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Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR)

A Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) is required at least annually as part of the non-competing renewal (Type 5) award process and it must be submitted through the eRA Commons. Only the PI or their delegate may initiate an RPPR in the eRA Commons. If there are multiple PIs, only the contact PI (or their delegate) may initiate the report. The report must be received and approved by NCI program and grants management staff prior to funding for each subsequent budget period within a previously approved competing project period. The Notice of Award (NoA) will specify if a progress report is due following a different schedule.

The RPPR should document recipient accomplishments and compliance with the terms of award. It should describe scientific progress, identify significant changes, report on personnel, and describe plans for the subsequent budget period.

If additional information is required after submission of the progress report, NCI may initiate a Progress Report Additional Materials (PRAM) request. The PI and the business official will be copied on the notification and a PRAM link will be provided in the eRA Commons to submit the additional information online.

Find out which progress reports are due

Who Reviews the Progress Report?

Program directors review the RPPR to determine whether scientific progress is adequate to justify continued support in non-competing years. When all requirements are satisfied, an award for the next budget period may be issued. This process is repeated each year of the project period.

A grants management specialist (GMS) will also review all noncompeting progress reports, including those in the Streamlined Noncompeting Award Process (SNAP) population.

It is important to note that submitting an RPPR on time, but without required information, results in extra work for both NCI staff and the recipient. In addition, the submission of incomplete applications frequently delays issuance of an award.

Progress Report Deadlines

RPPRs for awards subject to SNAP are due the 15th of the month preceding the month when the budget period ends. Fellowship and non-SNAP award progress reports are due two months before the beginning of the next budget period. All annual progress reports except for the final progress report and Type 4s (administrative extensions, Small Business Innovation Research/ Small Business Technology Transfer [SBIR/STTR]  Fast-Track Phase II) must be submitted electronically using the eRA Commons Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) module. Recipients will receive email notification reminders and see a list of Progress Reports that are due using the eRA Commons ‘Status’ page. These activities continue to use the PHS 398 or PHS 2590 Progress Report as defined by the terms of award.

A limited number of grants are Multi-Year Funded (MYF) Awards which means the project and budget periods are the same and are longer than one year. Progress reports for MYF are submitted using the RPPR and are due on the anniversary date of the award.

Other factors related to a specific grant may add additional requirements. For example, if working with human subjects, a certification of Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval must be submitted annually. Likewise if working with research animals, a certification of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) approval is required every three years. Grants Management staff review and monitor the submission of these certifications.

Resources

Public Access

Anyone submitting an application or progress report, must comply with the NIH Public Access Policy. To advance science and improve human health, the NIH requires that scientists submit final peer-reviewed journal manuscripts that arise from NIH funds to PubMed Central immediately upon acceptance for publication. Anyone submitting an application or report (including the Progress Report) to NIH must include the PubMed Central ID (PMCID) when citing applicable papers that they author or that arise from their NIH-funded research.

My NCBI

Recipients must set up an account in the "My NCBI" system to manage their bibliographies and publications. The eRA Commons system is linked to the My NCBI system so that recipients can manage all papers in My NCBI. Recipients must link their eRA Commons account to have papers available for selection in the eRA Commons when completing an RPPR.

Non-competing continuation applications (Type 5) recipients should use My NCBI to report papers.

My NCBI Codes

There are four codes that My NCBI may apply that are acceptable for compliance:

  • Complete
  • N/A (not applicable)
  • PMC Journal in Process
  • In process at NIHMS

If the code shows "Non-compliant" in My NCBI, then it will show as non-compliant in the RPPR and will not be acceptable. The recipient must correct the publication to a compliant status before the progress report can be successfully submitted to NIH or approved by NIH staff.

Competing Applications

In competing applications (including Renewal applications – Type 2s) and everywhere else the recipient wishes to cite papers he/she authored or that arose from NIH funding and are subject to the public access policy, (including biosketches):

  • Include the PubMed Central reference number (PMCID) at the end of the citation.
  • Place the Literature Citations in the appropriate location. Locations vary depending on the application type. (See Guide Notice NOT-OD-08-119 for details)

PMCID Vs. PMID

PubMed Central is an index of full-text papers and the PMCID links to those full-text papers. This is the requirement for NIH applications and reporting. The PMID is a link to an abstract only in PubMed. It is not part of the NIH Public Access Policy and does not meet compliance requirements.

Resources

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