National Institutes of Health · United States

NIH Director's Pioneer Award (DP1 Clinical Trial Optional)

Forecast — expected to open 15 Mar 2027

National Institutes of Health expects to make 7 awards of $700,000 each, from a total budget of $8.2 million. This is a forecast: the funder has announced the opportunity but it is not open yet; posting is expected around 15 Mar 2027 and the estimated deadline is 9 Sep 2027. Eligible applicant types include nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, independent school districts, for profit organizations other than small businesses and 12 more.

Deadline: Estimated 9 Sep 2027 (not yet confirmed)
Opens: 15 Mar 2027
Grant amount: $700,000 per project
Total budget: $8.2 million
Funding rate: No mandatory cost sharing stated; funding percentage not stated
Total budget: $8.2 million
Expected awards: 7
Cost sharing: Not required
Likely applicant types: Non-profits, Universities & research, Public bodies, SMEs / start-ups, Companies From source categories or programme rules; the call decides.
Funder: National Institutes of Health
Reference: RFA-RM-28-001
Assistance listing: 93.310 Trans-NIH Research Support
Last checked: 15 Nov 2026

Open the official call ↗

About this call

The NIH Director's Pioneer Award supports exceptionally creative scientists pursuing bold, innovative research with the potential to transform important areas of science relevant to the NIH mission. Proposed projects must explore new scientific directions that differ substantially from the investigator's current research and from existing work in the field. Applications are welcome across all areas relevant to NIH. The Pioneer Award is part of the NIH Common Fund's High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program .

Who can apply

Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Independent school districts
For profit organizations other than small businesses
Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
Special district governments
Private institutions of higher education
City or township governments
Small businesses
County governments
Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
State governments

Applicant categories are a starting point. The official call decides eligibility.

Topics

Health

How to apply

Read the full notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) linked from the official page: eligibility, cost sharing and evaluation criteria.
Make sure your organisation has an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity ID (UEI); registration can take several weeks.
For NIH: the organisation and the principal investigator also need eRA Commons accounts; applications are usually submitted through Grants.gov (for example with ASSIST).
Prepare the required forms, narrative, budget and attachments exactly as the NOFO specifies.
Submit before the deadline and keep the tracking number. Check for amendments before you submit.

From the call text

Who can apply: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Company stage: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Single applicant or consortium: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Where applicants must be based: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page
Where to apply: Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Contact

NIH Director's Pioneer Award Program · PioneerAwards@mail.nih.gov · Please contact via e-mail.

Where these facts come from

Fact	Value	How we know	Taken from the source
Deadline	9 September 2027	official data field	15 Nov 2026
Amount per applicant	$700,000	official data field	15 Nov 2026
Total budget	$8.2 million	official data field	15 Nov 2026
Funding rate	No mandatory cost sharing stated; funding percentage not stated	read from the official text	15 Nov 2026
Who can apply	Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education; Independent school districts; For profit organizations other than small businesses; Public and State controlled…	official data field	15 Nov 2026
Where to apply	Unknown — not stated in the source we hold	unknown	—

Official sources

Official call page

Facts on this page come from the funder’s official data, taken on 15 Nov 2026. The funder's own documents, including later amendments, always take precedence.