Institutional Training Programs to Advance Translational Research on Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias (T32) | PAR 21 112

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 21 112

The NIH grant opportunity titled "Institutional Training Programs to Advance Translational Research on Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias (T32)" (Funding Opportunity Number PAR-21-112) is a discretionary grant designed to strengthen the workforce needed to move Alzheimer's and related dementias research from early scientific ideas to real-world clinical advances. The central goal is workforce development: building a diverse, highly trained, interdisciplinary pipeline of researchers who can work across the full translational spectrum, from target discovery and preclinical studies through clinical development.

This FOA specifically supports institutional T32 training programs, meaning the funding goes to organizations that will run structured training environments rather than to individual trainees. These programs are intended to support both predoctoral and postdoctoral researchers, recognizing that translational Alzheimer's research needs talent at multiple career stages. A key feature is that trainees can come from varied educational and technical backgrounds, including basic biology and neuroscience, translational and clinical research, and data science. The expectation is that participating institutions will intentionally blend these perspectives into a coherent program so trainees learn to communicate and collaborate across disciplines, which is often essential in drug discovery, biomarker development, and clinical translation.

Programmatically, NIH is looking for institutions to propose training that equips participants with practical and conceptual skills spanning data science, disease biology, behavioral research, and both traditional and emerging drug discovery disciplines. In practice, this signals an interest in training plans that go beyond classical bench science alone and include exposure to modern analytics (for example, computational methods and complex datasets), the biological underpinnings of AD/ADRD, and the behavioral and clinical dimensions that shape how dementia is studied and treated in real populations. The emphasis on "rigorous and cutting-edge basic, translational, and clinical research" suggests NIH expects strong mentorship, well-defined curricula or training activities, and an environment that prepares trainees to contribute to therapeutics development and related translational outcomes.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of domestic organizations that can administer NIH training grants. Eligible applicants include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; independent school districts; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations (including those other than federally recognized governments); public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with and without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and other categories as allowed by NIH. The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicants such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISI), faith-based or community-based organizations, Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), regional organizations, and eligible federal agencies. This emphasis aligns with the stated goal of developing a diverse workforce and encourages applications from institutions that serve historically underrepresented or underserved communities.

At the same time, there are clear restrictions related to foreign involvement. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, including foreign organizations and foreign institutions, are not eligible to apply. In addition, non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are not eligible to apply under this announcement. In other words, the applicant organization and the supported institutional training program must be domestic, and the program cannot be run through an overseas component of a U.S.-based institution.

Administrative details provided in the source information include that the sponsoring agency is the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the CFDA (now commonly referred to under assistance listings) number is 93.866, the opportunity was created on 2021-01-22, and the original closing date listed is 2023-09-25. The funding instrument type is a grant, and the activity category is health. An award ceiling is not specified in the provided data, and the expected number of awards is not listed. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as NIH support for institutions to build or strengthen structured, interdisciplinary AD/ADRD translational training programs that produce researchers capable of bridging discovery science, data-driven approaches, and clinical development.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Institutional Training Programs to Advance Translational Research on Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD-Related Dementias (T32)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.866.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-01-22.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-09-25. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

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