NINDS Alzheimers Disease and Alzheimers Disease-Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) Advanced Postdoctoral Career Transition Award to Promote Diversity (K99/R00 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 22 022

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 22 022

The NINDS Alzheimer's Disease and Alzheimer's Disease-Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) Advanced Postdoctoral Career Transition Award to Promote Diversity is an NIH grant opportunity (PAR-22-022, CFDA 93.853) that uses the K99/R00 mechanism to help advanced postdoctoral researchers move from mentored training into independent faculty careers focused on AD/ADRD research. The central goal is to build and sustain a strong pipeline of independent investigators from diverse backgrounds, aligning with NIH's stated interest in promoting diversity in the biomedical research workforce. In practical terms, the award is meant to support people who are already showing clear potential as independent scientists and who are ready for a structured transition from a postdoctoral position into a tenure-track (or equivalent) appointment where they can launch a stand-alone research program in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

The award is structured in two linked phases. The first phase (K99) supports a mentored postdoctoral period where the applicant continues training, strengthens their publication and grant track record, and completes focused career development activities under the guidance of a mentor or mentoring team. The second phase (R00) provides independent research support after the recipient secures an eligible independent position, with the intent of accelerating their ability to establish a lab or independent research direction in AD/ADRD. The program is explicitly designed to make the transition happen in a timely way, rather than extending an open-ended postdoctoral period. The underlying expectation is that by the end of the K99 phase the candidate will be competitively positioned to obtain an independent appointment and use the R00 phase to generate the data, productivity, and early funding base needed for long-term independence.

A key boundary in this particular funding announcement is the clinical trial restriction. This FOA is "Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning the proposed research cannot involve the applicant leading an independent clinical trial, a clinical trial feasibility study, or an ancillary study to a clinical trial. However, the FOA does allow applicants to gain clinical trial-related experience if the trial is led by a mentor or co-mentor, which is important for candidates whose long-term research goals may intersect with human studies but who are not proposing to serve as the responsible leader of a trial within the K99/R00 project. In other words, the mechanism can support research training and projects connected to clinical trial environments, but it draws the line at the awardee being the independent trial leader for the funded aims.

Eligibility is broad at the institutional level and includes many organization types that can host the mentored and/or independent phases, such as public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits (with or without 501(c)(3) status), for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, and multiple levels of government (state, county, city/township, special districts), along with public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities. It also explicitly calls out additional eligible applicant categories and settings that often play a key role in diversity and community-rooted research capacity, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), faith-based or community-based organizations, tribal governments that are not federally recognized, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations). This breadth reflects an intent to make the pathway accessible across many research environments and institutional missions, rather than limiting participation to a narrow subset of universities.

From a programmatic standpoint, NINDS is using this mechanism to develop a cohort of investigators who will become long-term contributors to the AD/ADRD field. The emphasis is not only on the science itself but also on the career transition outcome: moving an advanced postdoc into a stable independent role with NIH-supported research momentum. While the opportunity does not state an award ceiling or expected number of awards in the provided source text, it is clearly positioned as a competitive NIH career transition grant in the health research category. The original closing date listed is July 12, 2024, and the opportunity record indicates it was created on September 2, 2021.

Overall, this FOA is best understood as a targeted career-building investment: it supports promising postdoctoral researchers from diverse backgrounds who are ready to take the next step into independence in AD/ADRD research, provides a structured bridge from mentorship to autonomy, and limits the scope to non-independent-clinical-trial research while still allowing mentored exposure to trials when that experience is relevant to the candidate's development.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NINDS Alzheimers Disease and Alzheimers Disease-Related Dementias (AD/ADRD) Advanced Postdoctoral Career Transition Award to Promote Diversity (K99/R00 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.853.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-09-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-07-12. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

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