Analytical Tools and Approaches for (Multidimensional) Scholarly Research Assessment and Decision Support in the Biomedical Enterprise (R43/R44 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | RFA DA 19 031

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA DA 19 031

This grant opportunity, titled "Analytical Tools and Approaches for (Multidimensional) Scholarly Research Assessment and Decision Support in the Biomedical Enterprise (R43/R44 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed)," is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) small business funding announcement focused on improving how the biomedical research ecosystem evaluates scholarship and makes decisions. The core aim is to spur the development of advanced analytical models, software tools, and quantitative metrics that can support better decision-making and more informed professional evaluation across life sciences management and administration. In practice, the NIH is looking for solutions that move beyond simplistic, one-dimensional indicators and instead provide more comprehensive, multidimensional ways to assess research activity, influence, productivity, collaboration, and other signals that stakeholders rely on when making funding, hiring, promotion, program, and policy decisions.

The intended impact is broad and explicitly tied to real-world use by organizations that shape biomedical research priorities and careers. The announcement highlights potential users such as non-governmental organizations and disease foundations, advocacy groups, the publishing industry, research funders, policymakers, and academic institutions. That framing suggests the tools should be designed not only to be technically sophisticated, but also to be practical for decision support in settings like grant portfolio management, institutional benchmarking, research strategy planning, program evaluation, and responsible assessment of scientists and teams. Because the FOA emphasizes professional evaluation and administrative decision-making, responsive projects would typically focus on transparency, interpretability, and usability, so that metrics and model outputs can be understood and applied appropriately rather than treated as black-box scores.

The funding mechanism is SBIR/STTR-oriented, using the R43/R44 activity codes, meaning it targets U.S. small businesses developing innovations with a clear pathway toward a usable product or service. The opportunity is categorized as a discretionary grant within NIH and sits within the health and education activity area (CFDA 93.279). As an R43/R44 solicitation, applicants would generally be expected to propose a phased effort consistent with small business innovation development, where early-stage feasibility and prototype development can mature into more robust, deployable tools. The announcement also makes clear that clinical trials are not allowed under this FOA, so proposed work should center on analytics, assessment methods, data integration, modeling, and decision-support systems rather than interventions tested in clinical trial designs.

Eligibility is limited to small businesses, and the FOA includes specific restrictions related to foreign participation. Non-U.S. entities (foreign institutions) are not eligible to apply, and non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. However, the notice indicates that foreign components, as defined by the NIH Grants Policy Statement, may be allowed in some circumstances, which typically means discrete foreign elements could be included if they are justified and meet NIH policy requirements, even though the applicant organization must be an eligible U.S. small business.

Key administrative details from the source information include the funding opportunity number RFA-DA-19-031 and an original closing date of March 4, 2019, with the opportunity created on January 2, 2019. The sponsoring agency is the NIH. The source excerpt does not provide an award ceiling or expected number of awards, so those particulars are not specified in the provided listing. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as an NIH effort to catalyze commercially oriented, decision-ready analytical tools that strengthen how biomedical research contributions are assessed and how strategic choices are made across the broader life sciences enterprise, while explicitly excluding clinical trial work and limiting applicants to eligible U.S. small businesses.

• The National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Analytical Tools and Approaches for (Multidimensional) Scholarly Research Assessment and Decision Support in the Biomedical Enterprise (R43/R44 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.279.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2019-01-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2019-03-04. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Small businesses.

Apply for RFA DA 19 031

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