2026 Regional Pilot & Feasibility FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

timeline: 

Letter of intent (LOI) deadline: Tuesday, July 07, 2026, 11:59pm

Full Proposal Submission deadline: Tuesday, September 08, 2026, 5 pm

Earliest Start date: January 1st, 2027

funding:

Applicants may request UP TO $70,000 in total costs (including indirects) for one-year duration under this program. Final awarded funding amount will be contingent on the availability of funds and the decision of the Review Committee

Pilot and Feasibility Program Directors

Purpose

The Stanford Diabetes Research Center (SDRC) is soliciting new Pilot and Feasibility (P&F) Projects. The focus of the SDRC P&F Program is to provide seed funds to help develop early-stage investigators as well as support innovative and/or high-risk proposals from established investigators involved in any aspect of diabetes related research, including but not limited to basic sciences, translational research, clinical research, economics and population sciences. The SDRC is committed to supporting diabetes research within and beyond Stanford University.

The SDRC P&F program is primarily supported by the P30 center grant awarded by NIH/NIDDK and has supported 96 pilot projects since 2016. Institutional funds have also been used to supplement some of the projects.

The Stanford Diabetes Research Center (SDRC) is also encouraging submission of AI-focused proposals in diabetes research for our 2026 Regional Pilot & Feasibility (P&F) Program. For these AI-focused proposals, preference will be given to those that apply AI-based methodologies to diabetes-related datasets to deliver insights into diabetes pathogenesis, prevention or treatment.

  • Not supported: Projects focused solely on AI methodological development.

  • Encouraged: Diabetes investigators with AI/diabetes focus on their proposal and AI methods developers applying their tools to diabetes relevant data, with a current SDRC member as a co-investigator

Eligibility

  • UC Berkeley or UC Davis investigators (with faculty appts.) with M.D., M.D./Ph.D., or PhD. degrees.

  • Each applicant must have at least two years of full-time laboratory/clinical research experience after receiving their advanced degree.

  • Applications from established investigators new to diabetes research are also encouraged.

  • Applications from established investigators with innovative diabetes-related research proposals are also encouraged.

    IMPORTANT: Please note that all projects must be focused on diabetes and diabetes-related research. We also ask that applicants be mindful of the latest NIH guidelines. As the SDRC is funded by the NIH/NIDDK, we are required to ensure full compliance with current and evolving NIH policies, particularly as they pertain to the Pilot & Feasibility (P&F) Award Program.

    Preference will be given to:

    1) Early career investigators: Assistant Professors who have a high potential for extramural funding in the near future, and to achieve independent status

    2) Applications using core services at Stanford not available at the applicant's home institution (U.C. Davis or U.C. Berkeley). Please reach out to the SDRC Program manager at jsarthi@stanford.edu to inquire about access to the research cores for your project.

    3) Applications that focus on translational studies of diabetes prevention and control.

    * Note: Though collaborative proposals involving investigators from other institutions, including Stanford University, are permitted, budget allocation for such investigators will NOT be approved. Funding must be entirely used to support research at UC Davis or UC Berkeley only.


Submitting an Application

Full application submission guidelines:

Application deadline: Tuesday, September 08, 2026, 5 pm

Please use the Application smartsheet link below to submit your application.

P&F Application Form

Upload one PDF containing the following in the order listed below:

Please follow the instructions carefully as incomplete applications will not be sent out for peer review.

File name:LastName_NameOfInstitution_P&F.pdf

1) Title Page

  • Stanford Diabetes Research Center Pilot and Feasibility Projects Project title

  • Project leader and co-investigators’ name, title, department, institution and complete contact information

  • Type of Proposal: Basic/Clinical/Translational/Prevention and Control (may be multiple)

  • Topic: Diabetes/Obesity/Endocrinology/Autoimmunity/Transplantation/Related complications (may be multiple)

  • Abstract: Describe aims and objectives of your research

  • Impact of award: Please state how your work aligns with the goals of the SDRC P&F scheme and why this work cannot be funded from other sources.

  • List of potential reviewers: Name up to three potential reviewers and emails outside of your host institution

2)Research Proposal

3-page description of proposed research:

  • Research proposal should be not more than 3 pages in length*. Figures are included in this page limit.

  • Format: single-spaced, ½ inch margins, Arial or Helvetica font size 11 or larger

  • Research plan with relevant illustrations

  • Description of research subjects involved (both human or animal)

  • Description of interdisciplinary characteristics of this project

  • Explanation of how the proposed research fits into diabetes related research

(*note: references are not included in the page limit)

3) Detailed budget for UP TO $70,000 including indirect costs Use PHS 398 budget form available for downloading from this NIH webpage: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html

4) Budget justification - Please note that no more than 10% of PI salary may be included in the proposed budget

5) Biosketches (SciENcv NIH format*) for the Project Leader and Co-Investigators SciENcv NIH biosketch: https://grants.nih.gov/grants-process/write-application/forms-directory/biographical-sketch-common-form

6) Other Support (also SciENcv NIH format*). Please include both active and pending support. SciENcv OS: https://grants.nih.gov/grants-process/write-application/forms-directory/cpos-common-form

7) Compliance Documents Please note that awarded projects are expected to begin only after the submission, receipt, and approval of all required compliance documentation such as IRB/APLAC approvals.

8) Agreement to provide progress reports and required presentations on P&F Project Progress to the SDRC.

9) Please state whether you have previously applied for a SDRC P&F award (YES/NO)

Please note: Proposals can be submitted directly using the application smartsheet form when openfollowing the internal application approval process at your home institution. Once funded, the issued sub-award will go through the institutional (U.C.) grants office (CGO) for contract signatures.

Inquiries

Applicants are welcome to discuss their proposed plans in response to this solicitation. While submission of an Letter of Intent (LOI) via the provided link is not required for consideration, it is highly recommended. Please direct any other inquiries to diabetescenter@stanford.edu.

Selection process

The SDRC P&F Review Committeewill review and recommend action on all Pilot and Feasibility Project applications.