NCI Pathway to Independence Award for Early-Stage Postdoctoral Researchers (K99/R00 - Independent Clinical Trial Required)

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the National Institutes of Health and specifically the National Cancer Institute, has released the Pathway to Independence Award for Early-Stage Postdoctoral Researchers (K99/R00). This program is designed to support postdoctoral researchers with clinical or research doctoral degrees in making a timely transition from mentored postdoctoral training to independent, tenure-track research careers. The program specifically encourages applicants whose work is in cancer control, cancer prevention, or cancer data sciences, and is structured to provide both mentored and independent support across two distinct phases. The award is structured in two phases: the mentored K99 phase and the independent R00 phase. The K99 phase provides up to two years of mentored postdoctoral research and career development with a focus on preparing the candidate for independence. During this phase, extramural applicants may receive up to $100,000 per year in salary support and up to $30,000 per year in research development funds, while NIH intramural candidates are supported internally. In the R00 phase, lasting up to three years, the program provides independent research support with a budget ceiling of $249,000 per year, inclusive of salary, fringe benefits, and research expenses. Indirect costs are reimbursed at 8% for the K99 phase, while the R00 phase follows the institution’s negotiated rate. Eligibility is limited to postdoctoral fellows who have no more than two years of postdoctoral research experience at the time of application. Applicants must be in non-independent, mentored positions and must not have held prior independent research faculty appointments. Both U.S. citizens and non-U.S. citizens may apply, provided visa status permits them to remain in the United States for the duration of the K99 and R00 phases. Candidates must devote a minimum of 75% effort to the program, and applications must include a nomination letter from the sponsoring institution affirming the candidate’s readiness to transition to independence and confirming that they are the institution’s sole nominee in their scientific category. Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov using NIH ASSIST or institutional system-to-system platforms. Required materials include a project summary, institutional nomination letter, budget information, career development plan, mentor statements, and a research strategy spanning both phases. Applicants are expected to describe both the mentored phase training and the independent phase research in sufficient detail for review. Reference letters must be submitted through eRA Commons, and applications without them will not be reviewed. A plan for responsible conduct of research training and a data management and sharing plan are also required. Applications will undergo NIH’s two-tiered peer review process, which evaluates the candidate, career development plan, research proposal, mentor qualifications, and institutional support. Reviewers assess overall potential for transition to independence, rigor and significance of proposed research, and suitability of the mentor and environment. Advisory council review and funding decisions will follow based on merit, availability of funds, and program priorities. Successful applications will receive a Notice of Award and must comply with NIH policies on human subjects, clinical trials, vertebrate animals, and data sharing. The program operates on recurring deadlines, with standard receipt dates in February, June, and October through October 2026. Applications are due by 5:00 PM local time of the applicant organization. Following submission, merit review is typically held within four months, with council review and earliest start dates occurring several months after. Applicants are encouraged to apply early to allow time for corrections during the submission process. For scientific inquiries, applicants may contact Sergey Radaev, Ph.D. at the National Cancer Institute, while peer review and grants management contacts are also available. This program reflects NIH’s continued commitment to fostering the next generation of independent cancer researchers.