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NIH Biosketch: NIH Biosketch

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What is the New NIH Biosketch?

The new biosketch was required beginning in 2015.  It:

  • extends the page limit from four to five
  • allows researchers to describe up to five most significant contributions to science, contributions that may have resulted in new cell lines, models, software, and curricula rather than published in papers.
  • includes a link to a complete list of the investigator's work stored in My NCBI's My Bibliography

Why?

NIH believes that the new biosketch will:

  • offer reviewers a better picture of a researcher's accomplishments and capabilities
  • help illuminate the downstream effects of scientific discovery
  • give younger investigators, with fewer published papers, a chance to document their preparation for the proposed grant work.

 

The new biosketch form, instructions, and an example are available at:

The "Contributions to Science" Section

  • Briefly describe up to five of your most significant contributions to science. For each contribution:
              -   indicate the historical background that frames the scientific problem
              -   the influence of the finding(s) on the progress of science or the application
                  health or technology
              -   your specific role in the described work
 
  • The description of each contribution should be no longer than one half page including figures and citations. 

 

  • For each contribution, list up to four relevant peer-reviewed publications or other non-publication research products, including audio or video products; patents; data and research materials; databases; educational aids or curricula; instruments or equipment; models; protocols; and software or netware that are relevant to the described contribution.

Each description can be accompanied by a listing of up to four relevant peer-reviewed publications or other non-publication research products, including audio or video products; patents; data and research materials; databases; educational aids or curricula; instruments or equipment; models; protocols; and software or netware that are relevant to the described contribution. - See more at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/notice-files/NOT-OD-15-024.html#sthash.QnAMEKbY.dpuf

Acknowledgement:

Some of the content on this page was copied, with permission, from the "NIH Biosketch" guide produced by the Bernard Becker Medical Library of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Creating a Biosketch Using My Bibliography and SciENcv

The NIH has created tools to help you track your publications, track your compliance with Public Access Policy, and create your personal NIH Biosketch.   

(1) My Bibliography stores records for your personal publications.  These records can be used as a source of the references you cite in your Biosketch's "Personal Statement", and "Contributions to Science" sections and are the basis for the publication list that must be linked in the "Contributions to Science" section.  Records for your publications gathered in My Bibliography are also be used to manage your compliance with Public Access Policy and to produce a "Public Access Policy Compliance Report."

(2). SciENcv is a tool for producing properly formatted biosketches for NIH and NSF grants.   SciENcv can import education/employment and grant information from an ERA or ORCID account or you can add this information manually.  

Example of the Modified Biosketch