Boston Area NORC Pilot & Feasibility Grants — Nutrition, Obesity, and Metabolism

About this program

The Boston Area Nutrition Obesity Research Center (Boston Area NORC) annually awards Pilot & Feasibility Grants in nutrition, obesity, and metabolism of up to $30,000 in direct costs for one year, with a competitive renewal of up to $30,000 for a second year; applications are solicited at the start of the year, awards announced over the summer, and funding begins August 1. Eligible PIs are early-career investigators, established investigators new to the field, or established investigators pursuing a new direction in nutrition/metabolism/obesity, must be affiliated with a Boston-area hospital, and fellows may not serve as PI unless their fellowship ends before the award period. Applications must be submitted as a single PDF using PHS 398/NIH formats and include a signed statement of intent, a 5-page research plan (specific aims, significance, innovation, approach, relevance), NIH budget pages and justification, NIH-format biosketch and other support for the PI, facilities/resources, letters of support, and a list of suggested reviewers. Awards cover direct costs only (no indirects) and may fund technical support, research staff salary, supplies and equipment under $5,000; excluded items include mentor/co‑investigator salaries, subawards, computers, tuition, travel, publication costs, and projects involving clinical trials above minimal risk require prior NIDDK approval.