{"id":15028,"date":"2026-05-28T09:56:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T13:56:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/?p=15028"},"modified":"2026-05-28T09:56:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T13:56:19","slug":"implementing-simplernofo-at-nih-a-clearer-simpler-path-for-applicants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/implementing-simplernofo-at-nih-a-clearer-simpler-path-for-applicants\/","title":{"rendered":"Implementing SimplerNOFO at NIH: A Clearer, Simpler Path for Applicants"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 data-section-id=\"1fvkh7i\" data-start=\"3012\" data-end=\"3035\">What is SimplerNOFO?<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"3037\" data-end=\"3108\">This is part of a broader HHS initiative to make funding announcements:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3109\" data-end=\"3176\">\n<li data-section-id=\"luwvhg\" data-start=\"3109\" data-end=\"3126\">easier to read,<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1kqj5ht\" data-start=\"3127\" data-end=\"3148\">easier to navigate,<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"19vnnx1\" data-start=\"3149\" data-end=\"3176\">and easier to respond to.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"3217\" data-end=\"3280\">NIH has started rolling out redesigned NOFOs using this format.<\/p>\n<p>What changes will applicants notice?<\/p>\n<h2 data-section-id=\"1nxpqb5\" data-start=\"3327\" data-end=\"3350\">A. Clearer structure<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"3351\" data-end=\"3381\">NIH is redesigning NOFOs with:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3382\" data-end=\"3500\">\n<li data-section-id=\"1679duu\" data-start=\"3382\" data-end=\"3397\">more headings<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"ra62wg\" data-start=\"3398\" data-end=\"3418\">shorter paragraphs<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"4a81pp\" data-start=\"3419\" data-end=\"3441\">clearer instructions<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1izpj5r\" data-start=\"3442\" data-end=\"3454\">checklists<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"fci4mf\" data-start=\"3455\" data-end=\"3476\">visual organization<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1e5lpke\" data-start=\"3477\" data-end=\"3500\">simplified navigation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 data-section-id=\"1gfqzme\" data-start=\"3546\" data-end=\"3595\">B. More user-friendly application instructions<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"3596\" data-end=\"3635\">The goal is to reduce confusion around:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3636\" data-end=\"3720\">\n<li data-section-id=\"ieciyj\" data-start=\"3636\" data-end=\"3655\">required sections<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1lp4yap\" data-start=\"3656\" data-end=\"3674\">submission steps<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"fxeylh\" data-start=\"3675\" data-end=\"3688\">eligibility<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"k6sza9\" data-start=\"3689\" data-end=\"3706\">review criteria<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1tbntxe\" data-start=\"3707\" data-end=\"3720\">attachments<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"3722\" data-end=\"3753\">This is especially helpful for:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3754\" data-end=\"3845\">\n<li data-section-id=\"kzqbea\" data-start=\"3754\" data-end=\"3773\">new investigators<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"17vpbt3\" data-start=\"3774\" data-end=\"3796\">smaller institutions<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1ngpjwm\" data-start=\"3797\" data-end=\"3817\">community partners<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1om5dwq\" data-start=\"3818\" data-end=\"3845\">first-time NIH applicants<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 data-section-id=\"1kt0fg3\" data-start=\"3852\" data-end=\"3889\">C. Standardization across agencies<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"3890\" data-end=\"3992\">SimplerNOFO is part of a broader federal effort to create more consistency across grant announcements.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3994\" data-end=\"4037\">Expect future NIH NOFOs to gradually adopt:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"4038\" data-end=\"4114\">\n<li data-section-id=\"pjpyqu\" data-start=\"4038\" data-end=\"4066\">more standardized language<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1dmk43n\" data-start=\"4067\" data-end=\"4093\">more predictable layouts<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1xyqnkd\" data-start=\"4094\" data-end=\"4114\">cleaner formatting<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Why this matters strategically<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4194\" data-end=\"4281\">For research development and grantsmanship training, this is actually a positive shift.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4283\" data-end=\"4376\">It aligns with many of the same principles you\u2019ve been emphasizing in your own training work:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"4377\" data-end=\"4505\">\n<li data-section-id=\"18y2i8u\" data-start=\"4377\" data-end=\"4395\">reducing jargon,<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"n2dl91\" data-start=\"4396\" data-end=\"4422\">improving accessibility,<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1jfvr25\" data-start=\"4423\" data-end=\"4454\">simplifying grant navigation,<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"3vu5na\" data-start=\"4455\" data-end=\"4505\">and creating clearer guidance for faculty\/staff.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"4507\" data-end=\"4618\">This may also reduce some of the \u201chidden instruction\u201d issues that historically trip up applicants in NIH NOFOs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Learn more here:<\/strong>\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/grants.nih.gov\/news-events\/nih-extramural-nexus-news\/2026\/05\/implementing-simplernofo-at-nih-a-clearer-simpler-path-for-applicants\">https:\/\/grants.nih.gov\/news-events\/nih-extramural-nexus-news\/2026\/05\/implementing-simplernofo-at-nih-a-clearer-simpler-path-for-applicants<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is SimplerNOFO? This is part of a broader HHS initiative to make funding announcements: easier to read, easier to navigate, and easier to respond to. NIH has started rolling out redesigned NOFOs using this format. What changes will applicants notice? A. Clearer structure NIH is redesigning NOFOs with: more headings shorter paragraphs clearer instructions<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":792,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"fimg_url":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15028","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/792"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15028"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15028\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15030,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15028\/revisions\/15030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/murc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}