NIH K Grant Consultation Service
This consultation service provides support for writing career development awards, both new submissions and resubmissions.
If You Are Submitting for the First Time
This service aims to strengthen participants’ grant-writing skills, foster experience in peer review and writing groups that participants can carry back to their home institutions, and build a supportive community throughout the K grant/career development award application process.
If selected, participant support includes the following:
- October 2026: Peer review of a draft Specific Aims (SA) page in one of the virtual two-hour group meetings listed below. Meetings and review discussions will be led by a Harvard Catalyst Distinguished Mentor (DM)
- October 5 | 2:00-4:00pm
- October 13 | 9:00-11:00am
- October 13 | 3:30-5:30pm
- October 15 | 1:00-3:00pm
- October 2026: Second peer-review meeting to review edits to SA pages two weeks after the initial peer review, led by a DM.
- October 19 | 2:00-4:00pm
- October 21 | 11:00am-1:00pm
- October 27 | 2:00-4:00pm
- October 29 | 2:00-4:00pm
- November 2026: Participation in a series of K grant writers’ forums
- November 2 | 12:00-1:00pm
- November 16 | 12:00-1:00pm
- November 30 | 12:00-1:00pm
- December 2026: Peer review of a draft career development plan in a virtual two-hour group meeting, led by a DM.
- December 7 | 2:00-4:00pm
- December 8 | 9:00-11:00am
- December 9 | 3:15-5:15pm
- December 10 | 2:00-4:00pm
Participants will be placed into the above meetings, based on the availability provided in their application. Please note that the feedback provided in this service will be limited to writing and grantsmanship. This service does not provide a review of the full grant application or the science proposed.
This service will help prepare NIH K grant applicants for participation in a Mock Study Section Review, hosted by Harvard Catalyst.
Eligibility
To be considered for this service, applicants must:
- Be based at a Harvard-affiliated institution.
- Be planning to submit a NIH K grant or equivalent career development award application for the February 2027 deadline.
- Have a fully-written draft of their specific aims page ready to submit.
The service is free for Harvard-affiliated schools and institutions. Eligible applications will be selected based on completeness of their Specific Aims draft and availability for meetings. Applicants will be informed of the status of their application within 1 week of the application deadline.
Preparation
Applicants should be prepared to attach a fully-written draft of their Specific Aims page to the application. We strongly recommend that the draft be pre-reviewed by a mentor before taking part in this service. Before applicants submit their draft Specific Aims page, they must review the recommendations laid out on the NIH K Grant Specific Aims Page Checklist (PDF).
The first component of this service is participation in a peer review of the participant’s Specific Aims page in a DM-led writing group via Zoom.
Cite Us
Have you received a consultation from Harvard Catalyst? Remember to cite us in your publications.
Application for First-Time Grant Submissions
Applications are due by September 16, 2026 at 5:00pm EST.
If You Are Resubmitting
If selected, participant support includes the following:
- September/October 2026: Peer review of your Summary Statement and draft Introduction in one of the virtual two-hour group meetings listed below. Meetings and review discussions will be led by a Harvard Catalyst Distinguished Mentor (DM)
- September 29 | 9:00-11:00am
- September 30 | 3:00-5:00pm
- October 1 | 1:00-3:00pm
- October 2 | 11:00am-1:00pm
Participants will be placed into the above meetings, based on the availability provided in their application.
The main component of this service is participation in a peer review of their Introduction in a DM-led writing group hosted on Zoom. The focus of this review is on how the applicant responds to the feedback provided in the Summary Statement. This service will not provide a review of the full grant application or the science proposed.
Eligibility
To be considered for this service, applicants must:
- Be based at a Harvard-affiliated institution.
- Be planning to submit a NIH K grant resubmission for the November 2026 deadline.
- Have a Summary Statement and Introduction, both ready to submit.
The service is free for Harvard-affiliated schools and institutions. Eligible applications will be selected based on completeness of their Summary Statements and Introductions and availability for meetings. Applicants will be informed of the status of their application within one week of the application deadline.
Preparation
Applicants should be prepared to attach their Summary Statement and draft Introduction to the application. We strongly recommend that the draft be pre-reviewed by a mentor before taking part in this service.
The main component of this service is participation in a peer review of the participant’s Summary Statement and Introduction in a DM-led writing group via Zoom.
Cite Us
Have you received a consultation from Harvard Catalyst? Remember to cite us in your publications.