Activity Type/CHESS Code Descriptions

Under what specific conditions does the new Data Management and Sharing Screen appear in the RAMSeS IPF?

• The new Data Management and Sharing Screen in the RAMSeS IPF becomes visible under certain conditions. Specifically, it appears when either 01 – Research & Development (R&D) or 05 – Clinical Trial is selected in the Activity Type/Chess Code section, located on the General Info screen of the IPF.
• However, please note that there are exceptions to this rule. For instance, the screen will not be displayed if the Award type, on the General Info screen of the IPF, is set to NIH_Grant and the mechanism is categorized as either F-Series or T-Series.

Activity Type/CHESS Code Descriptions – copied from General Info screen in RAMSeS

01 – Research & Development (R&D):

(CHESS 20-22) Research activities, both basic and applied, and development activities performed by the institution. Includes activities involving the training of individuals in research techniques where such activities utilize the same facilities as other R&D activities.

• Research is a systematic study directed toward fuller scientific knowledge or understanding of the subject studied.
• Development is the systematic use of knowledge and understanding gained from research directed toward the production of useful materials, devices, systems, or methods, including design and development of prototypes and processes.

(Ref: 2 CFR 200.87)

Includes clinical research [that is not a clinical trial] of the following types:

• Patient-oriented research conducted with human subjects that is not a clinical trial as defined in 05-Clinical Trial below.
• In vitro studies that use material of human origin (tissues, specimens) or cognitive phenomena to elucidate mechanisms of human disease and therapeutic interventions or to develop new technologies.
• Epidemiological and behavioral studies
• Outcomes research and health services research

(Ref: NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List)

02 – Instruction:

(CHESS 10-18) All teaching and training activities, whether offered for credit toward a degree or certificate or on a non-credit basis, and whether offered through regular academic departments or separate divisions, such as a summer school division or an extension division. Includes training of professionals, including those who provide public services. Excludes research training defined under 01 – Research & Development above.
(Ref: Appendix III to 2 CFR 200)

03 – Public Service:

(CHESS 30-35) Activities related to the delivery of health service projects and other community service programs intended for public benefit. Does not include activities preformed for the benefit of non-public entities, including professional organizations.
(Ref: Appendix III to 2 CFR 200)

04 – Student Support:

(CHESS 80-82) Financial assistance provided to students in the form of scholarships, fellowships, grants in aid, trainee stipends, tuition and fee waivers and remissions, gifts, and prizes awarded and/or administered by the institution that are not contingent upon the student rendering services to the institution. Excludes assistance for research training defined under 01 – Research & Development above.

05 – Clinical Trial:

(no CHESS code) A research study in which one or more human subjects are prospectively assigned to one or more interventions (which may include placebo or other control) to evaluate the effects of those interventions on health-related biomedical or behavioral outcomes.

• Prospectively assigned refers to a pre-defined process (e.g., randomization) specified in an approved protocol that stipulates the assignment of research subjects (individually or in clusters) to one or more arms (e.g., intervention, placebo or other control) of the clinical trial.
• An intervention is a manipulation of the subject or subject’s environment for the purpose of modifying one or more health-related processes and/or endpoints. Examples include, but are not limited, to: drugs/small molecules/compounds, biologics, devices; procedures (e.g., surgical techniques); delivery systems (e.g., telemedicine, face-to-face); strategies to change health-related behavior (e.g., diet, cognitive therapy, exercise, development of new habits); and, treatment, prevention, and diagnostic strategies.
• A health-related biomedical or behavioral outcome is the pre-specified effect of an intervention on the study subjects. Examples include positive or negative changes to physiological or biological parameters (e.g., improvement of lung capacity, gene expression); psychological or neurodevelopmental parameters (e.g., mood management intervention for smokers; reading comprehension and/or information retention); disease processes; health-related behavior; and well-being or quality of life.

(Ref: NIH OER Glossary & Acronym List)

06 – Other:

(CHESS 40-77 and 90-92) Includes:

• Activities that support research, instruction and public service programs, such as library services and museums, media services, academic computing, academic program administration, and professional development of academic personnel
• Activities that contribute to the emotional and physical well-being of students, as well as to their intellectual, cultural, and social development outside the context of the institution’s formal instruction program
• Institutional administration activities that contribute to the day-to-day function and the long-range viability of the institution, including planning and executive direction, administrative and logistical services, student recruitment and admission, constituency building, and employee services
• Physical plant operations, including facilities and grounds maintenance, utility service provision, and planning/designing plant modifications and expansions.
• Independent operations that are independent of or unrelated to the primary mission of the institution.
• Any other activity not described in other Activity Codes herein.

NIH GRANT: Mechanisms Definitions – Copied from General Info screen in RAMSeS

K-series: Research Career Development Programs
F-series: Fellowship Programs
R01-series: To support a discrete, specified, circumscribed project to be performed by the named investigator(s) in an area representing his specific interests and competencies.
All other R-series: Research projects
T-series: Training Programs – https://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-16-152.html (See Section 3 – Additional Information on Eligibility for Trainee Eligibility Requirements)
Other: All other NIH grant mechanisms