The Brain Health Institute (BHI) and the Rutgers Addiction Research Center (RARC) are pleased to announce the mock grant review program at Rutgers University. The primary objective of this program is to increase the success of grant proposals submitted to NIH by Rutgers investigators connected to the BHI and/or the RARC.

  1. Step 1: Send a title plus an abstract or short description to Paul Manowitz, Ph.D., RARC Chair of Special Programs (manowitz@rwjms.rutgers.edu; with CC to rarc@bhi.rutgers.edu) at least eight weeks before the deadline for grant submission to the granting institution/agency. Also include with this material a selection of up to five potential mock grant reviewers of your grant application from the enclosed list of Rutgers senior and/or NIH-funded investigators. Please do not contact these investigators directly. Where possible, the RARC will make an effort to solicit reviewers from those you selected.
  2. Step 2. Submit your application as a SINGLE PDF file to Paul Manowitz (manowitz@rwjms.rutgers.edu; with CC to rarc@bhi.rutgers.edu) at least six weeks before the grant application is to be submitted to the granting institution/agency.

    You should submit Specific Aims and Research Strategy for review, formatted according to NIH style application guidelines and including a cover sheet (see below). The proposal should be single-spaced and use font/size Arial 11 with 0.5 inch page margins, combined into one PDF document (13 pages for R01 and 7 pages for R21). If you are re-submitting a previously submitted grant, please include the NIH summary statement with your proposal submission, as well as your Introduction to the Resubmission. You should not submit applications that have already received NIH summary statements unless accompanied by proposed revisions. You may not make substantive changes once the applications have been circulated to the mock grant reviewers. The RARC and reviewers will observe confidentiality, and only the panel will access your grant information.
  3. Mock reviews will be held approximately five weeks before the application is due at the funding institution/agency.  This will allow you one month for revision prior to submission. All submissions will be reviewed by 2-3 reviewers who will provide specific comments on 1) Significance, 2) Innovation, and 3) Approach using a standardized set of criteria. After receiving the written comments, each applicant will be invited to attend a live mock review of his/her proposal, typically one hour long One of the panel members will be able to offer help with the responses and modifications.  

Download the full announcement, cover sheet, & list of reviewers: Mock Grant Review Proposal PDF.

Please contact rarc@bhi.rutgers.edu with any questions.

Danielle Dick, Ph.D.
Director, Rutgers Addiction Research Center
Chair, Motivational & Affective Neuroscience Focus Area Working Group
Brain Health Institute

Zhiping Pang, M.D., Ph.D.
Vice Chair, Motivational & Affective Neuroscience Focus Area Working Group
Brain Health Institute