Overview of NLM Extramural Programs

The Extramural Programs (EP) Division of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) offers grants for research projects and research training in biomedical informatics and data science. Biomedical informatics and data science research applies computer and information sciences to improve the access, storage, retrieval, management, dissemination and use of biomedical information.

Research Support

Grants are available for a wide range of innovative basic and applied biomedical informatics research projects. Fields of interest include: computational representation of biomedical knowledge; integration, organization and retrieval in very large databases, disparate forms of knowledge, and multiple datasets; enhancement of human intellectual capacities through virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and machine learning; support for health decisions; in silico science; natural language understanding; investigations of topics relevant to health information science, computational modeling, and management of information during disasters. NLM places priority on research that is novel, significant, and of high impact.

• Eligibility: Public or private, non-profit or for-profit institutions engaged in health-related education, research, or patient care.
• Support Mechanisms: Research Project Grants (R01), Conference Grants (R13), Exploratory/Developmental Grants (R21).

Resource Support

Resource grants are solicited on an annual basis. One program is designed to support improved dissemination, management and use of biomedical information in real settings, while the other program provides assistance for authors of scholarly works in biomedicine and health.

• Eligibility: Domestic public or private, non-profit health-related organizations.
• Support Mechanisms: Applied Informatics Grants (G08), Scholarly Works in Biomedicine and Health Grants (G13).

Career Development Support

NLM offers career transition awards to assist recent PhDs and MDs who are establishing their initial research careers in informatics.

• Eligibility: Domestic, public or private, not for profit or for profit, Federal or non-Federal organizations; health professional or research doctoral degree. Specific eligibility criteria are given in each program announcement.
• Support Mechanisms: Pathway to Independence (K99/R00) Award.

Training Support

To assure an adequate national pool of informaticians and health information scientists, NLM supports research training in biomedical informatics and data science at 14 educational institutions in the United States. These programs offer graduate education and postdoctoral research experiences in a wide range of areas including: health care informatics, bioinformatics and computational biology, clinical research translational informatics, and public health informatics. Many programs also offer additional tracks in areas such as imaging, dental, and library informatics. Interested applicants must apply directly to the program of their choice.

• Eligibility: Predoctoral or postdoctoral applicants at domestic public or private non-profit health related organizations.
• Support Mechanisms: University-based Biomedical Informatics Research Training Programs (T15).

Small Business Research & Development Support

Grants are made to U.S. small businesses that seek to undertake informatics research and development leading to commercialization. Critical research areas include: representation of medical knowledge in computers; organization and retrieval issues for image databases; enhancement of human intellectual capacities through virtual reality, dynamic modeling, artificial intelligence, and machine learning; medical decision-making; linguistic analyses of medical languages and nomenclatures; investigations of topics relevant to health information or library science; biotechnology informatics issues; and informatics for disaster management.

• Eligibility: U.S. for-profit small business with less than 500 employees. The principal investigator’s primary employment is with the firm during the project.
• Support Mechanisms: SBIR/STTR (R41, R42, R43, R44).