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October 4, 2019

Archived: Funding Opportunity: Innovative Programs to Enhance Research Training (IPERT) R25

By Michael Sesma , Edgardo Falcón-Morales , Desirée Salazar , and Alison Gammie

In March, we released an NIH Guide notice informing the community of our intent to continue the Innovative Programs to Enhance Research Training (IPERT) R25. We’re now pleased to announce that the IPERT funding opportunity announcement (FOA) (PAR-19-383) has been reissued with minor changes. The goal of IPERT is to enable the scientific community to develop and implement innovative educational activities that equip diverse cohorts of participants with the skills required for careers in the biomedical research workforce. IPERT activities must integrate the required components of the Research Education Program Plan (REPP), including the following core elements:

  • Courses for skills development (e.g., activities designed to develop technical, operational, and/or professional skills necessary to conduct rigorous and reproducible research)
  • Mentoring activities (e.g., activities designed to provide career information, advice, and support to research-oriented students, postdoctoral fellows, or independent faculty in biomedical fields)

Each IPERT must address the NIGMS goals of creating a highly skilled and diverse biomedical workforce. Moreover, IPERT is meant to enhance or augment other training activities and must be open to the broader biomedical community, serving at a national or regional scale. Please read the FOA carefully for more details on the requirements of the REPP.

This new announcement incorporates minor changes to the program:

  1. Direct costs are capped at $500,000 per year.
  2. A sustainability plan is required.
  3. Receipt dates are in October 2019, 2020, and 2021.
  4. Proposed activities must be relevant to the areas of biomedical research training supported by NIGMS.

Under this FOA, new and competing renewal applications will be accepted but revised applications (resubmissions) will not. Find additional information about the program on the IPERT webpage.

First application receipt date: October 31, 2019
Earliest start date: July 2020

If you have questions about IPERT, contact Michael Sesma, Edgardo Falcón-Morales, or Desirée Salazar.

topic Funding Opportunities , Training/Fellowships/Career Development

About the Authors

Michael Sesma.

Michael Sesma

Prior to his retirement in December 2024, Mike oversaw the postdoctoral training branch, which includes research training, fellowship, and career development programs.
Edgardo Falcon-Morales

Edgardo Falcón-Morales

Prior to moving to the National Institute on Drug Abuse in October 2024, Edgardo is oversaw the NIGMS Postdoctoral Research Associate Training (PRAT) Program. He also managed grants in the Division of Training and Workforce Development and a portfolio on multi-organ physiology in the Division of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biological Chemistry.
Headshot of Desiree Salazar.

Desirée Salazar

Before moving to NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute in November 2021, Desirée directed the Postdoctoral Research Associate Training (PRAT) program. She also managed Institutional Research and Academic Career Development Awards (IRACDA); the Supplement Program for Continuity of Research During Critical Life Events​; predoctoral research training grants in Cellular, Biochemical, and Molecular Sciences (T32); and research grants in the area of stem cell biology and regeneration.
Alison Gammie.

Alison Gammie

Alison is a senior advisor in the Division of Training and Workforce Development, which supports a variety of research training and career development programs at the undergraduate through faculty levels.