Explore the CDMRP – DoD competitive research grants

Alongside the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is among the top three funders of academic research and development. The Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) is by far the largest funder of biomedical research within the DoD.

In contrast with DoD’s core programs, the CDMRP is not included in the President’s budget. Rather, funding for CDMRP is added to the DoD’s budget by the U.S. Congress through line-item appropriations. Today, CDMRP encompasses nearly 40 research programs, including a wide variety of cancer research, military medical research, and disease- and injury-specific research. It is important to keep in mind that while some research topics are supported by the CDMRP year after year, other topics may drop off the list temporarily or permanently based on congressional prioritization.

There are several hallmarks of the CDMRP:

• Investing in groundbreaking research
• Targeting critical gaps
• Supporting researchers at various career stages
• Funding the full pipeline of research development, including basic, translational, and clinical research
• Fostering (or employing) collaboration and synergy
• Consumer engagement

How does the review process differ from the NIH?

CDMRP utilizes a two-tier review process that consists of a peer review and a programmatic review. Because research topics can change from year to year, programmatic panels frequently include ad hoc reviewers to ensure that they have the correct expertise to provide a fair review and recommendation. There are no standing study sections. Consumers are involved with all aspects of proposal review, having the same voting rights as the scientists and clinicians who serve as reviewers. The consumer perspective underscores the main thrust of CDMRP, which seeks to fund groundbreaking research that fills a critical gap and that has potential to be translated into more effective clinical care for service members, veterans, their family members, and the public.

How do you find CDMRP opportunities?

The CDMRP makes use of pre-announcements to alert the research community of an upcoming funding opportunity release. The best way to keep up-to-date on CDMRP’s funding opportunities is to subscribe to program-specific news and updates by signing up for Electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal news releases.

What is the importance of pre-announcements?

The CDMRP has started to release pre-announcements for the federal fiscal year 2025 and will continue to release pre-announcements through Spring 2025. Pre-announcements are similar to NIH notices, which announce the DoD’s intention to release a funding opportunity announcement at a future date. Pre-announcements are intended to give investigators time to plan and develop ideas for submission to anticipated funding opportunities. It is important to keep an eye out for pre-announcements because most CDMRPs offer a short lead time to prepare full applications after a funding announcement is released.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Research Development’s CDMRP primer
• CDMRP’s portfolio of funded projects
• CDMRP programs
• The CDMRP also has a fairly robust YouTube channel with videos that provide a comprehensive overview of the CDMRP and how to apply.

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