Funding opportunities at the National Institute of Food and Agriculture: program priorities and tips for successful grant writing

Abstract

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture is the agency within the United States Department of Agriculture that provides extramural funding for competitive grants in research, education and extension. Several grant programs exist in this agency that support both basic and applied research in bovine reproduction, the most notable of which is the animal reproduction program area priority within the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. Other programs within this initiative, while not dedicated solely to work in reproductive biology, also include opportunities for work on reproduction. The animal health and disease program area of this initiative provides funding for research on infectious diseases of the reproductive tract. The critical agriculture research and extension and the exploratory research program area priorities are two unique opportunities that offer funding for work in all areas in the food and agricultural sciences, including reproduction in cattle. Opportunities for education support at the agency include the predoctoral fellowships, postdoctoral fellowships, and research and extension experiences for undergraduates program, as well as the National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship Grants, Higher Education Challenge Grants and Higher Education Multicultural Scholars programs. To stimulate technological innovations in the private sector, Small Business Innovation Research program competitively awards grants to qualified small businesses to address important problems in agriculture. To address veterinary shortage situations, especially those in food animal medicine, the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment program helps qualified veterinarians offset a significant portion of debt incurred in pursuit of their veterinary degrees in return for service in designated high-priority veterinary shortage areas. The Veterinary Services Grant program provides funding for education, extension, and training in veterinary medicine of agricultural animals, as well as grants to enhance rural veterinary practices. Most federal grant programs are highly competitive, so skill and experience in applying for grants is needed to achieve success in securing grant funding. Recommendations for preparation of a meritorious grant proposal include careful reading of the program announcement, solicitation or request for applications to fully understand the scope, eligibility and requirements of the program; writing the grant proposal well in advance of the submission deadline to allow time for thoughtful preparation, critique by an experienced colleague, revision, and proof reading; and understanding the review process and criteria by which the proposal will be evaluated.