Plans and conducts scientific review activities to ensure an unbiased, informed review process, and successful programmatic outcomes.
Key Behaviors
- Understands the various stages of the NIH application/proposal submission, referral, administrative review, and award process.
- Monitors the scientific review process and ensures consistent quality through the appropriate application of rules, regulations, guidance, and requirements.
- Identifies and assigns reviewers with the required expertise, taking into consideration scientific excellence, as demonstrated by grant and publication record; experience and fairness in the peer review process; and breadth of expertise.
- Communicates accurate and up-to-date NIH peer review policies and instructions to educate and train reviewers.
- Avoids, mitigates, or eliminates situations that present a COI or appearance of a COI.
- Assesses needs for reviewer expertise, assesses expertise of potential reviewers, recruits appropriate reviewers, and abides by policies/practices for maintaining equitable representation and diversity in these recruitments.
- Considers FOA/Solicitation-specific elements and requirements in the administrative review of applications/proposals, for the critique template, and when giving guidance on review criteria and summary statement writing.
- Assesses completeness of the applications/proposals and monitors for adherence to instructions.
- Utilizes knowledge of and tools for data-mining to analyze information both qualitatively and quantitatively to support the review process.
- Assesses applications and reviewers for potential Conflict Of Interest (COI) or appearance of COI.
- Determines the expertise required for the review panel.
- Manages peer review meetings consistent with applicable statute, regulation, and policy.
- Summarizes scientific review meeting outcomes and communicates to appropriate audiences.
Developmental opportunities for this competency are available from the NIH Training Center.