investigator or program coordinators?
A. A grantee institution can request to change the principal investigator by sending a letter through the institutional business official to the NIGMS program director explaining why the change is requested. Both the institutional official and the proposed principal investigator must sign the letter, and you must attach curriculum vitae for the proposed principal investigator and documentation of other support. NIGMS staff will evaluate the request to confirm that the proposed principal investigator is well qualified to guide the program and advise your institution.
Q. How do I apply for a no-cost extension if this is the last year of my grant?
A. Your institution can extend the period of your project using eRA Commons (https://commons.era.nih.gov/commons/) for up to 1 year if the request is submitted on or before the anniversary date of the parent grant, provided you do not change the scope of the program.
Please note that only student participants already in the program can be supported while a grant is on no-cost extension.
Agency Contacts
Q. Whom do I contact for additional questions regarding the Bridges to the Baccalaureate and Bridges to the Doctorate program policies, review process and budget and grants issues?
A. For program policies regarding application and submission that are not related to existing grants:
Michelle R. J. Hamlet, Ph.D.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Telephone: 301-594-3900
E-mail: hamletm@mail.nih.gov
For questions on the review of applications:
Helen R. Sunshine, Ph.D.
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Tel: 301-594-2881
E-mail: sunshinh@nigms.nih.gov
For questions on grants management and fiscal matters:
Lori Burge
National Institute of General Medical Sciences
Tel: 301-594-5132
E-mail: burgel@nigms.nih.gov