ForecastedResearch announcementOpportunity PAR-29-004

Limited Competition: Biomedical Research Environment & Sponsored Programs Administration Development (BRE-SPAD) Program

National Institutes of Health · Department of Health and Human Services

At a glance

Limited Competition: Biomedical Research Environment & Sponsored Programs Administration Development (BRE-SPAD) Program is a forecasted federal cooperative agreement opportunity from the National Institutes of Health (Department of Health and Human Services). The agency's forecast estimates an application due date of January 27, 2028; forecast dates can change. Applicant types listed as eligible include public colleges & universities, federally recognized tribal governments, native american tribal organizations, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status and 1 more. Cost sharing is not required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 93.859 (Biomedical Research and Research Training).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

May 26, 2026Forecast posted
Nov 27, 2027 (est.)Full notice expectednext date
Jan 27, 2028 (est.)Application deadline
Dec 1, 2028 (est.)Est. award date

Posted: May 26, 2026
Est. close date: Jan 27, 2028
Est. award date: Dec 1, 2028
Award floor: Not specified
Award ceiling: Not specified
Est. total funding: Not specified
Expected awards: Not specified
Cost sharing: Not required
Funding instrument: Cooperative Agreement
Opportunity category: Discretionary
Fiscal year: FY2029

Typical awards for this program (SAM.gov listing for ALN 93.859, not this notice): $20,000 to $10,000,000.

Who can apply

Public colleges & universities
Federally recognized tribal governments
Native American tribal organizations
501(c)(3) nonprofits
Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status
Private colleges & universities

Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)

The following applicants are eligible:Historically Black College or University (HBCU) (see 20 U.S.C. 1061(2)), ORTribal entity defined as:A federally recognized AI/AN Tribe, as defined under 25 U.S.C. 1603(14); orA Tribal college or university, a Tribal health program, or a Tribal organization as defined under 25 U.S.C. 1603 (24), (25), and (26), respectively; orA consortium of two or more of those Tribal entities, ORResource-limited institutions with limited NIH Research Project Grant Funding

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The Biomedical Research Environment & Sponsored Programs Administration Development (BRE-SPAD) Program supports resource-limited institutions to develop and strengthen their capacity to conduct rigorous and reproducible biomedical research.

Eligible organizations are expected to propose plans based on identified needs in one or more of the following areas: biomedical research environment, sponsored programs administration and a post-award pilot research project program. By supporting research capacity building at resource-limited institutions, the BRE-SPAD program will expand and strengthen the pool of faculty and trainees conducting rigorous biomedical research, and the organizational settings where NIH-funded research is performed.

This is a Forecast for a Limited Competition that will invite applications from eligible organizations to apply. Please see the Eligibility Section for additional information. In accordance with NIH standard peer-review processes, the applications will be peer-reviewed, and only meritorious applications will be considered for funding.

How to apply

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Read the full announcement (NOFO)Eligibility, evaluation criteria, page limits and required attachments are in the full notice on Grants.gov. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type above; no cost sharing is required.
Register (or renew) in SAM.gov and get a UEIFree. New registrations can take several weeks; registrations must be renewed every year. Open ↗
Set up Grants.gov accessCreate a Grants.gov account and make sure someone has the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) role. Open ↗
Watch for the full noticeThe agency estimates posting it around November 27, 2027. Save this grant to track changes.
Prepare narrative, budget and attachmentsFollow the notice's format exactly — page limits and required forms are common reasons applications are rejected.
Ask the agency contact any questions earlyNIGMS BRE-SPAD Program Contacts · NIGMSBRE-SPAD@nigms.nih.gov Open ↗
Submit before January 27, 2028Submit a few days early and keep your Grants.gov confirmation and validation emails.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

93.859Biomedical Research and Research TrainingProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 93.859

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$3.09B

FY25

$3.09B

FY26

$3.09B est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 93.859. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Who was funded under ALN 93.859

Historical data · not a prediction

Since October 1, 2023, 12,742 grant awards had funding actions under Biomedical Research and Research Training, with 2,582 sub-awards passed on to other organizations. These are program-wide awards, not awards from this specific notice.

THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY$185M
REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN$173M
YALE UNIV$161M
UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN SYSTEM$150M
THE JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY$149M

Recipients, states, recent awards and sub-awards →Source: USAspending.gov.

Agency contact (as published)

NIGMS BRE-SPAD Program Contacts
NIGMSBRE-SPAD@nigms.nih.gov
Please contact via email.

Quick answers

Is this opportunity open for applications yet?

Not yet. It is a forecast — an agency's advance notice of an expected opportunity. The agency estimates posting the full notice around November 27, 2027. Forecast details and dates can change.

Who is eligible to apply for this opportunity?

The official notice names these applicant types as eligible: Public colleges & universities, Federally recognized tribal governments, Native American tribal organizations, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status and Private colleges & universities. Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.

How do I apply for this opportunity?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity PAR-29-004), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

OpenResearchALN 93.859