Medical Research Grants

Grant deadline: October 24, 2025

The Medical Research Grants program awards grants of up to $25,000 each. There are three funding opportunities:

  • To provide support to new investigators as seed money or for pilot projects;
  • To provide support to improve already highly rated NIH research proposals for re-submission;
  • To provide support to redirect or expand the focus of research for investigators impacted by changes in federal research priorities

The Foundation encourages researchers throughout Rhode Island to apply for grant support for laboratory, clinical and population-based research. In addition to limited funding for general medical research, areas of interest with designated funding include infectious diseases, cardiac research, coronary artery disease, cerebral accidents, cancer, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, spinal cord, diabetes, allergies, and performance enhancing substances.

Important dates

Applications must be received by October 24, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.

The grant review committee will meet in February 2026, after which awards will be available, subject to receipt of all documents (i.e. IRB/IACUC approval, if required).

To apply

When applying, please create or use an account affiliated with your sponsoring institution.

A complete application package (all submitted through our online system) includes:

  • Completed application form;
  • Project description;
  • Completed budget form;
  • A curriculum vitae "biosketch" of the Principal Investigator;
  • Letter of support from the investigator's division director or department chair*;
  • Letter of support from significant collaborators*;
  • Letter from the office of research administration of the sponsoring agency*;
  • IRB or IACUC Approval Letter. If you do not have your approval letter, please upload a letter of exception or a statement detailing the status of your approval letter in its place.*
  • For Resubmission Grants only: the relevant NIH summary statement;
  • For Resubmission Grants only: Rough estimate of the total budget for resubmission: direct and indirect costs for each budget year of the project and the total for full project period.

*Letters must be in Word, Excel, PDF, or JPG formats and must be submitted through our online system.