Seed Grant Program
Seed Grant Program Home
Letter of Intent
Application Procedure
Review Structure and Guidelines
Review Structure and Guidelines
Dr. Nicholas Talley of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, serves as chair of an ad hoc Seed Grant Selection Committee. This committee consists of Dr. Talley along with one or more other investigators who (a) have the expertise to evaluate the scientific merit of the proposal, (b) are not affiliated with the UNC Center, and (c) have no conflict of interest with respect to the applicant.
The review process is also modeled on the one used at NIH. One member of the Selection Committee serves as the primary reviewer and another member as the secondary reviewer. Reviewers prepare written reports following the same format as used in the NIH peer review process. They will be asked to evaluate the significance, approach, innovativeness of the proposal, qualifications of the investigator, and any human subjects concerns. These written critiques are then presented and discussed by conference call, and a recommendation regarding funding is prepared by Dr. Talley and forwarded to the co-directors of the UNC Center (Drs. Whitehead and Drossman). Applicants will receive the written comments of the reviewers regardless of whether or not they are successful in funding. The selection process will take place within 90 days after each deadline for applications to ensure applicants are provided with a speedy decision.
The review of all applications will include the following guidelines.
Seed Grant Program Home Letter of Intent Application Procedure Review Structure and GuidelinesReview Structure and Guidelines
Dr. Nicholas Talley of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, serves as chair of an ad hoc Seed Grant Selection Committee. This committee consists of Dr. Talley along with one or more other investigators who (a) have the expertise to evaluate the scientific merit of the proposal, (b) are not affiliated with the UNC Center, and (c) have no conflict of interest with respect to the applicant.
The review process is also modeled on the one used at NIH. One member of the Selection Committee serves as the primary reviewer and another member as the secondary reviewer. Reviewers prepare written reports following the same format as used in the NIH peer review process. They will be asked to evaluate the significance, approach, innovativeness of the proposal, qualifications of the investigator, and any human subjects concerns. These written critiques are then presented and discussed by conference call, and a recommendation regarding funding is prepared by Dr. Talley and forwarded to the co-directors of the UNC Center (Drs. Whitehead and Drossman). Applicants will receive the written comments of the reviewers regardless of whether or not they are successful in funding. The selection process will take place within 90 days after each deadline for applications to ensure applicants are provided with a speedy decision.
The review of all applications will include the following guidelines.
- Significance of the research question and strength of the research plan.
- Feasibility (availability of subjects and other resources).
- Training and other qualifications of the applicant.
- Plans for mentoring.
- Plans for using the grant to prepare for the submission of an NIH project grant.
- Applications must be related to functional gastrointestinal or motility disorders.
- Support will not be provided for pharmaceutical or device trials (ineligible).
