Dear colleagues,
We begin this week’s research update with encouraging news. On February 16, we learned that the federal administration has decided not to appeal a federal judge’s orders restoring federal research funding to UCLA, and blocking the $1.2 billion settlement that was requested from UCLA. However, the Department of Justice stated that they will continue ongoing investigations of UCLA. While this outcome offers a welcome moment of relief, it should also allow us to redouble our focus on advancing our research mission and continuing to support our faculty and staff as new and revised National Institutes of Health (NIH) policies are implemented.
New Application Structure for NIH-Funded International Collaborations
The NIH recently announced a new application and award structure for international collaborations. As outlined in Notice NOT-OD-25-155, applications proposing foreign components must now be submitted through a PF5 or UF5 mechanism in NIH ASSIST. Principal Investigators will be required to provide justification describing the unique scientific opportunities or resources that are not available in the United States and that necessitate international collaboration.
Under this new structure, funded awards will be issued directly to the foreign organization, which must be registered with SAM.gov and will be required to submit an individual RPPR. The upcoming application window runs from April 25, 2026 through May 25, 2026, for projects anticipated to begin on April 1, 2027. Additional details are available HERE.
Tracking Scores and Funding Outcomes Following NIH Review Changes
Given the many changes introduced over the past year, our department is working to better understand how the evolving NIH review and scoring practices, and revised criteria for determining how awards will be funded will impact actual funding outcomes for our faculty. One of the significant shifts is NIH’s move away from percentiles as a primary determinant of funding decisions, which has introduced uncertainty in how scores translate into awards.
To address this, we will be asking divisions to gather and report data on all grant submissions, including peer review scores, percentile (if provided) and final funding decisions. This information will be tracked centrally to help us better understand how review metrics correlate with funding outcomes and to inform future guidance and support for our research community. We will be working closely with division leadership and MSOs to introduce a streamlined tracking tool for PIs. More information will be shared soon.
New Video Added to DoM Research Resources
On Thursday, February 19, the UCLA Department of Medicine (DoM) Office of Research Administration hosted a webinar reviewing lessons learned from recent NIH submissions, along with practical tips for successfully submitting the new NIH Common Forms, including the biographical sketch, supplement, and current and pending (other) support. The session also covered important nuances related to the Federal Research Security Training (RST) requirements.
If you were unable to attend, the recording is now available on DoM Research Resources, alongside an archive of additional research-related videos designed to support your work at UCLA.
Reminder: If you have not linked your ORCID ID with your eRA Commons and created your NIH Common Forms in SciENcv, please do so as soon as possible so that you may troubleshoot any issues that arise before the May 2026 implementation date.
We hope this information is helpful. As a valued member of our community, we remain committed to supporting you. Do not hesitate to reach out if there is anything we can do to assist you.
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
