An administrative supplement is a non-competing award that provides additional funding to a currently funded grant to meet increased costs that are within the scope of the approved project, but that were unforeseen when the new or competing renewal application was awarded.
Featured Administrative Supplement Opportunities
These opportunities have wide participation across NIH and support the biomedical research workforce:
- Research Supplements to Promote Diversity: Funding Opportunities
- Aimed at diversifying the biomedical research workforce via support of investigators from diverse & underrepresented groups at various career stages.
- Research Supplements to Promote Re-entry & Re-integration into Health-Related Research Careers: Funding Opportunities
- The Re-entry Supplements provide mentored research training opportunities to scientists who’ve had at least 6 months of career interruption due to experience of critical life events.
- The Re-integration Supplements provides opportunity for pre/postdoc students experiencing unsafe or discriminatory environments to transition to safer, more supportive research environments and continue their graduate careers.
- Research Continuity Supplements: Funding Opportunities
- Supplements to Promote Research Continuity and Retention of NIH Mentored Career Development (K) Award Recipients and Scholars).
- Supplement for Continuity of Biomedical and Behavioral Research Among First-Time Recipients of NIH Research Project Grant Awards.
Administrative Supplement Parent Announcement
Administrative Supplement Parent Announcement available.
- Broad funding opportunity for requests that do not fall under a specific program.
- Many notices of special interest (NOSIs) for administrative supplements use the parent announcement for application submission.
- Not all NIH institutes and centers participate on all parent announcements. Check the participating organization in the funding opportunity before applying.
Timing
- Original grant award must be active
- Administrative supplements may not extend beyond the term of the current award period
Application Process
- Administrative Supplements follow a similar grants process as competing applications, however, the process post-submission is a bit different
- Submit your application in response to an active funding opportunity identified as "Admin Supp" (activity code may show as "333")
- Access, prepare, and submit application forms using your chosen submission option (ASSIST, institutional system-to-system solution, Grants.gov Workspace)
- Use the application package linked from the funding opportunity that is appropriate for the parent award
- Special pre-population features are available when initiating Administrative Supplements through ASSIST and eRA Commons. See eRA Information: Use of ASSIST Expanded for Submission of Administrative Supplements for details.
- Administrative supplements bypass the standard receipt, referral, and review process used for competing applications and are instead automatically forwarded to the awarding institute or center for processing and consideration.
Application Content
- Follow all guidance in the How to Apply – Application Guide, funding opportunity, and related notices
- Follow the appropriate page limits for the activity code of the award
- Review the awarding institute and center's (IC) web site for any IC-specific submission deadlines or eligibility criteria before submitting an administrative supplement request
- Complete all required fields in the application package that you would for a competing revision (including an Introduction) unless the funding opportunity specifies otherwise
- Sr/Key Personnel
- Designate the same project director/principal investigator (PD/PI), or contact PD/PI for multiple-PD/PI, as listed on the current award
- List anyone being added through the supplement, or for whom additional funds are being requested through this supplement
- Budget
- Use the R&R Budget form (or PHS 398 Training Budget), regardless of requested amount (i.e., modular budget policies do not apply)
- Only include funds requested for the additional supplement activities
- Cover Letter attachment and PHS Assignment Request form
- Do not use (applications bypass receipt and referral staff who have access to them)
- Administrative supplements for multi-project applications
- Administrative supplements are submitted as single-project application since the supplement is for the overall award
Review Criteria
- Administratively reviewed by NIH institute and center staff considering the criteria in Section V of the funding opportunity