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Reviewers can find process and policy resources that walk them chronologically through their review tasks, while scientific review officers can find the latest review guidelines and policy documents. Applicants can get a sense of the key elements reviewers are looking for in their grant applications.
Important Updates
- Multiple changes are coming in 2025 that will affect the submission and review of NIH grant applications for due dates on or after January 25, 2025. For more information, see:
Resources for Reviewer Activities
Reviewers are required to certify that they understand the rules of integrity and confidentiality in the peer review process and the consequences for not following these rules. They must also certify before and after review meetings that all conflicts of interest (COI) were identified and declared. In addition, NIH reviewers are required to take trainings in review integrity and bias awareness to participate in most NIH review meetings.
Reviewers must evaluate applications using the criteria established in the notice of funding opportunity to which an application(s) was submitted. Additional guidance for how to evaluate individual criteria is also available through standard reviewer guidance documents.
Reviewers are brought together as a Scientific Review Group (SRG) to discuss the merits of the studies proposed in individual applications and submit a final impact score for each. As part of the meeting, the SRG will also discuss any concerns with the use of human subjects, vertebrate animals, and/or biohazards within applications.
Applications are typically given a preliminary rating as part of assigned reviewers’ initial evaluations, however an application’s final rating or ‘overall impact score’ is determined by the entire review panel.
Tip: watch a mock study section to learn how reviewers discuss applications
Reviewer critiques are part of the summary statement and an important source of feedback for what reviewers liked and didn’t like about their application.
IAR is a web-based module within NIH’s eRA Systemsthat is used by reviewers to view meeting materials, certify their confidentiality and COI forms, access applications and submit scores and critiques.