Limited Competition: Basic Instrumentation Grant (BIG) Program (S10 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) | PAR 24 326

Opportunity Information: Apply for PAR 24 326

The NIH Basic Instrumentation Grant (BIG) Program (PAR-24-326) is a limited-competition S10 opportunity designed to help research institutions buy one major piece of scientific equipment (or an integrated instrumentation system) that is too expensive or specialized for a single lab to reasonably purchase on its own. The focus is on shared-use instruments that will directly support a group of investigators who already hold NIH research support, strengthening the institution's ability to carry out NIH-funded biomedical or behavioral research. Clinical trials are not allowed under this funding opportunity.

A key feature of this program is that eligibility is restricted based on an institution's recent S10 instrumentation funding history. Specifically, an institution can only apply if it has not received aggregate S10 instrumentation awards totaling $500,001 or more in any of the preceding three Federal fiscal years. NIH also spells out how to check those three-year windows depending on when you plan to submit: for submissions in calendar year (CY) 2026, you look back at federal FYs 2023-2025; for submissions in CY 2027, you look at FYs 2024-2026; and for submissions in CY 2028, you look at FYs 2025-2027. This structure is meant to keep the competition focused on institutions that have not recently received large S10 instrumentation investments, effectively spreading equipment support more broadly across the research community.

Funding through BIG is intended specifically for the purchase of a single new, commercially available instrument or system, meaning the core budget driver is the equipment itself. The award floor is $25,000, and while NIH notes there is no maximum price limit for the instrument (you could request a very expensive piece of equipment), the maximum NIH award amount is capped at $350,000. In practice, that means institutions seeking equipment above the cap need to cover the remainder through other non-NIH sources, cost sharing, or institutional funds, consistent with the program's expectation that the S10 award helps enable acquisition rather than necessarily paying the full purchase price.

The types of equipment supported are broadly defined but emphasize widely used, high-impact shared instruments that can serve multiple NIH-funded projects. Examples provided include basic cell sorters, confocal microscopes, ultramicrotomes, gel imaging systems, and computer systems, but the wording makes clear the list is illustrative rather than exhaustive. The central idea is that the instrument should be specialized, costly, and important enough that a shared resource model makes sense, with clear benefits across a group of NIH-supported investigators.

Eligible applicant organizations include a range of U.S.-based entities commonly able to receive NIH grants: public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, and nonprofit organizations (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)). The opportunity also explicitly highlights eligibility for several categories of institutions that serve specific communities, including Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), and Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs). At the same time, NIH makes the domestic requirement strict: non-U.S. (foreign) organizations are not eligible to apply, non-U.S. components of U.S. organizations are not eligible, and foreign components (as NIH defines them in its Grants Policy Statement) are not allowed.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant opportunity from the National Institutes of Health, associated with CFDA numbers 93.351 and 93.859. The listing shows an original closing date of 2027-06-01. Overall, the BIG Program is best understood as a targeted NIH mechanism for expanding access to essential shared research instrumentation at institutions that have not recently received large S10 equipment awards, with a clear funding range ($25,000 to $350,000) and a narrow purpose centered on purchasing a single major instrument that will serve multiple NIH-funded users.

• The National Institutes of Health in the health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Limited Competition: Basic Instrumentation Grant (BIG) Program (S10 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): 93.351, 93.859.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-10-29.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2027-06-01.
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, 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, Others.

Apply for PAR 24 326

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