NEI Research Grant for Vision-Related Secondary Data Analysis (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 25 357

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 25 357

The NEI Research Grant for Vision-Related Secondary Data Analysis (PAR-25-357) is a National Institutes of Health funding opportunity from the National Eye Institute designed to support vision research that relies on secondary analysis of existing data. In practical terms, this program is meant for projects that do not need to collect new primary data from participants, but instead use already-available database resources to answer important questions about eye health, visual function, eye disease, and related outcomes. The award mechanism is an R21, which is typically used for exploratory or early-stage studies that can generate new insights, test novel ideas, or produce preliminary evidence that can set up a larger future project. This FOA is explicitly labeled "Clinical Trial Not Allowed," meaning applicants should not propose studies that meet NIH's definition of a clinical trial (for example, prospective assignment of people to an intervention to measure health-related outcomes). The emphasis is on analyzing existing datasets rather than running interventions.

A central goal of the announcement is to fund strong, high-impact projects that can extract new knowledge from established vision-related datasets, registries, cohorts, administrative claims data, electronic health record data, imaging repositories, public health surveillance systems, or other structured data resources that already exist. Alongside applied secondary analyses, the FOA also allows projects focused on developing or improving statistical methodology specifically relevant to analyzing vision health data. That means proposals can focus not only on what the data says about a vision question, but also on building better analytic approaches for common challenges in eye research data, such as handling complex longitudinal measures, correlated outcomes between eyes, imaging-derived variables, missing data patterns, bias and confounding in observational datasets, or harmonizing measures across multiple sources.

The opportunity is categorized as a discretionary grant within the health funding activity area and is listed under CFDA number 93.867. The sponsoring agency is NIH, and the funding instrument type is a grant. The posted original closing date is October 16, 2027, indicating that applications may be accepted over a multi-year window depending on NIH submission cycles and the specific due dates associated with the FOA. The source information provided does not specify an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, so applicants would need to consult the full FOA on NIH/Grants.gov for the most current budget limits, project period expectations, and any institute-specific funding considerations tied to R21 policies.

Eligibility is broad and includes many common applicant types across government, academia, nonprofit, and industry. Eligible applicants include state, county, 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 other than federally recognized governments; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions when applicable); for-profit organizations (other than small businesses); small businesses; and additional entities categorized as "other." The FOA also highlights additional eligible applicant categories, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions, Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, faith-based or community-based organizations, eligible federal agencies, U.S. territories or possessions, regional organizations, and even non-U.S. entities (foreign organizations), as well as Indian/Native American tribal governments other than federally recognized. Taken together, this makes the program accessible to a wide range of institutions and research teams, including those with strong ties to diverse communities and those positioned to analyze large real-world datasets.

Overall, this NEI R21 opportunity is best suited for investigators who can clearly define a compelling vision-related research question that can be answered with existing data, demonstrate access to and understanding of the dataset(s), and propose a rigorous analytic plan that addresses limitations typical of secondary data work. Competitive applications will generally make a strong case for why the selected dataset is appropriate, how the analysis will be performed to produce credible findings, and what new scientific or public health value will come from the work, whether that value is a new discovery about vision outcomes, stronger evidence on risk factors and disparities, improved measurement approaches, or new statistical tools that make future vision research using existing databases more accurate and informative.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NEI Research Grant for Vision-Related Secondary Data Analysis (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.867.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-01-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2027-10-16.
• 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.

Apply for PAR 25 357

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