Diversity and Scientific Excellence

As the NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices that are part of the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research and NIH BRAIN Initiative, we affirm our commitment to diversity and to positive change to eliminate racism in our community and in our organization. Research shows that diverse teams working together and capitalizing on innovative ideas and distinct perspectives outperform homogenous teams. Scientists and trainees from diverse backgrounds and life experiences bring different perspectives, creativity, and individual enterprise to address complex scientific problems. There are many benefits that flow from a diverse NIH-supported scientific workforce, including: fostering scientific innovation, enhancing global competitiveness, contributing to robust learning environments, improving the quality of the research, advancing the likelihood that underserved or health disparity populations participate in, and benefit from health research, and enhancing public trust.

Supporting Diversity and Scientific Excellence Across Career Stages

The following programs are supported by the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research and/or NIH BRAIN Initiative.

ENDURE Program (R25)

The Blueprint Enhancing Neuroscience Diversity through Undergraduate Research Education Experiences (ENDURE) program aims to raise interest and opportunities in neuroscience research for individuals who are typically underrepresented in the field. The goal is to provide such individuals with training at the undergraduate level, so that they are prepared to enter and successfully complete neuroscience Ph.D. programs.  

• ENDURE Webpage
• Awardees

D-SPAN Award (F99/K00)

The purpose of the NIH Blueprint Diversity Specialized Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Advancement in Neuroscience (D-SPAN) Award is to support a defined pathway across career stages for outstanding graduate students who are from diverse backgrounds underrepresented in neuroscience research. This two-phase award will facilitate completion of the doctoral dissertation and transition of talented graduate students to strong neuroscience research postdoctoral positions, and will provide career development opportunities relevant to their long-term career goal of becoming independent neuroscience researchers.

• D-SPAN Webpage
• Awardees

BRAIN K99/R00 Award

The purpose of the NIH BRAIN Initiative Advanced Postdoctoral Career Transition Award to Promote Diversity program is to enhance workforce diversity in the neuroscience workforce and maintain a strong cohort of new and talented, NIH-supported, independent investigators from diverse backgrounds in BRAIN Initiative research areas. This program is designed to facilitate a timely transition of outstanding postdoctoral researchers with a research and/or clinical doctorate degree from mentored, postdoctoral research positions to independent, tenure-track or equivalent faculty positions.

• BRAIN K99/R00 Webpage
• Awardees

BRAIN Diversity Supplements

The NIH BRAIN Initiative Research Supplements to Promote Diversity are administrative supplements to currently active BRAIN grants to support the training of underrepresented individuals and enhance the diversity of the research workforce.

• Diversity Supplements Webpage

Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (PEDP)

Beginning in Spring 2021, the NIH BRAIN Initiative will include a new component in most notices of funding opportunities (NOFOs) requiring that applications include a Plan for Enhancing Diverse Perspectives (PEDP) in the proposed research. When a PEDP is required, applications submitted without such a plan will be considered incomplete and will be withdrawn prior to peer review. Evaluation of the applicant’s PEDP will be made during the peer review stages as part of the scorable criteria and during programmatic reviews and will be used to inform funding decisions.

• PEDP Webpage
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Key Elements and Examples

FIRST Program (U54 and U24)

The NIH Common Fund Faculty Institutional Recruitment for Sustainable Transformation (FIRST) program will provide support to institutions to recruit diverse groups or “cohorts” of early-stage research faculty and prepare them to thrive as NIH-funded researchers. Progress has been made to increase participation of historically underrepresented groups in biomedical research training stages, however members of these groups are still less likely to be hired into positions as independently-funded faculty researchers, according to previous studies. These groups include underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, individuals with disabilities, individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, and women.

• FIRST Webpage
• Press Release

Individual Institute/Center Commitments to Diversity

Each NIH Institute and Center (IC) that participates in the NIH BRAIN Initiative and/or the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research is committed to diversity. Visit the NIH Diversity Offices website or any individual IC link listed below for more information.

• National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
• National Eye Institute (NEI)
• National Institute on Aging (NIA)
• National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
• National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA)
• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
• National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
• National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Statements from BRAIN and Blueprint Leadership

2023

Neurological Health Equity: Research for All – August 15, 2023
Walter J. Koroshetz, NINDS Director

Supporting the Mental Health Needs of Hispanic and Latino Youth – July 10, 2023
Joshua A. Gordon, NIMH Director

Mental Health Equity – June 19, 2023
Joshua A. Gordon, NIMH Director

2022

2021

2020