NIH Director’s Pioneer Award Program (DP1 Clinical Trial Optional)

National Institutes of Health · HHS

CFDA Numbers

93.310

Award Ceiling

$700K

Award Floor

$700K

Expected Awards

Close Date

Sep 9, 2026

Section I

How to Apply

View on grants_gov ↗

Program Contact

PioneerAwards@mail.nih.gov
Please contact via e-mail.

Section II

Eligibility

Other Eligible ApplicantsIndian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized);Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government, excluding the NIH Intramural Research Program (NIH IRP);U.S. Territory or Possession;Faith-based or Community-based Organizations;Regional Organizations;Non-domestic (non-U.S.) Entities (Foreign Institutions).

Eligible Applicant Types

00, 01, 02, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 11, 12, 13, 20, 22, 23, 25

Section III

Description

The NIH Director’s Pioneer Award supports individual scientists of exceptional creativity who propose bold and highly innovative research projects with the potential to produce a major impact on broad, important areas relevant to the mission of NIH. To be considered pioneering, the proposed research must reflect substantially different scientific directions from those already being pursued in the investigator’s research program or elsewhere. Applications in any area within the biomedical sciences are welcome. The NIH Director’s Pioneer Award is a component of the High-Risk, High-Reward Research (HRHR) Program of the NIH Common Fund.

Section IV

Key Dates

Posted: Jul 9, 2026
Closes: Sep 9, 2026