Dear colleagues,
This week, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) released the new Common Forms for the Biographical Sketch and Current and Pending (Other) Support through SciENcv. These forms will be required for all proposal submissions, in addition to Just-in-Time (JIT) submissions, Research Performance Progress Reports (RPPRs), and prior approval requests submitted on or after January 25, 2026. Please note that principal investigators (PIs) will also be required to include their ORCID iD on these forms.
We encourage PIs to begin generating the new forms now to allow time to become familiar with the updated requirements. While delegates may assist with preparing the entries in SciENcv, only PIs may generate and certify the final biographical sketch forms.
To support the transition to this new requirement, our department will host a training session on Friday, January 9 with the UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) Office of Research Administration. The session will walk through the new process and provide guidance to ensure our research community is prepared to meet the requirements moving forward.
As shared in last week’s research message, several helpful resources are already available. The UCLA Office of Contracts and Grants Administration have developed a tool that allows PIs to download Other Support data directly from the PI portal for upload into SciENcv. Details are available in the PowerPoint presentation from the December research administration forum. The NIH has also released FAQs to address common questions related to the implementation of the Common Forms in SciENcv.
As we approach the end of the year, we recognize that it has been a period of many challenges and uncertainty. We hope you are taking time during the holidays to rest and reconnect with those close to you. While 2025 tested our community, it also highlighted our resilience and shared commitment to advancing our research mission. This strength will continue to guide us in the new year. Thank you for your support of our department and for each other.
Sincerely,
E. Dale Abel, MD, PhD
William S. Adams Distinguished Professor of Medicine
Chair and Executive Medical Director
Department of Medicine
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and UCLA Health
Judith S. Currier, MD
Professor of Medicine
Executive Vice Chair for Research, Department of Medicine
Sue and Michael Steinberg Chair in Global AIDS Research
Gregory A. Brent, MD
Senior Executive Academic Vice Chair
Department of Medicine
Professor of Medicine and Physiology
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
